The need for repentance, Luke 13: 1-9

A few years after I left college, I was working in the hotel business and on one occasion I had a long weekend break from work.  An old college buddy of mine named Ivan happened to call and we made plans to go to Charleston, SC for the weekend.   At the time, I had fallen away in my walk with God and was, to use an old fashioned term, in a backslidden condition.  Ivan wasn’t living for God either.  But both of us had been raised by Christian parents and attended Christian schools, and so we both were more or less aware that we were in rebellion against God. 

On the way home after a weekend of partying, Ivan began to talk about how depressed he was.  And as we talked, he admitted that he did not know whether or not  that he was saved.  Being backslidden myself, I found the conversation uncomfortable.  But I remember that I vaguely tried to reassure him as we drove the long drive back home in the dark. We were both young men in the prime of our lives. Ivan was beginning a new career in a couple of weeks as an airline pilot.  And I had recently gained a promotion in the hospitality management field.  We thought we had the future ahead of us, and a lifetime to make the most of every opportunity.

After we got home that night, we parted ways, making plans to reconnect in a few weeks and take another road trip.  But  I never got to speak to Ivan again.  On his maiden training flight with the cargo airline he started working for, his plane crashed with him and three other crew members aboard.  They think that something caused the plane to blow up in mid air.  Their bodies were scattered over a four block area.

When I got the phone call, I was very disturbed as I remembered the last conversation I had with Ivan.  I don’t know if he ever made peace with God.  Knowing Ivan, I doubt that he did.  As for me, it should have been a wakeup call.  However, I’m sad to say that it wasn’t. I continued to live in rebellion against God.  Yet I wondered why he was taken and I wasn’t.  After all, we were both more or less in the same boat.  And yet, God chose to let Ivan die while I continued to live in rebellion against God.  It was another 3 or 4 years before I finally got right with God.  However, even to this day I find myself wondering why Ivan was taken, while I was given another chance.

As Jesus is finishing up a long sermon to a large mixed crowd of disciples and curious onlookers, He found Himself confronted with a similar scenario.  Jesus had been preaching on the judgment to come and how that day can come upon you at a time when you are not expecting it.  And someone in the crowd, after listening to His message about judgment, asked Him about a current event that everyone in the crowd must have been familiar with.  They asked Him about a group of Galileans who had been killed by the Romans while offering sacrifices in the temple.  And there had been such a slaughter that their blood was mingled with the blood of the sacrifices.  It must have been a horrific event, and one that was particularly hard for Jews to come to grips with because it would have happened in the temple.  These Galileans were probably insurrectionists that had been found in the temple and massacred by the Roman soldiers as the temple sacrifices were going on.  So they obviously were connecting a calamity of this magnitude with the judgment of God.

 That’s an assumption that perhaps we have all made from time to time as we have processed some great catastrophe that we have heard about on the news.  It’s the sort of questions that were frequently raised after the calamity in this country following  9-11.  The question they asked Jesus was similar to questions that I’m sure we all have asked ourselves at times like that; “Were these people worse sinners than everyone else? Did the judgment of God fall upon them because they were such evil people?”

And Jesus answered this question by saying, ““I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”  Then Jesus followed up that remark with another recent headline that would have been familiar to them all.  There had been another group of Jews, eighteen persons in all, that had been crushed to death when a tower in Siloam had fallen on them.  And Jesus asks a rhetorical question, “Or do you suppose that those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them were worse culprits than all the men who live in Jerusalem?”  His answer is exactly the same as before; “I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”

Now to properly understand this, we need to realize that the Jews had a theology that basically said they were the chosen people of God, the fortunate people.  They were the people of God’s blessing.  And so to their minds, the only way misfortune could happen to them was if the people involved were particularly evil people who were being punished by God.  Because they believed that the normal situation was that the Jews were favored by God.  Bad things could happen to pagans and deservedly so, but not to Jews.

By the way, that same theology is very common in modern evangelicalism isn’t it? Especially in American evangelicalism there is a predominate teaching and mindset that says that Christians are somehow exempt from all the troubles and trials of the world.  That if we claim to be Christians and just have some form of faith, we can be assured that we can avoid the calamities that befall the rest of the world.  Such false doctrine has given rise to the Joel Olsteens and the Kenneth Hagins of the modern church which teach a health, wealth and happiness philosophy that has been called the prosperity doctrine. Such false teaching has  given rise to the faith healers like Benny Hinn and Oral Roberts and others that teach that sickness and calamity are never ever going to happen to believers if they have enough faith. 

Unfortunately, Jesus Christ did not teach these doctrines. In fact, this very passage teaches that calamity comes on us all.   Jesus makes it very clear that the calamity that fell upon these two groups of people did not happen because they were greater sinners than others.  But what Jesus is teaching is that sin is the underlying reason for all death and calamity.  It is the nature of a fallen world. Romans 8:22 says that

“the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. In other words, as a result of sin, the world is under a curse.  Nature is under the curse.  And man is under the curse.  All of creation suffers under the effects of sin and is waiting for the day of  redemption.

