Luke 13:1-9 - A Call to Repent
More than we continue on our journey through the Book of Luke looking at Luke chapter 13 verses 1 through 9. Let me get a started this morning with two questions. 2 questions to put to you
where the 176 passengers and crew of Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737 which was shot down shortly after leaving Turan where they worse Sinners than others because they suffered in this way.
Let me ask another question by the more than 25 people who have died as a result of the bushfires in Australia, which of inflamed with him in more than a hundred eighty-six thousand square kilometers are they were offenders than all the other citizens of that country.
Those are two questions for you to consider two difficult questions, and we'll see in this passage that Jesus uses similar tragic events from his own time. To communicate a, dating command that flows out of this segment of teaching which began in the first verse of chapter 12. That's what those two questions on your mind that our current to us in our day. Let's look. And what room what Luke wrote and chapter 13 verses 1 through 9 open your Bibles and turn on your devices. You don't have either of those you can follow along in the back of the insert that is in the bulletin.
Luke 13 verses 1 through 9 There was some present at that very time who told him that is Jesus about the galileans whose blood pilate had mingled with their sacrifices and he answered them. Do you think that these galileans were worse Sinners than all the other galileans because they suffered in this way. No, I tell you but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. Are those 18 on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them. Do you think that they were were offenders and all the others who lived in Jerusalem? No, I tell you but unless you repent you will all likewise perish and he told this Parable a man had a fig tree planted in his Vineyard and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. And he said to the vinedresser look for 3 years. Now. I have come to seek I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and I find none cut it down. Why should it use up the ground and he answered him, sir. Let alone this year also until I dig around it and put on manure then if it should bear fruit next year well and good, but if not, you can cut it down. Let's pray.
Father God we thank you for your word. We thank you that we have communicated to us.
the teachings of Jesus
father God with that great blessing we look for help this morning that we might understand what Jesus taught. And his communication to the disciples into the crowd and that day in the nighttime. Would impact us today in our time. We need your help with that father God.
Are we ask this morning?
Or something that we can't bring a boat on our own. We desire to be conformed to the image of Christ.
Father God you alone by your spirit applying your word to our lives. You alone can accomplish that.
Until we ask for your help Father. Specifically Lord I ask for your help in communicating the truth of your word in a way that's helpful to that end.
And father God would you help us by your spirit? To remember and to reflect and to rejoice in the Glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ. That though our sins are many. Your mercy is more. How was the sea that I got help some to see it for the first time this morning. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.
Jesus used a couple of tragic events to make a pronouncement to his disciples and by extension to the crowds all who were listening to him teach. He spoke of galileans the crowd informs Jesus of a group of galileans likely who were in Jerusalem worshipping at the Passover Festival who were killed by Pilot who then took their blood and mixed it with the blood of the sacrifices that they had brought. No killing dissidents was not uncommon for Rome. It was and wasn't uncommon for them to do this and the galileans in particular had a history of rebellion and insurrection.
And so the crowd someone from the crowd relates the story to Jesus and perhaps the story itself. If it was the first time he was hearing it. I doubt it was but either that or Jesus is intuition on what was behind their sharing this news Legend Jesus to ask them a rhetorical question, which he himself would answer. Do you think these galileans were worse Sinners than all the other galileans because they suffered in this way.
He asked that question again using another tragedy that was known to the people. He was teaching it concern the Tower of Salome the injection of this conversation another tragic event. He makes reference to an accident in which 18 and habitants of Jerusalem were killed. When a Tower or the scaffolding around the tower in the Southeast corner of the city fell on them. And Jesus repeats his earlier question. Do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? Two rhetorical questions in order that he can make a pronouncement to them.
Jesus answers his own rhetorical questions in order to give this pronouncement to both questions. Jesus's answer makes clear that neither the galileans who are killed by Pilot north of Jerusalem. Jerusalem might who died under the falling Tower were any worse Sinners than anyone else? But that's not really what he's concerned about in this discussion. He then uses these tragedies in the theological questions of a level of one's guiltiness evidence by suffering to make actually rather surprising declaration. Unless you repent you will perish. Jesus uses this opportunity in the recent tragedies to convey to the crowds to his disciples the fragility and unpredictability of life.
