Be Ready…and Be Fruitful

Have you ever had something bad happen to you and it made you ask if God is punishing you or why God allowed it to happen? Well if you have, you’re not alone. People have asked this question since the beginning of time, and this same question is the foundation of the Gospel reading from Luke 13:1-9.

That particular reading mentions two incidents that are not mentioned anywhere else in the Bible-Pilate’s slaughter of the Galileans in the Temple and the collapse of the tower. Pilate had proven himself capable of killing Jews who displeased him or opposed his policies. The crowd apparently wanted to see Jesus’ response to Romans slaughtering righteous Jews as they performed their Jewish religious duties.

There was a belief at that time that severe calamities happened only to people who deserved God’s judgment and that the truly righteous were spared suffering. Jesus said that this was not true. Jesus said in effect that the precariousness of life in a fallen world should prompt us to take stock of our spiritual conditions. Jesus’ words about judgment and repentance are scary, but they depict human life as a gift.

There are still some people today who believe that a person’s suffering is a result of his/her actions. This is true to some extent. For example, an alcoholic who develops cirrhosis of the liver has no one to blame except himself and his decision to drink alcohol to excess. Some churches are also guilty of this sinful belief. For example, there was a church that taught that God’s approval, love and blessing were all conditional based upon one’s performance. As a consequence, some people who have experienced spiritual abuse and hold a distorted image of God see God as a policeman who will punish them for any wrongdoing.

Suffering is not a form of punishment. God does not want anyone to suffer. He wants us to turn away from sin and turn to him so we can have abundant lives. On the other hand, Jesus didn’t deny the connection between sin and disasters, because many disasters are the result of the curse of human sin. He does challenge the notion that people who survive disasters are morally superior than the victims. Disasters are not God’s way of singling out evil people for death. Disasters are God’s way of warning all sinners. Since disasters occur without warning, we must always be ready to meet God.

For Jesus, the real sin is not bearing fruit when we have been given the responsibility to do so. We are planted where we are and we are called to be responsible disciples who do God’s work in whatever calling we have.

Jesus told several parables relating to vineyards during his teaching. In each parable, the vineyard represented both the people of Israel and us. According to Old Testament law, no one was to eat the fruit from newly-planted trees. This fruit belonged to God. God gave Israel plenty of time to repent and bear fruit, and he gives us plenty of time to repent and bear fruit. Eventually, judgment will come. God wanted to show compassion to the people of Israel, and he wants to show us compassion as well, but his compassion has a limit. We must not presume upon God’s grace and patience.

The voice of the gardener is a voice for mercy. More time is given for the tree and us to bear fruit. The tree can’t do it on its own, so the gardener will take steps to help the tree be fruitful. Similarly, God has taken steps to help us be fruitful. He has sent Jesus to pay the penalty for our sins. He has given us instructions in the Scriptures. God is always on our side. He always sends us help and encouragement in our need to change and live fruitful lives. The life of a disciple of Jesus consists of daily repentance and renewal. Each day is a day of grace, providing the opportunity to repent and bear the fruits of repentance. When our time is up, it’s up. God will give us many opportunities to repent and obey the gospel, but if we don’t, God will deal with us.

Both of the stories we heard from Luke’s Gospel this morning are calls to repent. God wants us to repent. He wants to be involved in our lives and give us the promise of heaven and spiritual blessing. He wants to plant something in us that will grow and bear fruit. This fruit will change the way we live and it will impact our actions, decisions and character. Jesus’ purpose is to redeem us. Jesus wants to see something grow within us as a result of his presence in our lives. We have no right to be taking up space in church if we aren’t being fruitful. We need to share Christ with other people. We do this by inviting them to church or by talking about Jesus with them over a cup of coffee.