Sermon Tone Analysis

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You can listen to the audio of this message at http://www.pastorrickypowell.com/life_matters_with_pastor_/2010/01/a-reality-check-facing-the-tragedies-of-life.htm

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Scripture Introduction:

Today we honor the memories of those who lost their lives in the largest terrorist attack in history and the most lethal acts ever carried out in the United States.

The attacks involved the hijacking of four commercial airliners.

The fatalities were in the thousands: 265 on the four planes; 2,595, including 343 firefighters, 23 New York City police officers, and 37 Port Authority police officers, in the WTC; and 125 civilians and military personnel at the Pentagon.

At least 2,985 people were killed in total.

(On-line encyclopedia)

We also have on our minds and in our hearts today those who died or who were uprooted by Hurricane Katrina.

Inevitably we begin to ask questions in the face of tragic events to which there are no easy answers.

Many of the answers we seek will forever elude us in this life.

However, there are some answers we can find, some truths we can learn during times of tragedy.

That’s why it would do us well to turn to Jesus and learn from Him during times like these.

In our text for this morning, Luke 13, we will hear Jesus issue a reality check for us.

He will tell us that it is never too soon to repent, but it may soon be too late.

!! READ PASSAGE

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Sermon Introduction:

Luke 13 is not all that Jesus had to say about tragedy or evil in our world.

There are other passages where He dealt with the evil in men’s hearts, the tribulations that we may face, and the strength that is available to us during trying times.

There are other passages of Scripture where Jesus assures us that God will not leave us orphans, but that He will send the Holy Spirit to aid us.

There are other passages where Jesus tells us that no matter what tribulations we endure we can be people of good cheer because He has ultimately overcome the world.

Luke 13 is not all Jesus had to say about tragedy or evil in our world.

But if I am going to be faithful to the text today then I want to stay with what Jesus had to say about tragedy in these nine verses.

In this passage Jesus is confronted with a recent national tragedy that was being discussed by the people of His day.

Just as in our day, tragedies present opportunities for people to get together and talk.

People naturally discuss the events and their aftermath.

Today we gather around our television sets or radios, we search the internet, we read the papers, we gather with friends at Starbucks, and we sit around and talk about the news of the day.

People were no less interested in the news of Jesus’ day.

They too took the opportunity to talk about the hot topics of their day.

The people mention to Jesus the recent massacre of Galilean worshippers by Pilate.

They sought to draw Jesus into their political discussion concerning the tragedy.

That’s why the Bible says in verse one, “There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.”

(13:1)

Some of the people sincerely wanted to talk about this event.

Some people had ulterior motives.

They wanted to trick Jesus into making a statement that would inflame anti-Roman hostilities and get the Roman government after Jesus.

Others wanted to trap Jesus into saying something that might perhaps be interpreted as favoring what Pilate did.

Then the Jews could condemn Christ.

People wanted to bring Him into their political discussion, but Jesus ignored the political side of the issue and moved the spiritual issues at hand.

Instead of indulging the people with a moment to talk about other people He made face their own humanity once and for all.

Instead of looking in the current events of their day He wanted them to look at themselves in light of those current events.

TRANSITION: Jesus wants you to do the same today in the light of tragedies; they might be world tragedies, national tragedies, or personal tragedies.

He doesn’t want you to be content to merely discuss “those” people to whom tragedy has touched.

He wants you to take a look at your own heart.

He wants you to take a reality check!

In fact, He issues three reality checks.

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Reality Check #1: The Tragedies of Life Are A Fact of Life.

Luke 13:1-5

The people came to Jesus and told Him about how Pilate had murdered some Jews who were merely going up to worship God at the Temple.

They wanted to talk about that tragedy.

And Jesus says in essence, “Wait a minute.

What about those 18 people in Siloam who were crushed to death when a tower collapsed?”

Jesus is saying, “The tragedies of life are a fact of life.”

You don’t have to look long in the morning paper before you find accounts of different tragedies.

Murder and mayhem, terrorism and crime, natural disasters and world disasters, they are a fact of life.

You will discover if you examine life closely enough that many of the tragedies of life fall under 3 categories.

You have tragedies that are caused by human depravity.

Pilate could be an example of that.

!! A.Human depravity: Pilate

Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Jerusalem had no love loss for the Jewish people.

He viewed them as a means to an ends, namely as pawns to further his political career.

We don’t know the exact details surrounding this event mentioned in Luke 13.

But we do know that he did not get along with the Jews because he was insensitive to their religious convictions.

Bible scholars tell us for example, that he once brought the official Roman ensigns into Jerusalem and infuriated the Jews who resented having Caesar's image in the Holy City.

Pilate threatened to kill the protestors and they were willing to die! Seeing their determination, the governor relented and moved the ensigns to Caesarea, but that did not stop the hostilities.

There was even a time when Pilate desired to sacrifice a pig on the altar in the Jewish Temple!

Bible scholar, Warren Wiersbe tells us that the atrocity mentioned in Luke 13:1 may have taken place when Pilate "appropriated" money from the temple treasury to help finance an aqueduct.

In South Georgia we call that stealing!

A large crowd of angry Jews gathered in protest; so Pilate had soldiers in civilian clothes mingle with the mob.

Using concealed weapons, the soldiers killed a number of innocent and unarmed Jews, and this only added to the Jews' hatred for their governor.

(The Bible Exposition Commentary, Gospel of Luke)

Much of the tragedy and heart ache in this life has been caused because of human depravity.

When we talk of human depravity or total depravity we do not mean that all people as bad as they can be.

What we mean by that is there is not an area, not an aspect, not a corner of a person’s soul that has not been tainted by sin.

And often people make sinful decisions and sinful choices and they do things that harm other people.

* Pilate is an example!

* Murderers are examples!

* Drunk drivers are examples!

* Unfaithful spouses are examples!

* Dishonest business people are examples!

* Abusive priests or preachers are examples!

You don’t have to look far before you can find tragedy because of human depravity.

There is a second category of tragedies.

That would be natural disasters.

!! B.Natural disasters: Hurricane Katrina

We have seen this type of tragedy in recent days with Hurricane Katrina.

Hurricanes aren’t the only natural disasters that befall humanity.

There are also:

* Earthquakes

* Tsunamis

* Tornadoes

* Floods

* Wildfires

Our insurance policies call these events, “Acts of God.”

The Bible tells us that we live in a fallen world.

Sin has tainted our world.

The whole creation groans for that day when Christ returns and establishes a new world order.

Even the earth is tired of the curse of sin.

Natural disasters were not ever intended by God in His plan.

They are the results of the fall.

So you see, much of the heartache in our world comes from human depravity or natural disasters.

But there is a third category of tragedies.