Day 371: Our turn will come – Luke 13 vs 1 -9

1 About this time Jesus was informed that Pilate had murdered some people from Galilee as they were offering sacrifices at the Temple.  2-4 “Do you think those Galileans were worse sinners than all the other people from Galilee?” Jesus asked. “Is that why they suffered?  Not at all! And you will perish, too, unless you repent of your sins and turn to God.  And what about the eighteen people who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them? Were they the worst sinners in Jerusalem? 5 No, and I tell you again that unless you repent, you will perish, too.”

6-7 Then Jesus told this story: “A man planted a fig tree in his garden and came again and again to see if there was any fruit on it, but he was always disappointed. Finally, he said to his gardener, ‘I’ve waited three years, and there hasn’t been a single fig! Cut it down. It’s just taking up space in the garden.’ 8-9 “The gardener answered, ‘Sir, give it one more chance. Leave it another year, and I’ll give it special attention and plenty of fertilizer. If we get figs next year, fine. If not, then you can cut it down.’” Luke 13:1-9 New Living Translation paraphrase (English Standard Version link)

Some people brought to Jesus' attention a tragic incident of some Galileans who had been killed under orders from Pontius Pilate. Looking at the reply Jesus gave in vs 2-4 – in which he also mentions 18 people who died when a tower collapsed – what do you think the people had been hinting, or suggesting, when they told Jesus about the Galileans?

It seems to me that they were implying that those Jews who had died so suddenly were probably very bad sinners. People often think that when some tragedy strikes it must be that God was especially angry with the people who were affected by it. But what does Jesus reply in vs 5?

While there are times when God may well send a judgment upon people – as He did in the days of Noah – Jesus' reply suggests we must not think of every tragic event in life as a judgement to show that such people were worse than others. Christian families can experience heart breaking tragedies too. What we can learn from such events is that death is a sad part of this world's experience, and will be the common fate for all of us. And, in the light of that truth, men and women everywhere should repent of sin and be reconciled to God before it's too late.

Jesus went on to tell a story of a fig tree that, year after year, bore no fruit. (vs 6-7) What do you think the purpose of that story was?

Some suggest that the fig tree was symbolic of the nation of Israel and Jesus was warning the crowd how God had looked for the fruit of righteousness in the nation and in individuals, but was disappointed. The gardener's plea to give the tree one more chance was like the presence of Jesus among them at that time, but if they didn’t respond to His message God's judgement would surely come upon them. (vs 8-9) We know from history that that's exactly what happened. While many Jews did repent and believe on Christ, many more – including their leaders – rejected and crucified Him. So in 70AD Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans.

But the lesson of that story still applies to men and women today. Our life in this world doesn’t last forever. Some may reach eighty or a hundred years; the lives of others may be cut short at twenty or thirty-five. There's a verse in the New Testament that says: “All men die once - after that, they will stand before God and be judged.” (Hebrews 9:27 New Life Version) There are not endless reincarnations and we don't just go into oblivion. We live and die in this world just once, and then we are accountable to God. The good news is that God forgives the sins of those who repent and who rely upon His beloved Son as Saviour and Lord.

Unless Jesus returns before it happens, our turn to do die will come around too. Will God find in us the fruit of the Holy Spirit which is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness and self-control? (Galatians 5:22-23)