He wants them to know that the threat to each one of them of a sudden and tragic death is real. And following that death judgment the the Judgment that Reese preached about last week. Jesus wants his listeners to interpret these Grievous and shocking events as a warning not to those who suffer. But a warning to each one of them individually.
the surprising turn in this conversation
whether a Calamity or hardship is caused by the evil actions of an individual like pilot. Or by a seemingly random act of gods as when the tower fell they are to be used to remind us of the danger. We all faces Sinners who will one day be judged by God. No person is excluded from this you will all likewise perish unless you repent.
if life is unpredictable and fragile, despite what we in the Western World think we have in our experience in this congregation. We have enough experience is to understand that life is fragile and unpredictable. And if it is appointed for man to die once and after that comes judgment is Hebrews 925 says then being found in a state of right relationship to God who will judge us is not only wise it is imperative. This was Jesus's pronouncement. This is how Jesus sums up the teaching that began in chapter 12 verse 1 to convey this message to people Don't want to go one more time, and I'm sure not the last two Bishop J C Ryle for our first point of application. Particularly to those of us who live in the western world. Let's not be in denial about the uncertainty of our own existence. Here's what Bishop Ryle said about this passage. Let us observe for one thing in these verses how much more ready people are to talk of the death of others than their own Des the death of the galileans mentioned here was probably a common subject of conversation in Jerusalem and all Judea we can well believe that all the circumstances and particulars belonging to it. We're continually discussed by thousands who never thought of their own end. It is just the same in the present-day a murder a sudden death a shipwreck or Railway accident will completely occupy the minds of a neighborhood and be in the mouth of everyone. You meet any of these very people dislike talking of their own desk and their own prospects in the Eternal World beyond the grave such as human nature in every age and religion men are ready to talk of anybody's business rather than their own. Because I need to see the state of our own souls should always be our first concern. It is eminently true that real Christianity will always begin at home. The converted man will always think first of his own heart his own life his own desserts in his own sins. Does he hear of a sudden death? He will say to himself would I have been found ready? If this would happen to me? Does he hear some Dreadful crime or deed of witness wickedness? He will save himself are my sins forgiven have I really repented of my own transgressions? Does he hear of worldly man running into every axis of sin? He will say to himself who has made me to differ from them. What has kept me from walking on the same road to Eternal Perdition. Only the free grace of God. He finishes with this may we ever see to be men of this Frame of mine. Let us take a kind interest in all around us. Let us feel tender pity and compassion for all who suffer violence or remove by sudden death, but let us never forget to look at home and to learn wisdom for ourselves from all that happens to others that's precisely what Jesus was doing here in light of these tragedies light of talking about these difficult. That's really the horrendous a blaspheming deaths of the galileans whose blood was mixed with the sacrifices. They had brought to worship God. Jesus says you think about you. Yes, we want to be compassionate. Yes, we will have pity but use these as opportunities to evaluate where we stand. It's a Ryle reminds us yet. Again that apart from repentance. We Too Shall Perish repenting is imperative for mankind. We will and we will face judgment. This was Jesus's pronouncement repent. What is repentance? Wayne grudem Systematic Theology says repentance is a heartfelt sorrow for sin a renouncing of sin and a sincere commitment to forsake sin and walk in obedience to Christ.
We looked at repentance earlier on and a sermon series and Luke. In which I had a sermon and I convey the idea that Luke would have looked at repentance as a call to reorient our thinking from 10 to God. That results in a pursuit in our lives from sin to God. This is what repentance is repentance is taking a life that is geared towards walking towards pursuing sin. And do the mine in the heart turning from that sin and turning to God then I'll pursue God in our lives forsaking soon as we do so and this idea repentance is the culminating point of Jesus's discourse on the kingdom of God in this section of think back over the last chapters chapter 12 verses 1 through 12, which Ron Standish preach. Where to fear God and not fear men that we might receive God's grace and not his wrath verses 13 through 21. True wealth is found in being in a right relationship with God. 22 to 34 do not be anxious about things of this world, but trust God verses 35 through 48 be ready for Christ's return and the Judgment that he will bring be ready. And then last week a powerful reminder. Jesus came to judge and divide and will come again to judge and divide until Jesus makes this pronounce repellent while there is still time repent last you perish then Jesus shares a parable a parable would share the exact same message that he just gave a parable which conveys the exact same thing to his listeners that he just pronounced as he discussed the tragic death of the galileans in those who are the towers alone. In this Parable the owner of the vineyard who which contained a fig tree was looking for figs. In fact, he been looking for 3 years for fish eggs, and he had not found any so he spoke to the groundskeeper The Gardener the vinedresser and instructed him to cut that tree down. You see the owner was doubly frustrated. Not only was this tree not producing fruit which he was looking for but it was also using up space and resources in his garden and on his land So he wants it remove. The caretaker request one more year for the Fig Tree in which he will give it special attention. In order to see if it will produce food conceding that if it does not produce fruit the following year. It was to be destroyed. Now this Parable would have been clearly understood to be directed at Jewish people. The Old Testament refers to Israel is both a fig tree and a Vineyard. EXO he's directing this Parable at them.
