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"He answered, 'A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale, so shall the Son of Man be three days in the heart of the earth. The men of Ninevah will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and NOW ONE GREATER THAN JONAH IS HERE!" (Matthew 12:39-42). Greater than Jonah? What a puzzling statement from the lips of our Savior. I do not question the greatness of our Lord. But I do question the comparative with Jonah. Greater than Jonah? What was so great about Jonah? You turn to the book of Jonah to search for his greatness. What do you find? Ninevah is called "a great city" (1:2; 4:11). God sent a "great wind" (1:4; 1:12). The sailors, on the ship to Tarshish had "great fear" (1:16). God sent a "great fish" to swallow Jonah (1:17). Then the book concludes with Jonah filled with "great displeasure" over Ninevah's repentance and God's grace and compassion in sparing them judgment. Where is the greatness of Jonah? We expect greatness of Jonah. Hebrew tradition tells us that he was one of the students of Elisha. We know that Elisha ranks as one of the greatest prophets in all of Israel's history, right beside Elijah! Surely the "fruit will not fall far from the tree", What do we find? The Word of the Lord comes to this prophet. His response? He ran away from the Lord, (1:3). When he finally gets to Ninevah with the message, he announces coming impending judgment, and sounds like he can hardly wait til the fireworks begin! When they repent, and judgment is deferred, he pouts unashamedly! He shows more concern for a gourd that perishes than the 120,000 souls residing in that city! Let's take inventory: rebellion, disobedience, smallness, prejudice, pouting, hatred, bigotry-all attributes of greatness? Where is the greatness of Jonah? It is there, but not in the person of the Prophet! It is there in the person of the Prophet's God, and his great salvation. Jesus is greater than Jonah; greater than Solomon; as the book of Hebrews says, greater than Moses, Aaron, David, Mechizedek, angels, prophets, kings, priests,...Jesus is the greatest! We are told not to neglect His "so great salvation" (Heb. 2:1). There it is! The greatness of Jonah is in his Message! Both Jonah and Ninevah found out that "salvation is from the LORD!" (Jonah 2:9). Jesus is a "great savior". He provides a "so great salvation". In the 1850's there were two great Churches in London, England. People from far and wide came to services there. Joseph Parker was the famed Pastor of one of those Churches. The usual response to one of his services was, "what a great sermon!" There was another famous Pastor there, who preached at the Metropolotan Tabernacle. His name was Charles Haddon Spurgeon. The usual response of those exiting his services was usually, "What a great Savior!" His pulpit had this sign on it, "Sirs, we must see Jesus in you!" That marked the "greatness of that nineteenth century Baptist preacher", and that too, in a nutshell, is the greatness of Jonah, his message of a "great God and Savior!" THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: "One thing great about Jonah, in my opinion, is that God gave him a second chance. Jonah is not the only one to benefit from such magnanimous grace!" |
