"The Sign of Jonah"

I also like to welcome you to our program, you know, from members on earth. God is to be on stations all around the nation bringing the truths of God's word as it is uncompromising and straightforward and I'm so glad you tuned in to listen and be part of that. Thanks again for your support and your generosity that keeps us on the radio and now let's get to the word of God here in the chapter 11 verse 14 Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute and when the demon left the man would been Dom spoke and the crowd was amazed with some of them said by Beelzebub the prince of the demons he's driving out all the demons and others were testing him by asking for a sign from heaven. I'm going to do something that we don't do very often and that is I'm going to tell you that in Matthew's gospel we have the very same account, but do have some slightly different details that Matthew gives us and I want us to work out a Matthew's account of this because of some things.

He tells us in Luke doesn't that I think help us understand better what's going on so I want you to turn back to Matthew chapter 12 if you're using our copy of the Bible.

It's page 690 Matthew chapter 12 the very same incident very same happening but recorded by Matthew instead of Luke. Look at Matthew chapter 12 verse 22. They brought to Jesus a man who was demon possessed who was blind and use, and Jesus healed him so that he could both talk and say okay this is the same God.

Now right now and all of the people were astonished we saw that in Luke chapter 11 and they said could this be the son of David that what is that me well in the Old Testament. We know that the Messiah. Isaiah chapter 11 was to be a descendent of David that the Messiah Micah chapter 5 was to be born in David city that the Messiah second Samuel chapter 7 was to sit on David's throne and rule forever and so the name son of David became another title or another name for Messiah in Matthew chapter 22 Jesus asked the crowd what do you think about the Messiah, whose son is he and they spoke up and said will of course he's the son of David, so what these people are really asking is, is this man Jesus Christ one adjusted this miracle could this man really be the Messiah of Israel.

That's what the rest now who would asking a question whether asking the rabbis who was part of the crowd and were listening and the rabbis respond look verse 24 but when the Pharisees, the religious leaders. The rabbis heard this, they said it's only by Beelzebub the prince of the demons that this fellows driving out demons. The folks the religious leaders of Israel, the rabbis had to answer the people question the people said the miracle.

He just did this man be the Messiah of Israel. The rabbis had to answer that and the people were smart enough to know that you can't walk around and do the miracles Jesus did unless there was something supernatural that was driving you.

So what options are there welders God he supernatural and there's Satan the devil himself. So which of the two forces supernaturally is giving Jesus the power to do his miracles.

That was the question right now the rabbis if they admit that it's God that's giving Jesus the power to do his miracles well then we got a problem though because it Jesus is doing about the power of God and Jesus is telling the truth and it is telling the truth and ease the Messiah and it is this Messiah that means that everyone of those rabbis to get down on their knees and humbled himself, and agree to follow him and obey him and serve him, but those rabbis were about to do that. So they can't say he's from God because they can't deal with the implications of that, you with me so they say.

Well, you're right, there has to be a supernatural power behind what Jesus is doing and they say it's the power of Beelzebub, which is another name they use in that day for the devil he's doing it by the prince of the demons. He's doing it by the power of the devil himself is very important for us to understand friends what's going on here that these rabbis are not just opposing Jesus Christ with himself. They were doing that, but it's far more serious and that their sheep are asking them as the shepherds of Israel.

Rabbi is this our Messiah.

Rabbi should we follow this man, Rabbi, is this the one we been looking for and waiting for should we serve and obey him, and in response, the rabbis say no he is not.

He's a fraud.

He's an imposter. He's a fake. You should not following you should not listen to them. Don't pay attention to a word he has to say. He's not the Messiah, so there are thousands of souls hanging in the balance, you know, many times when Jesus was opposed by the rabbis, he just walked away said and walked away, but he not going to walk away from this one because there are too many souls hanging in the balance. People are listening and people are watching so he turns and he confronts them, Jesus turns in first addresses this charge of the rabbis that he's casting out demons by the power of Satan. And he says now fellas just use your head, would you just choose some simple logic here about the Roman Empire permitted his Caesar went around killing all of his local governors were out there doing his dirty work calendar work at his empire survive and so now you say I'm Satan and I walking around casting out my own demons, fellas think you know that makes no sense at all why I was Satan when I go around casting out my own demons who are out there serving me and doing my dirty work for me now why would I do that that makes no sense whatsoever.

Fellows that dog won't hunt you on Facebook. So what other options do we have here with the only other option we have is down in verse 28 Jesus said, but if I drive out demons by the power of the Spirit of God will that's the only other option.

