Just Another Fish Story?

by Steve Kurtright

Did you hear the one about the man who owed two days' wages for taxes and sent his friend to the sea fishing? The first fish the friend caught had four days' wages in its mouth, enough to pay the first man's tax and the friend's as well.

Or how about the story of the eleven fishermen who fished all night on the wrong side of the boat? When they tried the other side, they caught 153 big ones.

And what about the fish that swallowed a man and then spit him out on dry ground three days later?

Different 'Fish Stories'

These stories are different from other fish stories that come and go, because they are found in the Bible. The one about the fish with the tax money in its mouth is in Matthew 17:24-27; the one about the great catch of fish is in John 21:4-11; and the account of the fish that swallowed a man is in the book of Jonah.

The last of these stories is particularly significant. We learn lessons not only from Jonah (the man who was swallowed by the fish), but also from the story's connection with the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Jesus himself referred to Jonah's story to aid our understanding of His claim as Messiah.

The Christian faith pivots on the identity of Jesus. If He is fully God and fully man as He claimed to be, then all creation is subject to His lordship. But how is His messianic claim substantiated?

Proof of the Messiah

Jesus zeroed in on this very point by asking His followers, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" (Matthew 16:13).

To this question, there were several responses: l) an ascetic like John the Baptizer; 2) a seer like Elijah the prophet; 3) a proclaimer like one of the other prophets. Jesus continued the questioning by asking, "But who do you say that I am?" (v. 15).

It was Peter's answer that rings clear: "You are the Christ" (NIV), a truth that is inseparable from the fish story of Jonah. To see the connection, notice the account in Matthew 12:38-40.

Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered Him, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You." But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign shall be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet; for just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so shall the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth."

The scribes and Pharisees wanted proof that Jesus was who He said He was. That proof was in the sign of Jonah the prophet. Jesus would be resurrected from the grave after the same period Jonah had spent in the fish's belly.

A Hard Truth

The teaching of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead was not easily understood, however. The Gospel of John records the following account to prove the point:

The Jews therefore answered and said to Him, "What sign do You show to us, seeing that You do these things?" Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." The Jews therefore said, "It took forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?" But He was speaking of the temple of His body. When therefore He was raised from the dead, His disciples remembered that He said this; and they believed the Scripture, and the word which Jesus had spoken (John 2:18-22).

The last verse in this passage reveals that even Jesus' followers did not fully understand and believe in His resurrection until after it happened. Their lack of understanding was complicated by their concept of Jesus as the Messiah. Like so many other Jews, the disciples seemed to be looking for a political/religious leader, like King David, who would restore Israel to its former glory. With such a concept, even the thought of Jesus' death was unnerving to the disciples. How could their Messiah die?

A Dead Messiah?

This point is made even clearer in an exchange between Jesus and Peter, which came on the heels of Peter's confession "You are the Christ." Notice Matthew 16:21-23:

From that time Jesus Christ began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day. And Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You." But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's."

This exchange between Jesus and Peter was followed six days later by a miraculous, but momentary, transfiguration of Jesus into His future glory (Matthew 17:1-8). When Jesus was transfigured in front of Peter, James, and John, God spoke from heaven, identifying Jesus as His Son. The Father had been pleased with the Son at Jesus' baptism (3:17), and remained pleased with Him even in the face of impending death: "This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; hear Him!" (17:5).

God's words were intended to restore confidence to the disciples' belief. Though Jesus was to suffer and even die, He was still the Son of God. His words remained true and worthy of acceptance.

Payment for Sin

What does all this mean to us? Of what significance are the death and resurrection of Jesus?

In one sense, the death of Jesus was the appeasement to God for the sins of mankind, a payment of sorts demanded by the righteousness of God. It was a payment that no mere mortal could make.

By [God's will] we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. . . . He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God. . . . For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified (Hebrews 10:10, 12, 14).

The apostle John called Jesus the "propitiation [atoning sacrifice] for our sins" (1 John 2:2). Apostle Paul also spoke of Jesus in these terms: "We also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation" (Romans 5:11). In other words, the death of Jesus Christ made things right between man and God.

Punishment for Sins

Paul also said that Christ became sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21). Jesus died with our sins on His shoulders. He did not merely suffer physical death - the death that all of us must face before judgment (Hebrews 9:27). Rather, He experienced death for the punishment of sins, called the "second death" in Revelation 20:14, 15. Jesus experienced the separation from God awaiting those who refuse to humble themselves before God. In Matthew's graphic account of Jesus' dying words, that separation tore at the very being of our Lord. He cried out in total isolation, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (27:46, NIV).

We are delivered from that death simply by accepting Jesus' death as payment for our sins and sin natures, and by making Him Lord of our lives.

Promise of Victory

Furthermore, Christ's resurrection from the dead sealed the promise of victory over the grave. His death provided the forgiveness for sin; His resurrection made it our hope.

But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who are asleep. For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, after that those who are Christ's at His coming (1 Corinthians 15:20-23).

The resurrection of Jesus Christ was the sign He himself gave to prove His identity as the Son of God, the Savior of mankind. He talked of faith and of the forgiveness of sin during His ministry. He discussed His being the Lord of life, the Light of the world, and the Way. His resurrection made all His claims and promises come alive for those who believe.

Christ, the Advocate

However, Christ's giving did not stop with His humiliation and suffering; it did not stop with the giving of His life on the cross; it did not find completion in His resurrection. Christ continues giving to us today.

For a forty-day period following His resurrection, Jesus appeared to His disciples. During that time, He taught them about the kingdom of God. Finally, He called them to Jerusalem, where He ascended to heaven. "And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight" (Acts 1:9).

Jesus' ascension combined His glorification with a new phase of ministry. God not only raised Christ from the dead, but also seated Him in His presence, giving Him authority over all powers and peoples forever (Ephesians 1:20-23). The restoration of Christ to His heavenly abode carried with it a responsibility. As Christ sits in the presence of Almighty God, He serves as an advocate - a mediator - between God and mankind (1 John 2:1). Should sin rear its ugly head in our walk with Christ as Lord of our lives, Jesus sits, not condemning, but pleading our forgiveness in Him before God.

Conclusion

Christ brought forgiveness in death, testified to His deity by the resurrection from the dead, and now brings forgiveness as our mediator before God in heaven.

As we have seen, this isn't just any fish story; it is the story of how Jesus the Messiah offered Himself in both death and life for the forgiveness of our sins. It is the statement of Christ's atoning death, resurrection, and ascension to heaven. Believe it and live!

Revised and reprinted from the March 1991 issue of the Bible Advocate. Steve Kurtright is coordinator of the Southwest District in the Church of God (Seventh Day). Scripture quotations were taken from the New American Standard Bible, except where otherwise noted.

© 1997 General Conference of the Church of God (Seventh Day)