A Sign
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Matthew 12:38-42
38. Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to him, "Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you." 39. But he answered them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign; but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale, so will the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41. The men of Nineveh will arise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here. 42. The queen of the South will arise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.
We’re not really much different from the scribes and Pharisees are we? We look for a sign that Jesus is for real. We look at the world and see so much pain and hurt, violence, fear, war, death and destruction. And we ask, “Where is our God?” The divorce rate continues to climb, our children get into trouble, the addiction rate in this country is epidemic. Video games incite violence and desensitization in our children. The media shouts at us how bad things are and the alert level stays at elevated. So, “Where is
your God?”
My God is alive and well. I see Him at work in the youth of our church and two other churches who just got back from a mission trip. They spent two days painting, hauling trash, roofing, light construction, building fences and shoveling gravel to make a parking area for the Petersburg Urban Ministries. I am so proud of them and how they represented not only their own churches, but “the church.” They were Christ to all who witnessed them working together in one of the poorest communities in our area.
To see them, and their witness, gives me hope that the future does hold promise. My God was alive and well in Petersburg on Tuesday and Wednesday! He slept on the floor of a church, and he ate sandwiches in a parking lot for lunch and he worked until he ached. And he shared an evening meal and fellowship with other youth he hadn’t met before. My son told us it was hard to leave, because he had made some new friends. When you’re part of Christian community, the friendships come easier and they seem more meaningful. I’m sure all the youth took away with them a bit more defined sense of who they are and an assurance that they really can change the world for the better.
We are the signs of Christ in the world. What we do and say matters. How we conduct our lives and how we treat others gets noticed. We make a difference by our very lives. The prophets waited so long for Jesus. They remained faithful as they waited. They testified to the coming Messiah and they waited in anticipation of their Savior. We have the benefit of his resurrection! We have no excuse! We’ve been given the only sign we need! We have much work to do in the world! And our Savior compels us to get busy!
I hope today you represent the Risen Christ to a fallen and sin-filled world. And that
you are the sign others are seeking.
Mary
