Mt 12:38-42 Full of Surprises

Mt 12:38-42  Full of Surprises

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Jesus said to the Pharisees, “An evil and unfaithful generation seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it except the sign of Jonah the prophet…At the judgment, the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and there is something greater than Jonah here.”

Life is full of disappointments.  And they occur every time we are fooled into believing certain things are superior when in reality they are inferior. 

Yesterday I downloaded an app for my iphone 3G.  I was surprised to learn that I could get books on tape from my iphone!  I looked for one and found one that was free (whoopee!) and had available many of my favorite authors.  I found the book I’ve been trying to read for a while now (G. K. Chesterton’s classic, “What’s Wrong with the World”); I put my earphones on and settled in for what I thought would be a very relaxing and enjoyable evening.  Suddenly, my joy turned to sorrow. 

Look, I don’t mind dealing with an AT&T operator from another country.  I wouldn’t even mind dealing with an operator from another world.  But to listen to a book read by a speaker who sounds like a foreign exchange student, well…sorry.  I couldn’t believe it!  Who in the world would ask someone from the Middle East or India to read out loud a book that is already hard to comprehend? 

Life is full of disappointments.  I was very disappointed.

But life can also be full of wonderful surprises when we are fooled into believing certain things or people as inferior when in reality they are superior.

Jesus Christ grew up in an insignificant part of the world and was the only child of an insignificant couple.  He did not receive the greatest education or go off to study at the greatest academies of higher learning at that time.  He was a poor Jewish boy who lived engulfed in turmoil and surrounded by enemies.  Who would have thought…he would be the Savior of the world! 

Something greater here.  Jesus is unique because it is unique to find someone with a type A personality and a type B mentality.  It is unheard of to find someone who is incredibly intelligent and exceedingly humble.  It is unknown of to know someone who is very practical and very romantic.  No one ever expected to hear words of great wisdom from Jesus of Nazareth.  Nor did anyone ever expect to hear him speak words of forgiveness as he died on a cross.  Would you expect a Jew to go out of his way for a Roman centurion, a Samaritan woman or a sinful woman?  Would you expect a Jew today to go out of his way for a Nazi, a Muslim or a Palestinian?  No one ever thought in their right mind that the sinless One would dine with a bunch of sinners; touch sinners; and heal sinners.  No one thought He would ever pick sinners to follow Him! 

Although He left not a single written word, His Word lives on forever.  His Word is eternal.  Many prophets and sages came before Him and have come after Him, but not a single one was able to be Him.  Jesus is unique.  No one has ever been able to be like Him:  to combine love with truth, mercy with sinless, and wisdom with humility.  No one! 

And yet, so many of us have heard of Him.  We’ve even studied Him and yet we have a hard time, a very hard time, imitating Him!  If He was just a man, and we’ve had over two thousand years to be like Him, why is it so difficult to be like Him in all things?  It must be because there is something greater than Jonah [human] here.