Have you ever pleaded with God to give you a sign? I have, and I still do—usually when I find
myself torn with a decision I need to make.
That brings to mind a few questions: How do we interpret “signs”? How do we know
that a sign is actually a sign and not a desire for a sign creating something
out of nothing? Does God actually send
us signs?
Jesus says that Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites. (Luke 11:29-32) Place yourself into Jonah 3:1-10. Imagine yourself as a Ninevite, minding your
own business, chopping wood or washing the laundry. Imagine Jonah, a stranger, walking through
town shouting that God was going to destroy your town. How would you react? Would you take this as a
sign from God?
I think I would be pretty skeptical. I think I would pass Jonah off as a lunatic
and go back to my laundry. If I’m honest
with myself, as I publicly wave him off I might also secretly repent out of
fear that he was right. I might ask God
to give me a sign that his sign is truly a “sign”!
Whether signs are actually inspired by God or our own
imaginations, the message of the prophet and Jesus remains clear: repent. Jonah and the Son of Man preached the same
message to different crowds and in different places. The message, preached to us through the
Bible, reaches us now in our own town and as we go about our own business. Recognize how we fail to love God and choose
sin so that we can repent and join Jesus in heaven at our own judgment.
As we continue through the Lenten season, I pray that each of us
repents. God already sent us our sign,
his son. Repent and choose God. Choose
life, freedom, truth and love.
Life gives us lots of choices—Eternity gives us only two. Think about it.
No comments:
Post a Comment