The urgency of being and right relation. To be in a right relationship to the owner of the vineyard is emphasized at some point the owners going to come. And he has the power to determine if a tree is cut down on our not we see that unproductive fig trees are doubly pointless. They do not produce with their supposed to produce and not only that they waste precious resources in the vineyard.
See a fig tree to be in right relationship with the owner must produce fruit. The owner of the vineyard in which the Fig Tree is planted shows up looking for fruit there better be fruit on the tree that's being in right relationship to the owner of the vineyard.
Now the owner is patient. Says he's checked for 3 years if I show up looking for food, you're not going to get three years.
The owner is looking for food. He's looking for figs. He's patient. He waits 3 years but sooner or later at the determination of the owner himself. He is going to fix the situation of a fruitless fig tree and the solution is Judgment of the most severe kind of the Fig Tree will be cut down. We see this wrote the New Testament Apostle Peter and 2nd Peter 3 8 verse 10 wrote do not overlook. This one fact beloved. They went the Lord one day is as a thousand years and a thousand years is one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but his patient toward you not wishing that any should perish but that all should reach repentance, but but The day of the Lord will come like a thief and then the heavens will pass away with a Roar and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed. answer the parable that Jesus shares with this people is speaking about and so he reiterates his pronouncement in the telling of this Parable repent while there is still time lest you perish
It's a heavy message fact. I was asked this morning. Was it difficult to prepare? I said no. It's very obvious what the point of his passages? What is a difficult to hear and to receive I think it is? If you're here this morning, and you're not a Believer if you're not a follower of Christ. Jesus's teaching In this passage is meant to compel you to seriously consider. your inevitable and unpredictable death shock you out of any false sense of security that your current existence may give you When you die or when Christ returns both of which could happen when you are not ready at that moment, you will face judgment and at that moment you want to be found in a right relationship with God the Creator. Now you may have heard that Christianity is not about religion. It's about a relationship with God. And what that saying is intended to convey is right, but it's misleading. It's misleading because it suggests that there are some people who aren't in a relationship with God in anyway, and this simply isn't true. Every human being is in a relationship with God summer in a relationship with him and which they will be found in Christ and will and will inherit eternal life all others are in a relationship with God in which they will be found outside of Christ. It will face Eternal punishment.
I don't understand this this morning. We can be found in Christ only by repenting of our sin and trusting in Jesus. That's his message here only by repudiating Cinema self-focus direction of your life and trusting in Christ's in forgiving life death and resurrection and submitting your life to him only in that way. Will you be found in Christ and be found in Christ is to be found in a right relationship with God.
Jesus also through this pronouncement through this Parable speaks to those who are believers, who are those who are followers of Christ? In many ways, but let me give you two points of application this morning.
The first point of application pertains to the first Theses of Martin Luther that was nailed to the church door in Wittenberg. The very first of the 95 Theses that Martin Luther nailed to that door is this when our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said repent he intended that the entire life of Believers should be repentance. Let me say that again when the Lord and Master Jesus Christ said repent as he did In this passage as he did as he pronounced what was true about these two tragedies as you convey to the parable you just heard. When he said repent he intended that the entire life of believer should be repentance. Sisters we want to grow in our posture about a repentance throughout our lives. We want to excel at repentant. I was thinking about this morning during worship. You know, what a truly wonderful thing for a pastor to hear about his church would be if I went out to the coffee shop or bumped into someone in the mall. And they conveyed to me their impression of our church. It'll be a wonderful thing to hear man those Believers at Westland Alliance Church are serious about repenting. They are excellent repenters.