And Jesus says that's what I am doing I am doing my miracles by the power of the spirit of God. I am the true Messiah of Israel.

If that indeed is true, then the kingdom of God has come upon you and your staring the kingdom of God right in the face when you look at me because I'm exactly what I claim to be the understand what he says to them. He goes on to say in verse 29 or again, how can anybody enter a strong man's house meeting, Satan, and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strongman, then he can rob his house. In other words, the reason I'm able to go around and cast out Satan's demons is because I'm stronger than he is. I entered his house tied him up said he can't do anything to stop me and now I can go around and wreck his house. So you need to understand you're dealing with somebody was even stronger than Satan himself that these are the claims that Jesus makes for himself and he makes them without apology.

I think of converting credible claims, you know that and Jesus demands them at the rabbis and the people listening deal with so far this morning I've been real good. I've mentioned football I dimension Super Bowl. But did you see when the bills won the AFC game that they held up that big poster was in the newspaper. Did you see the big poster they held up member what it said it said we're back deal with it. America to see that poster you know the guys who made up that poster 12 free tickets to the Super Bowl. They were having a contest in Buffalo.

If you could come up with the most clever poster they won the game and those guys want to think of the Super Bowl with a poster that said, we're back deal with it America. When I saw that poster.

I thought this is kind of like what happens here with Jesus Christ. It's as though Jesus Christ unfurled a banner right over top of him that said I am the son of God. Now deal with it. Israel I don't know what the fans in Buffalo want the rest of America to do to deal with it.

I've already written form, because on ABD you know ABD anybody but you got caught already written for the Dallas going to kill them guys.

I'm a have to eat it next week. Dallas in a mansion you want to Dallas Kumar of these guys. The point is what I wanted to do to deal with them. The impact for super Bowls, I can't help it if you're going to lose four times in a row. One is positive, but you know what there was something that Jesus wanted Israel to do to deal with.

It was very simple. Jesus wanted them to accept him as their personal savior. He wanted them to surrender to him as their personal Lord and he wanted them to embrace him as the Messiah, Israel. That's what dealing with it meant for Israel. Now did they do it to the rabbis suddenly go OG you know your writing is kind ideological what we said in an oh you must be the Messiah that what they did not on your life.

Look at verse 38 then some of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law said to him, not teacher, we want to see a miraculous sign from you to prove you're the Messiah went out timeout. What was wrong with the one he just gone about five minutes before that he just didn't want to see the God it was blinding going talk that one you really think that these rabbis were sincere.

You really think of Jesus had done another miraculous sign right then and there that they were falling on their knees and suddenly said oh you're right you are the Messiah, all your right you really think they would've done that. No way. You don't really think that to you when they doing when they were stalling. They were playing political games at all proud it was watching and Jesus had just shot there walking the halls and didn't know what to say so they're just trying to buy some time.

These people aren't interested in believing friends if these guys were really interested in believing in Jesus Christ. Jesus had done so many miracles already data been already in his camp. These people weren't interested, you know miracles don't convince anybody of anything unless their hearts are open to believing you do all the miracles you want. If somebody don't want to believe you're not gonna believe.

If you're not interested in listening. No amount of signs in the world is going to convince you listen. These rabbis were interested in listening and no amount of miracles in the world was going to convince them. Jesus knew that that's why he answer them the way he did look at verse 39 Jesus said, a wicked and adulterous generation asks for miraculous sign.

After all the signs of already given you and you want more now Jesus and am only giving you one more sign and that's the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish so the Son of Man, meaning himself will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

But Jesus said you not going to listen to that either so verse 41 the men of Nineveh are going to stand up in judgment with this generation and condemn you guys for they repented they change their mind, they turn back to God. When Jonah came and preached to them after the fish minimart but somebody far greater than Jonah is here. Jesus Christ and you guys on even listening to him know what's Jesus talking about the sign of Jonah 3 days and three nights in the heart of the earth will you know what he's talking about is talking about his resurrection, Jesus said, Jonah spent three days and three nights in the belly of a fish in the same way on the spent three days and three nights in the gravy so you don't really believe Jonah did this to you absolutely, and given more time to explain to you exactly why but it Jesus is wrong about this.

He's wrong about everything else and I know he was wrong when he changed my life 21 years ago if Jesus Christ is who he says he is. He knows all about Jonah. Yeah, I believe it happened absolutely and then the Bible says Jonah emerge alive and well.

