Signs from God : The Ultimate Sign 1-28-24

Overview

Signs from God: The Ultimate Sign

Scripture is no stranger to signs. The angel told the shepherds, "this will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger" Luke 2:12. When Jesus turned water into wine, John tells us he "did this, the first of his signs… and revealed his glory" John 2:11, and many believed because of the signs they saw John 2:23. Signs in Scripture do two things: they confirm what God has said, and they point to who God is.

So why is Jesus so frustrated by a request for a sign in Mark 8:11-12? The Pharisees—joined by the Sadducees in the parallel account Matthew 16:1—came to "argue" with him, a Greek word carrying the sense of harassment. Their motive is named plainly: "to test him." It was a trap. These were the same men who had already witnessed the feeding of the five thousand, the healings at Gennesaret, and the restoration of the deaf and mute man, and yet attributed Jesus' works to Satan Mark 3:22. Even at the cross they would mock, "let the Messiah, the King of Israel, come down… so that we may see and believe" Mark 15:32. No sign would have ever satisfied them. That is why Jesus "sighed deeply in his spirit"—a word used nowhere else in the New Testament, expressing not mere weariness but inner sorrow over hardened unbelief.

Jesus declared that no sign would be given this generation "except the sign of Jonah" Matthew 12:39-40. Just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so the Son of Man would be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. Jonah's deliverance from death foreshadowed the resurrection of Christ. The empty tomb is the ultimate sign—God's declaration that the sacrifice for sin has been accepted, that death has been overcome, and that Jesus is risen, reigning, and very much in charge.

So what about us? We all know seasons when we long for a sign—of God's presence in loneliness, of his love in discouragement, of his truth amid doubt, of his care in fear. The good news is that we don't need another sign. He has already given the greatest one. To the heart that asks, "Lord, will it work out? Do you love me? Are you with me? Is your word true?"—the cross and the empty tomb answer: he already has. In the sign of Jonah, we trust.

Transcript

Would you open your by those please with me to the eighth chapter of the Gospel of Mark? 3s

If you're using a Puedition of Holy Scripture, you're going to find that in the New Testament 9s

on page 37. 13s

Mark the eighth chapter for our study today. 15s

It was, but a little over one month ago, when we gathered to celebrate the birth of our 19s

Testament of the second member of the Trinity, it was a great gathering, wasn't it? 28s

And hard to believe it's just about two months from today that Easter we will gather. 33s

And so the calendar is compacted this year, how the dates fall. 40s

You'll recall on Christmas as we gathered. 44s

We heard once again from the Christmas story in Luke II chapter. 48s

The angelic announcement of the birth of the Savior, the shepherds that were absolutely terrified. 54s

And the word that was given to them, this will be a sign for you. 62s

You will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger. 69s

A sign. 77s

Scripture is no stranger to sharing about signs from God. 79s

In John II chapter, it says Jesus did this the first of his signs in Cana of Gavilly 86s

and revealed his glory. 93s

That of course was an association with Jesus turning the water into the wine at the wedding. 96s

And then later in the second chapter of John, it says many believed in his name, 102s

because they saw the signs that he was doing. 109s

We see in Scripture that signs confirm what God said, the shepherds, 116s

and signs point to the identity of God. 125s

The miracle at the wedding at Cana. 131s

So why is it? 136s

Why is it then in our text for today that Jesus is so frustrated with regard to the request? 138s

For a sign. 153s

Oh, good evening, please. 156s

At chapter 8, beginning with verse 11. 157s

The Pharisees came. 163s

Let's pause. 166s

What we see in Scripture is we see that there are what are called parallels, 168s

in other words. 173s

Quite often you'll see a story repeated in another gospel. 175s

And like two witnesses or three witnesses looking at something, 180s

you get a fuller picture of what happened and what was said. 186s

Well, a parallel account of this is in Matthew the 16th chapter. 192s

And there is one of the details, Matthew mentions that it was not only the Pharisees that were there, 197s

but it was also the Sadducees. 203s

This is an interesting grouping because the Pharisees and the Sadducees 207s

they couldn't stand each other, couldn't stand each other, but what bonded them? 213s