If you're a follower in Jesus, you have repented of your sin turn to faith in Christ in a significant way. If you're found in Christ, I need your sins have been forgiven and you've been granted eternal life, but we want to continue to grow in our posture of repentance. We want to grow in our practice of repenting of sin. And there's many ways we could do that. Let me give you one of the ways that I think is helpful. It comes from the Puritan Thomas Watson in his book the doctrine of repentance. He gives a very full picture of what repentance would look like and I think as we try to grow in our posture of repenting throughout our Christian lies at the be thinking about these sort of things would be helped Thomas Watson said repentance consists of six things. First it consists of a sight of sin. We need to see your sin. We can't be ignorant of it. We need to be able to sing the words to the song. My sins are many not to be able to see our sin II Leaf sorrow for sin. True repentance must involve Sorrel, not merely for the consequences of sin. You have to be a believer to be sorry for the consequences of sin. And the consequences are bad everyone. Sorry about that. They feel Sorel for it. No, but we have to feel sorrow for sinning against God and against the free Grace that he is given to us in Jesus. We need to have a sight of our sin and sorrow for sin. We need to confess our sin. We need to voluntarily and specifically insincerely confess. Our sin is the New Testament commands us. Most controversial E6 is Shane forsen. I believe shame rightly understood in the biblical idea of Shame is something believer should feel for their sin. They should feel the weight and the burden of sinning against God now there is a shame in the way we use the word today, which I don't think I believe or should receive a condemning feeling of despair. So what I'm talking about, but we should feel the burden. And weight of our sin against God. 5 hatred of sin. We need to come to a place where we truly hate our sin.
And finally grabs most importantly we need to turn from the said we need to forsake the sin. We need to stop sending that's what repentance would look like.
That's a picture of repentance that we as a body of Believers should aspire to as we mature in our Christian Life. The second point of application pertains to something unexpected in this Parable. There is a Twist in the plot of this Parable as there is in most of Jesus's parable. When something unexpected happens in a parable, we are to take note of it.
The Twist occurs when the gardener the groundskeeper the vinedresser intercedes on behalf of the Fig Tree and commits himself to a special gracious work in order for the tree to produce fruit and be saved why would he do that? Why would he bother it's more work for him digging up the ground bring it in the manure forget that cut the tree down. Let's start fresh know the gardener intercedes on behalf of the fig tree that's useless. It's worse than useless cuz it's using up nutrients from the ground and space in the garden, but the vinedresser says no,
let me do a gracious work for this tree that it might be safe. Sound like anyone, you know.
I believe it's vinedresser represents Christ. And so the second point of application for us Believers here this morning is to remember and reflect and rejoice in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The Gospel conveys to us his gracious work of sacrifice, whereby we might be made fruitful and be safe. Let's never stop glorying in the gospel. Let's never stop. Let's be people who grow in our posture of repentance. So we gained a reputation of being people who take repentance seriously. And let's be people who remember and reflect and rejoice in the gospel always growing in those two areas in light of that. In light of the main idea of this passage to repent and in light of our call to remember and rejoice and reflect on the gospel. I don't ask you to join me in a prayer of repentance. For those times when we forget the gospel, this is a wonderful prayer from the book called prone to wander. In which the author helps us pray a prayer of repentance in regards to forgetting the gospel. So I'm going to pray as I read these words to you and my hope would eat would be that you join me and that is you hear these words you agree with them in your heart and ask God to make them true of you and your life. Let's pray. God of all Grace we are weak and forgetful people. Easily distracted by the joys and Sorrows of Our Lives. We are capable of great thoughts concerning you one moment that we forget your kindness and live is a we had no. Hope the next Forgive us father for the unbelief that clings to our sinful flesh and clouds our minds with doubt and fear.
Jesus thank you for clinging to us, even though we let go of you repeatedly. Uhealth fast of the Gospel in your living dying and Rising again always obeying your father and setting your face toward the hill of sacrifice. You never forgot your mission or resisted your calling but Faithfully lived and died in our place you and Jared mocking beatings and crucifixion for the joy set before you. The wind the we may be quick to forget you and need reminding often. You never forget us. Instead you intercede for us daily before your father and you are preparing for the day when we will Feast with you in heaven come quickly Lord Jesus.
Holy Spirit produce in us growing faith that we may live in Christ may all our desires rest in him constantly. Make Jesus our greatest. Hope in all our Glory. May we enter him is our refuge build on him is our foundation walking him follow him conform to him rely on him and Obey him. Let us never be ashamed of him or his words. Is deaf Comfortis for we've been love with unfathomable love may his resurrection assure us that is obedience was perfect his sacrifice accepted in his work finished. Help us to hold fast to the gospel. We have believed to cherish it in our own weakness and to profess its power when we stand strong. Deepen our faith and guard our hearts and Minds with the helmet of Christ salvation the breastplate of his righteousness The Shield of his faith the sandal of his peace in the sort of his truth in his strong name. We pray. Amen.