29-30As the crowd swelled, he took a fresh tack: “The mood of this age is all wrong. Everybody’s looking for proof, but you’re looking for the wrong kind. All you’re looking for is something to titillate your curiosity, satisfy your lust for miracles. But the only proof you’re going to get is the Jonah-proof given to the Ninevites, which looks like no proof at all. What Jonah was to Nineveh, the Son of Man is to this age. 31-32“On Judgment Day the Ninevites will stand up and give evidence that will condemn this generation, because when Jonah preached to them they changed their lives. A far greater preacher than Jonah is here, and you squabble about ‘proofs.’ On Judgment Day the Queen of Sheba will come forward and bring evidence that condemns this generation, because she traveled from a far corner of the earth to listen to wise Solomon. Wisdom far greater than Solomon’s is right in front of you, and you quibble over ‘evidence.’ Luke 11:29-32 MSG
As I was reading my devotional yesterday, these verses stuck out to me in a way that they haven’t any of the previous times that I read them. These words of Jesus I feel hit harder and are more relevant given our current circumstances than they did to the original crowd that Jesus spoke them to over 2,000 years ago. Jesus had performed numerous miracles throughout Israel up to this point that had never been performed in history, and haven’t been duplicated since….at least to my knowledge. I believe to truly understand any passage in the Bible you must also look at the text that precedes and follows it. For this particular post because Jesus is asking the crowd what they’re looking for from him at this moment, I think that it’s important to look back at what he had already done up to this point.
- Luke 4: Jesus travels to Capernaum and delivers a demon possessed man in a synagogue, heals Simon-Peter’s mother in law of a fever, and heals everyone else that is brought to him
- Luke 5: Jesus instructs several of his disciples and causes them to haul in an abundance of fish, heals a leper, and a paralyzed man on a mat
- Luke 6: Jesus establishes his authority over the Sabbath, heals a man with a paralyzed hand, and teaches about a firm foundation
- Luke 7:Jesus heals the centurion’s servant, resurrects the widow’s son, calls out an unresponsive generation, and gives a lesson on forgiveness
- Luke 8: Jesus calms the storm, delivers the man possessed by the legion, heals Jairus’ daughter, and the woman with the issue of blood
- Luke 9: Jesus feeds the 5,000, instructs his followers to take up their cross, delivers a possessed son, and teaches what it means to follow him
- Luke 10: Jesus sends out the 70, and gives the parable of the good Samaritan
Now that we’ve established a small snapshot of Jesus’ body of work in Israel up to this point, the following statement/question has more significance and relevance:
Everybody’s looking for proof, but you’re looking for the wrong kind.
I understand that many in the current crowd in Luke 11 were probably not aware of all the previous things that Jesus had done and said due to the limitations of news in that time, yet they were responsible for what they had seen, heard, and experienced him do for themselves. For the people that were now arriving to hear and see Jesus for themselves, what were they looking for? For those in the crowd, especially those on the fringes of the crowd who wouldn’t get the opportunity to be touched by Jesus, or even hear his voice, they came to hear or see Jesus for a reason, but what was it? Jump to present day, some people reading this post are tuning in to streaming church services, listening to inspirational/gospel music, or participating in a virtual bible study, what are you looking for? Considering the fear surrounding COVID-19, joblessness, isolation, etc, what are you actually looking for from Jesus? Like the list that I created to display what Jesus had done as told through the previous chapters in Luke, have you taken inventory of Jesus’ provisions and miracles in your life? I believe that each of us, if we honestly assessed our life, we’d quickly find and recognize moments where Jesus showed up and performed a miracle that we may or may not have recognized at the time.
Reflection time
What are you looking for? Take inventory of your life up to this point, to realize what has already been done in your life. If you heard or knew that Jesus was showing up to an area that you could walk, drive, ride, or fly to, would you go, and why?
