In Scripture, Jesus is many times asked to prove himself to others. That is, they wanted to know whether or not he is the messiah whom Israel expected. Jesus, it would seem, gives different answers to different people, somewhat appearing to contradict himself. For example, when Pharisees and Sadducees came to him, they wanted him to prove himself by showing his power and might. Therefore, they asked Jesus to show them a sign. If he did so, that is, if he showed such power and authority that he could take on the legions of Rome, it is clear that they would be willing to follow him; he would have met their expectations. But his response indicates that he does not want to do this; he says he will give them a sign, and indeed, it will be a sign from heaven — it will be the sign of Jonah:
And the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and to test him they asked him to show them a sign from heaven. He answered them, “When it is evening, you say, `It will be fair weather; for the sky is red.’ And in the morning, `It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” So he left them and departed (RSV Matt 16:1-4).
When St John the Baptist was in prison, John, in his own trial of faith, began to have doubts about Jesus. He sent some of his disciples, asking Jesus to reveal whether or not he had been mistaken. Jesus’ reply is that he was indeed the one John expected, that John was not mistaken, and he had given signs to prove it:
Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, “Are you he who is to come, or shall we look for another?” And Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is he who takes no offense at me'” (RSV Matt 11:2-6).
Reading these two accounts, it would seem that Jesus was contradicting himself. In one, he said he would give only one sign, the sign of Jonah. To John, however, he was indicating the work which he had been doing, work which revealed his miraculous powers. Yet, things are not exactly as they seem. In reality, both signs are indicative of the same reality, that is, of God’s great compassion and love for humanity, and the sign which he was giving to one, the Pharisees and Sadducees, was actually the same sign he was given to John. What John was to realize is that God’s great mercy was being revealed, and this mercy was being shown by the way Jesus was overturning the boundaries established by the ruling class of his time. The poor, the deformed, the rejected were those Jesus went to and healed; the sign was not the healing, the sign was the mercy and love being shown to those who were otherwise hated and despised. Their healing was a manifestation of this love. The sign of Jonah, however, is also a sign of this love — for what Jesus was referring to was his compassionate embrace of death for the whole of humanity. God’s glory was revealed in Jesus, God’s sign for humanity is the sign of love, a love which goes as far as death. Thus, we should realize that Jesus’ sign is not meant to be that of his triumphal power over the world, of his ability to perform miracles. What we were meant to notice is how he used that power, that is, what it showed of his character and thus, of the character of the one who sent him (God the Father).
Many people in Jesus’ time (and afterward) have done things which can be seen as miracles; not all of them, however, were done by holy people. Such power over nature certainly demonstrates someone who we should look at and ponder, for such power indicates there is something special and unusual about the person who wields it. However, it is what is done with that manipulation, how it is used, which indicates whether or not someone deserves our respect and veneration. Is it used for egotistical means, to generate followers for the self, so that one can have people to lord it over? Or does the one who uses such powers suffer in their use, suffer for the sake of others, find themselves even disgraced because of the people they are willing to help? The second is a true demonstration of real authority, of glory, of holiness, because it is a sign of love. It is when we are willing to give of ourselves, to embrace the unembraced with compassion, do we show an attainment of holiness and real spiritual authority. This idea is beautifully stated by Dharmakīrti as he explains why one would follow a Buddha: “What demonstrates the Buddha’s authority is his compassion. It comes from habitual practice.”[1] What is true for a Buddha is especially true for God. It is because of God’s all-compassionate embrace of humanity (and the whole of creation), in an embrace which transcends all other forms of compassion (through kenosis), God’s authority is established. For it is through the incarnation and Jesus descent into hell, in the revelation of God as love, that we see God and come to know God, and know God, who loved us first, deserves our loving obedience in return.
[1] Dharmakīrti, Pramāṇavārttikakārika, a selection of which is found and quoted in Buddhist Scriptures. Ed. Donald S. JLopez Jr. (London: Penguin Books, 2004), 191.
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