What bonded them? 221s

Was there opposition to Jesus? 224s

Back again to verse 11. 230s

The Pharisees came and began to argue with him that were there in the Greek for argue, 232s

it means to harass or harassing. 240s

This was a hostile, approach, and a hostile conversation. 244s

The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, asking him for a sign from heaven. 250s

They wanted something spectacular to be done in the sky. 259s

What was a purpose of the request? 267s

Look at the last three words of verse 11. 271s

Two test him. 276s

This was a trap. 282s

This was a trap. 284s

They wanted Jesus to do something spectacular in the sky and the sky. 286s

And if he wasn't able to do it, then they had caught him in the trap 293s

and they would make Jesus look fully. 300s

That makes the question, doesn't it? 307s

How many signs did they need? 311s

How many did they need? 314s

They were well aware of the feeding of the 5,000 of Jesus taking the five lows and two fish 318s

and miraculously multiplying it and feeding the 5,000. 325s

They were well aware of the miracles in Ginesarit. 328s

When the people were bringing the sick so that they might just touch the garment of Christ. 333s

They were well aware of the healing of the deaf man who was also mute. 339s

And isn't it fascinating that the very people here who were saying show us a sign 347s

were the very ones that believed that when Jesus was acting, 356s

when Jesus was miraculously acting. 363s

That those miracles, those healings, were coming from Satan. 368s

In Mark III chapter, it says on the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, 375s

He has beelzeble, that's just another name for Satan. 382s

And by the ruler of the demons, he casts out demons. 385s

The request? 392s

It was just meant to discredit Jesus. 393s

There was no sign that could be done in which they would then bely. 403s

Because you as you follow the account in the 15th chapter of Mark, 412s

when Jesus is on the cross, they're mocking the signs and scripture says that they said, 418s

let the Messiah, the king of Israel, come down now from the cross so that we may see and bely. 427s

And the response of Jesus? 442s

Unlike Matthew and unlike Luke. 449s

In the Gospel of Mark, you get a little bit more of the expression of Jesus' emotions. 454s

It's unlike Matthew and Luke. You get it a little bit more in Mark. 465s

For example, Mark relates to the account of when the man with a withered hand went into the 471s

in the gong and the people were looking to see whether or not Jesus was going to heal on the Sabbath. 476s

And Jesus poses the question he says, is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, 483s

to save life or to kill? 489s

And their silence in the synagogue. 493s

In Mark shares that Jesus looked around 498s

and grilling at those that were they in a grieve in his heart. 504s

Mark tells us in association with the healing in the 7th chapter that Jesus 515s

side. 522s

Mark tells us that when the man came up to him and said, what must I do to inherit eternal life? 525s

Of course, there's nothing we can do to inherit eternal life. And so Jesus begins the process 533s

of exposing what the man's real God was which were possessions. 539s

He says, well, what are the commandments? Say, we list a few commandments. 546s

And the man says, I've done all that. I've done it. 550s

The scripture says, Jesus looked at him and loved him. 554s

Look at verse 12. And he's side deeply in his spirit. 563s

That is the only time in the New Testament that that particular word for 575s

sying is used. The only time, this is more than a heavy sigh from our Lord. 581s

This is exasperation. 590s

This is this inner sorrow with regard to the damped here of the unbelief. 595s

He goes on. Truly, I tell you, no sign will be given to this generation. 607s

And before it, he poses the question, why does this generation ask for a sign? 620s

Jesus here is condemning his contemporaries. He knows full well, full well, 636s

what their motives are. And the parallel Matthew 16, 645s

it helps us to get a fuller picture because one of the characteristics of the gospel of Mark 653s

is also Mark's brevity. Mark's much more concise than the other gospels. 659s

So you look at the parallel here and you understand a fuller expression of what actually was said, 665s

when Jesus says, truly, I tell you, no sign will be given to this generation. 674s

