Thoughts on Luke - Day 51

                                         Luke 11:29-36

As the crowds increased, Jesus said, “This is a wicked generation. It asks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah. ³⁰ For as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so also will the Son of Man be to this generation. ³¹ The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the people of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon’s wisdom; and now something greater than Solomon is here. ³² The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and now something greater than Jonah is here.
³³ “No one lights a lamp and puts it in a place where it will be hidden, or under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, so that those who come in may see the light. ³⁴ Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are healthy, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are unhealthy,your body also is full of darkness. ³⁵ See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness. ³⁶ Therefore, if your whole body is full of light, and no part of it dark, it will be just as full of light as when a lamp shines its light on you.”


        Ever been asked, "What's your sign?" Do they even do that anymore? Believe me, it used to be big and Christians, since we believe that God is in control and determines our lives' outcomes not the Zodiac, came up with many witty and lame answers to this. This passage talks about signs - not those kinds, but the signs that come with believing in Christ. In the apostolic days those were healing, prophecies, tongues and supernatural manifestations but now I believe that they are the signs of a changed life.

        Jesus gave them a sign of the power of the Kingdom of God when He died and three days later rose from the dead. Sure, the healings and miracles were signs but when Jesus was asked to do them to prove He was the Messiah, He wouldn't - He just referred to the ultimate sign of who He was - His death and resurrection.

          Jonah was swallowed by a fish, probably bleached and pilocarped by fish stomach acid, spewed out on shore, probably in the sight of on-lookers, and preached to the people of Ninevah to repent - and they did! This passage says that it was not as much his message that made them repent but the sign that a man was vomited from a fish and lived to tell about it. His very appearance was a sign to people of the reality of God's truth.

         Solomon's divinely received wisdom was a sign to people that there is a God and He interacts with man. God gave him this wisdom early in his reign when God appeared to him and told Solomon to ask for anything and the request for wisdom to govern God's people so pleased God that He honored that request and gave Solomon everything else too.The Queen of Sheba came, saw his wisdom and by his words was converted because of the "supernaturality" of Solomon's life.

       What is the sign that people see in your life - the sign that there is the supernatural power of God in your life? What is it that is making you stand out or shine above the rest of humanity? I recently shared a car ride with a guy as we took a 6 hour trip, there and back, to go deep sea fishing. He shared with me his testimony and several stories he told kind of illustrate what I'm talking about. One story was about how he used to love hunting, and killing and skinning animals was fun for him. He said he used to ride a pig, slit it's throat and ride it till it collapsed. After he got saved, he totally lost the desire to kill, in fact he was asked to gut a pig and it made him physically sick. The other instance was that cussing and vulgarity was second nature for him. Now, when people talk like that around him, he uses it as a witnessing tool and tells them his testimony and how that way of life led him to despair. People look at him, that knew him, and he is a sign to them of a supernatural power that recreated him.

        I wonder what people would say about me that is a supernatural demonstration of God's power in my life? I hope there is something! What is your sign? Let it shine!

     Lord, fill me with your power. Transform me into something inexplicable by the laws of human nature. Let me shine it in a dark world that needs Your light so desperately. Amen