Read: Mark 8:10-12
And he sighed deeply in his spirit and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation." (Mark 8:12 ESV)
Why are we always looking for signs? We seem to be a people who crave the security of inside information. We doggedly go about searching for clues or insights to the near and far future. We even sometimes fall into the trap of worshipping that kind of information, maybe not in ritualistic religious observances, but with our intense desires and passions.
The Gospels record Jesus being approached about his signs on a few different occasions. People wanted proof of his claim. They wanted some kind of supernatural ID, but they wanted it on their schedule and on their time. He had already been demonstrating all kinds of supernatural things. Healings, exorcisms, and other miraculous wonders that superseded the natural world.
I believe God does supernatural things for two reasons. He does them simply because He loves us and wishes to help us. And He also does them to bring glory to Himself. He does not do them to whoa us, wow us, or woo us. No sign is coming simply to sate our estranged curiosity. God does not work on our time, to please our whims, or to satisfy our selfishness.
I think that leaves us with an important question. Will be of a generation that freely receives from God simply because He loves us and is longing to demonstrate His love? Or, will we go to Him as the Pharisees did with our list of demands and conditions for belief? One option leaves us disappointed, depraved, and destitute. The other leaves us sitting as His feet, awaiting the Father’s good pleasure.