Three days later, Jesus said so in my soil. I I'm a give you guys one more sign.

Jesus said in his can be the big daddy of them all. If there was ever any doubt before the knuckle be any doubt. Now we are going around dealing with germs and blindness and paralysis, dirt and water in the line but really that's piddly stuff compared to what I'm going to do.

I'm in a conquered death, right in front of your eyes and then on the convince you're really who I said but you guys even then you're not gonna believe Jesus but you know what I like when I look in the Bible. I like the Jesus Christ says that he is the master of death. I like the Jesus Christ says that he's not powerless over death. That's what he was telling these people he was saying.

I'm little prove to you guys and I'm like say because I'm gonna beat the one thing nobody has any power over and that's death itself. Jesus said, John chapter 10 I have the power to lay my life down so you could take a bunch of pills or go sit in your garage car on but then he said, and I have the power to take my life up again.

Now hold on, that's where you wouldn't an online Jesus part company.

Because you don't have that power and neither do I but he said he did and he proved it with the sign of Jonah. He proved it. He rose from the dead.

He said to these guys. I'm going to give you the most awesome sign imaginable. Fellows on the rise from the dead, and yet you're still not believe me and he left the crowd standing there saying okay. We can do about I'm sure when he rose from the dead.

Many of those people heard him speak remembered what he had said, but what if they do about it.

That's the end of our passage, but it leaves us with the question so what have you been noticing what's going on in our culture these days you say. Well now, what would he talk about. Have you noticed everybody wants to be in neutral about everything you notice that we are becoming PC land where in PC land. Nobody has an opinion. Nobody has a conviction. Nobody takes a stand. Nobody cares about anything everybody takes middle-of-the-road everybody walks right down the middle. Nobody says anything to offend anybody. Even if it's right everybody wants to be neutral. Everybody wants to have no opinion.

Everybody doesn't want to get involved in. Everybody wants to have no comment not want to ask anybody anymore. It's no comment or event. No comment.

No comment.

I think that that's probably pretty soon going to be the first thing that our kids learn. Would you like a banana. No comment cookie no comment. It was happening to us, Americans will want to take a stand on anything.

We don't want to declare on anything. We don't want to take a position on anything anymore. Nobody wants to walk on the safe middle-of-the-road and just have absolutely no opinion. Now when it comes to Jesus Christ. Will that work can you be PC about Jesus Christ. No, not with what he claimed. Listen to what he claimed he claimed he was God in the flesh. He claimed that he was the one and only true way to have a relationship with God. He claimed that his blood shed on the cross was the one and only true payment for sin, he claimed that he was the one and only true door and I have an and if you didn't enter by him you didn't get in and he claimed he was going to rise from the dead to prove everything else. He claimed was true. The folks if he rose from the dead. If he really is telling the truth about all those other things. He claimed that there is no place to be neutral about Jesus Christ and that's exactly what he says to these people. What responses you want from these people will look first third book with me at verse 30 Jesus said he who is not with me is against me and he who does not gather with me scatters I look at that again he who is not avowedly openly, unashamedly, with me. What is Jesus say you stand against. And if you're not out there gathering with him actively and deliberately, what you doing scattering as you were Jesus said Jesus said there is no neutral. There is no neutral uniform or if you decide you're not thorium you decided you're against.

There is no neutral, not with the claims Jesus made for himself. And if you're here and you've never cast your lot in with Jesus Christ and dear friend.

You need to understand that pleading neutrality when you face God is knuckle work that well God I believe I was in against. I was, middle-of-the-road, neutral knuckle work and it doesn't really matter whether you think you're against Jesus Christ are not what matters. When you and I get new eternity is what God thinks and this is what God thinks this is the foreign against you know some of us here at been coming and listening for a long time and we been mulling it over in our mind is a and I really want to do this. Do I really want to believe in Jesus Christ is really for me. We never decided to take that personal step of faith were still thinking about thinking about think about you know that approach reminds me of what T Boone Pickens said the great industrial sees of the greatest problem in America, summed up by this statement ready aim aim aim aim aim. What's our problem sooner or later people make.

Somehow we have to do. You gotta pull the trigger and lot got a fire. Thank you in the back appreciate that. Thank you.

Yeah, of course, and spiritually. When it comes to our relationship with Christ. There are many of us here who have the attitude of ready aim aim aim aim aim aim aim aim aim and some of us will go to our grave, aiming but you see when you face Christ and you say God I spent a whole lot of time naming doesn't matter. The point is, did you fire. Did you step across the line and say Christ I'm with you on for you actively, deliberately, unashamedly, I'm in your care for you.

