Jesus is far greater!

Luke 11:29-32

As the crowd pressed in upon him, he preached them this sermon: “These are evil times, with evil people. They keep asking for some strange happening in the skies to prove I am the Messiah, but the only proof I will give them is a miracle like that of Jonah, whose experiences proved to the people of Nineveh that God had sent him. My similar experience will prove that God has sent me to these people. And at the Judgment Day the queen of Sheba shall arise and point her finger at this generation, condemning it, for she went on a long, hard journey to listen to the wisdom of Solomon; but one far greater than Solomon is here and few pay any attention. The men of Nineveh, too, shall arise and condemn this nation, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and someone far greater than Jonah is here, but this nation won’t listen.

Food for thought!

It is true. Jesus was not accepted by everybody.  He met with opposition from many people including his own people. Many people enjoyed the miracles of Jesus and not the Jesus of the miracles.  Many people wanted Jesus to do something sensational to prove that he really was the anointed one of God. They could not see that the greatest sign that God could ever send was Jesus himself. The people failed to recognize Jesus. 

When Solomon was king the Queen of Sheba recognized his wisdom and came from far to benefit from it; when Jonah preached the men of Nineveh recognized the authentic voice of God and responded to it. But Jesus, they did not, as St. John tells us in his gospel: (Jn. 1:10-11) "He was in the world, and, although the world came into being through him, the world did not recognize him. It was into his own home that he came, and his own people did not welcome him." It happened to Jesus long ago; and it is happening yet.

Paul had said that the visible things of the world were so designed by God as to lead our thoughts to the invisible things, and that if we look with open eyes and an understanding heart at the world, our thoughts would inevitably lead us to the creator of the world (Rom.1:19-20). The world has always been such that, looked at in the right way, it would lead our minds to God. But it doesn't. Why is this so?

Well, maybe you have heard the phrase, “What you see is what you get.” This saying calls to mind a law of life that has nothing to do with what is being seen and everything to do with who is doing the seeing. Two people can wake up in the same neighborhood, on the same day, to the same conditions, and yet have a vastly different day depending on who is doing the seeing. One person may have a positive attitude and awaken with the thought, “Good morning, God!” The other may dwell in pessimistic shadows and greet the day with “Good God, morning!” Same words, but a vastly different emphasis. So, what you see is what you get and what I see is what I get! Nothing is interesting if you are not interested.

We are saying that the problem was not and is not with Jesus; the problem was  and is with you and me. When Solomon was king, the Queen of Sheba got interested in his wisdom and came from far to benefit from it; when Jonah preached the people of Nineveh got interested in his message and changed. And Jesus is far greater than any of them.

Philippians. 3:8

Yes, and I still count all things loss, because of the all-surpassing value of what it means to know Jesus Christ, my Lord. To him be praise and honour and glory and power, for ever and ever. Amen.