Proof

Luke 11:29-31 (The Message)

As 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.

"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.'

What miracles do we demand from God, as "proof" that He is real?

I can remember with total clarity an evening from my childhood that I spent lying in the front porch swing at the house my family lived in at that time.

I lay there, as the summer sun set in the background, looking up at the bare lightbulb that hung from the porch's ceiling.

"If you're real, God..." I thought to myself, and Him, "...make that lightbulb come on right now."

It didn't come on.

What did I learn from that little "miracle proof" experiement? I certainly didn't come away thinking that God isn't real. I came away smiling, knowing that God wasn't interested in doing my tricks, like a well-trained dog.

But still, it would be nice to have "proof" sometimes, wouldn't it?

We have it.

Jesus told the crowd that they (and we) have all the proof we need, but that we look for the wrong kind, to "satisfy our lust for miracles."

The "lust for miracles" is played out every night on religious tv broadcasts. It's played out in every movie and show that we watch, the books and magazines that we consume, the marketing and advertising that shapes our choices.

What Jesus offers is different, and more lasting, and much more real.

And he says that it's right in front of us.

The Ninevites saw that proof through Jonah and believed. The Queen of Sheba even believed, through the teachings and wisdom of Solomon.

Now, Jesus says, there is a greater teacher than these.

We have his words in scripture, and we can experience his truth in our lives.

Do you need proof of God? Walk outside. Right now...or at your very first opportunity. Look up. Blue sky and amazing clouds. Look down. Blades of grass, each intricately and beautifully formed. Insects, roaming and working. Air, breathed by us all. A star blazing in the sky, keeping us warmed at exactly the right temperature. A season of growth, just beginning to pass its apex, into harvest and decline.

Not three weeks ago, my middle son and I dug a deep new flower bed in our backyard. We ammended the soil with earthy additions. We gently planted seeds and watered them in faith.

Today, sunflowers and a mixture of all kinds of beautiful plants, are already higher than his head.

We've had very little to do with that. The God of the Harvest has done it all.

Look around.

Love. Grace. Friendship. Courage to go forward. Smiling faces. Laughter. Grass. Bugs. Clouds.

It's all there. "And you squabble about 'proofs.'"

Prayer: May we see signs of your grace all around us today, with new eyes to see what you are doing in this world.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be. World without end. Amen.