Jonah 1:17: And the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
Luke 11:30: For as Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man be to this generation.
The purpose of the book of Jonah is to point us to Jesus. It is no coincidence that Jonah was thrown overboard, gulped into the belly of the fish three days and nights, and then vomited on dry ground. It is death, burial, and resurrection. It is a sign to Nineveh, a sign to Jesus’ generation, and a sign for ours. It is a picture of the Word incarnate come to earth to suffer and die that we might live eternally. It is the Sin-bearer taking on our sins carrying them to the pit of hell to cast them away forever. It is the Savior, risen to life that we might have new life. It is Jesus prepared to be the perfect testimony of God’s love to His people. It is the power we now possess as we read, hear, trust, and respond to God’s Word.
I would encourage you to ask yourself how the Word of God is tangibly being made effective in your life. Is your own suffering bearing fruit of life through your knowledge and response to Jesus’ own death, burial, and resurrection?
If you are hearing it, are you responding to it in trustful reliance on Jesus for you?
No comments:
Post a Comment