There's more there that Matthew reveals because Matthew reveals. 680s

No sign will be given it except the sign of Jonah. 687s

Jonah? 696s

It was really the New York City of the day, Nenaba. 701s

And Nenaba was a tough place if you were going to go there and minister. 709s

The prophet Nehem reveals to us of the sins of Nenaba. They plotted evil that there was 718s

cruelty expressed in war, witchcraft, and prostitution, and commercial exploitation. 725s

And God called the fellow by the name of Jonah to go and minister there. 734s

Jonah didn't like that call at all. 741s

Fact would Jonah does. It's take manners into his own hands and say, I'm going to get out of this. 744s

And literally, literally, Jonah goes in the opposite direction of where he's supposed to go. 749s

He hops on a boat and he's just going to sail away from God's call. 757s

Well, what God is going to get what God wants. He's God. 767s

So he stirs up a storm. 773s

And the Bible tells us that Jonah told the sailors that the storm was a result of what he, Jonah, had done. 777s

And he tells the sailors, you should throw me into the sea of which the sailors obliged him. 787s

They throw him into the sea and he swallowed by a big fit. 793s

Matthews a 12th chapter tells us this. 803s

Jesus said in evil, an adulterous generation asks for a sign. 813s

Remember, he's describing his contemporaries here again. In the evil, an adulterous generation asks for a sign, 820s

but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 827s

See, that's Matthew 16. That's the parallel, isn't it? That's the fuller expression. What was 838s

recorded in Mark 8? 842s

For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so for three days 846s

and three nights, the son of man will be in the heart of the earth. 854s

The sign of Jonah was a foreshadowing of the Christ. 861s

As Jonah was delivered from death, 869s

Jesus was raised from the dead. 877s

The sign of Jonah points to the resurrection of Christ. 884s

Let me ask, do you ever desire a sign? Do you ever desire a sign? 901s

A proof? What God said is true? Do you ever desire a sign of proof of his identity? 912s

Do you ever desire a sign? It's those times, it's those times that one can say, 927s

Lord, it's a difficult time, which it just gives me a sign that everything's going to work out, 936s

or those times when one can say, Lord, I'm scared. 948s

Which it just gives me a sign and everything's going to be okay. 956s

Or Lord, do you love me? Could you just give me a sign of your affection or Lord? 963s

I just feel alone and it's feel alone. Can you give me a sign of your presence 978s

or Lord? I'm just filled with doubts. Could you just give me a sign that your word is true? 988s

Have you ever asked for a sign? 1005s

Let me see, here's the thing. We don't need it. We don't need it. 1008s

When the Lord Jesus Christ went to the cross, He bore all of our sin that should separate us from 1025s

all eternity from Him. He bore it on the cross. When Jesus was raised from the tomb, 1031s

the sacrifice for sin, it was God's declaration that the sacrifice had been accepted. 1037s

The cross reconciliation has occurred, the empty tomb that death has been overcome, that the 1045s

sacrifice has been accepted, the ultimate sign is the empty tomb, the ultimate sign. 1051s

Because that communicates to us that the Lord Jesus Christ is risen and reigning and quite alive 1064s

and quite in charge. The ultimate sign. And so if we say, Lord is a difficult time, can you just 1074s

give me a sign that everything's going to work out? He already has. Lord, I'm scared. Can you just 1090s

give me a sign that everything's going to be okay? He already has. Lord, do you love me? 1103s

Can you just give me a sign that you love me? He already has. Lord, I feel all alone. Can you just 1115s

give me a sign of your presence? He already has. Lord, I'm filled with doubts. Can you just give me a 1126s

sign of the surety of your word? He already has. And in the ultimate sign, the sign of Jonah, 1139s

we trust. 1164s