That's what God is looking for from your life or my life from these people's lives.

If you've never done that even come here long time just thinking about it for a long time friends. I hope you'll step across the line because thinking about it is not what God's interested in. Want you to make a decision and he want you to before and you know what there. Many of us here who as Christians who still need to hear this challenge because we step across the line is that we won't Christ as our Savior. Yes or we want to trust them to pay for our sins, but when it comes to our personal life were still sitting on the fence in terms of Christ being the Lord of our life here. I used to think I was the Lord of my universe out of the first 20 years of my life being the Lord of my universe. Then at 21 years of age. Jesus Christ convince me that he was the Lord of the universe and he also convinced me there was not enough room in this universe for two lords. Lot of room for two of us. So one of us had to abdicate. Guess who wasn't willing to abdicate, not him. He owns the University not advocating what he wanted me to do is abdicate well I'll tell you, for me at that .21 years old.

It wasn't a hard decision. I've been the Lord of my life for the first 20 years I've screwed my life up so bad that it wasn't even a hard decision to make. I turn my life over to Christ.

At that point friends to let Jesus Christ be the Lord of my life to let the word of God and the will of God be the Lord of my life was the best decision I ever made in my life the last 20 years since then have been the best 20 years of my life.

You know that's a decision. Many of us here need to make when it comes to our business ethics when it comes to our sexual habits when it comes to our personal integrity when it comes to our money in the word to come out of our mouth.

God has a deliberate act of will, for every one of those things you can't be neutral on those things you read are in line with what God says, deliberately committed to what God says obeying and submitting to what God says and trying to live it as best you can, or you're not. But there's no middle ground you can be neutral be neutral means you cannot embrace what God says and you doing it your way and you're still the Lord of your life. I don't have any Christian bumper stickers only my cars say why not on any fishes on my cards and why not the answer is I'm too bad a driver to have any of those things on my car. That's the honest to God truth I would do more damage to my reputation and reputation of Christ bumper stickers on my car than you can possibly imagine.

Not not proud of that but it's true.

I'm not the greatest driver in the world.

I've even gotten letters from the governor reminding me that driving is a privilege which I'm going to lose if I'm not careful in Washington. Even if you're good driver.

You can be a good driver and people still get mad at them you have to do anything wrong. I've been driving out to Rome on a moment to do another law that people write by yell nasty things and big nasty jesters of me and I'm trying to figure out how to know what no bumper stickers on my car know for sure my car but if I ever put a bumper sticker on my car. I'll tell you one that I would put on it says this I thought the other day. It says if God is your copilot, you need to switch seats that are good bumper sticker I love that bumper sticker. If God is your copilot, you need to switch seats because God is not long to be your copilot with you long to be the pilot. That's right cannot be the copilot cannot be the navigator. My advice to you is going on in the back of your passengers. The best thing you can do to stay out of the cockpit and let him fly the airplane and you just follow and you be the best thing to happen your life and friend that's going to happen is not going to happen by osmosis or by accident. You and I are going to have to make a deliberate decision to step off the throne to abdicate as Lord of our life and let Jesus Christ have deposition.

The question is are you willing to do it.

Have you done it if Jesus Christ is who he says he is and if the sign of Jonah is true then what other option makes any sense. But let me just remind you, even if you're Christian when you get to heaven and God says when out about your business ethics and about your sexual habits and about your personal integrity and about your money and about those things that came out of your mouth. You say, pop.I was neutral on cell that dog won't hunt either. It's either on for you, Lord, why made the decision on the run my life my way. There's no middle ground. What decision, if you made I hope you made the right spell together in prayer. Dear father, thank you for making the issue so crystal-clear for us this morning. Thank you for reminding us that the way we can know that you are who you say you are because you did something no religious leader ever claim to do much less did rise from the dead and conquer death. Lord Jesus, I pray that you would help us to take to heart your words, and whoever is not for you.

There against you. There's no middle ground. Jesus Christ, thank you for speaking to our hearts this morning change our life by what we've heard.

We pray this in Jesus name amen been listening to satellite with Dr. Lon Solomon said, when is an outrage of Lon Solomon ministry to listen to today's message more. For more information visit our website. Lon Solomon ministries.org. Thank you for your support. If you would like to contact us, please visit our website or call us at 866788777. Join us next time when line seeks to answer one of life's most important stands