The correct perspective of understanding such tragedies is that sin has caused death to come upon the world, and all of mankind is doomed to death.  That is what Jesus means when He says unless you repent you will all likewise perish.  There is a fate worse than death, and that is eternal death and destruction at the judgment of God.  Physical death is just the gateway to judgment and the judgment is  eternal death.  Hebrews chapter 9 says that it is appointed unto man once to die and after that the judgment.  But for the grace of God, we all are destined to die an eternal death.  What time we have on this earth is but a temporary reprieve, an opportunity to respond to the gospel in repentance and be saved from the destruction that we all deserve and are destined to receive.

Just because you or I have escaped some calamity up till now is no indication of a favored position with God.  It simply means that you have been given more time to repent, to turn to God for forgiveness. Romans 2:4 says, "Do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and forbearance and patience not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance?"  But for the grace of God we all should suffer some calamity.  But God has given us time to repent, and whatever time we have in this world is due to the kindness of God that should cause us to repent.

But I’m afraid that most of us respond to the kindness of God much the same way as I did when I found out that my friend Ivan had died in a plane crash.  I thought it was a tragedy, but at the same time I thought that somehow I was exempt from such suffering, even though I was in the same sinful condition.  Most people go through life presuming upon the grace of God when they are able to continue in sin without calamity, and then blaming God when calamity strikes. 

Now I think it’s obvious that Jesus is using these two events to reinforce the need for repentance. The idea of perishing is not talking about just physical death which comes upon us all, but Jesus is speaking of eternally perishing without God and finding yourself at the judgment being cast into eternal hell.  So repentance is the means of escaping that calamity that is due to befall everyone.  That calamity is greater than any disaster that might happen to us on earth, to be ushered into the presence of God and found wanting.  And what Jesus is making clear here is that the only way to escape that calamity is by repentance. 

I’m afraid that in the salvation message today the need for repentance has been obscured by offering people a dumbed down version of the gospel that minimizes the need for repentance, and instead emphasizes the benefits of blessing.  It’s a false doctrine similar to what the Jews of Jesus day were believing in.  Today there is a great appeal to the world to come as you are, to have a relationship with Jesus and that He will solve all your problems and you will have an enriched, fuller, more successful life as a result. 

Consequently, I’m afraid that a lot of people claim Christianity that in actuality haven’t ever been saved.  Because Jesus makes it clear that repentances is the means of salvation.  There must be a complete realization of our sinful condition before God and the judgment that we completely deserve.  Repentance then is the recognition of our sinful condition, of being cut off from God and deserving of God’s judgment, and then calling out to God for forgiveness and in a desire to give my life to God if He will give me life.  It’s an exchange of my life for His life.  My sin for His righteousness.  My will for His will.  It’s an act of grace, whereby I am completely undeserving, but God in His mercy has provided a way of escape through the substitution of Jesus Christ.

That’s the process of salvation.  I’m afraid though that isn’t what a lot of people who claim Christianity have done.  They have added a certain measure of Christianity to their lives in hopes of enriching their lives here on earth, or in hopes that God will enable them to escape some bad habit, or undesirable consequence of their sin, but there has never been repentance; to hunger and thirst after righteousness.  To become sick of your sin, and to understand that repentance is a desire to turn away from sin and live for God.

That sort of repentance will produce something else in a person’s life which is lacking in modern Christianity.  That sort of repentance will produce forsaking the world and living for God, to become conformed to the image of Jesus Christ.  This part of salvation is what is called sanctification.  Hebrews 12:14 tells us that without this sanctification, no one will see the Lord.  Sanctification is the process of working out your salvation with fear and trembling, as we grow and mature in Christ and ultimately bring forth fruit.  True repentance produces three things in the life of the saved; saved from sin’s penalty, being saved from sin’s power, and one day saved from sin’s presence.  That is the three stages of Christianity, salvation, sanctification and one day glorification when sin is done away with forever.

The problem with modern Christianity is that we have a lot of people claiming salvation, but lacking sanctification.  And I’m here to warn you today that sanctification is the fruit of repentance; it’s the fruit of salvation.  I’m here to warn you that a life lived without a desire after the things of God, a life lived without being conformed to the image of God, a life lived without any visible signs of spiritual fruit needs to be examined in light of what God’s word really says. 

Jesus said in Matt. 7:16, “You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So then, you will know them by their fruits.”

Now looking back again at our text, Jesus teaches this very important principle by using a parable about a fig tree that was planted in a vineyard. Luke 13:6, “And He began telling this parable: “A man had a fig tree which had been planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and did not find any.  And he said to the vineyard-keeper, ‘Behold, for three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree without finding any. Cut it down! Why does it even use up the ground?  And he answered and said to him, ‘Let it alone, sir, for this year too, until I dig around it and put in fertilizer;  and if it bears fruit next year, fine; but if not, cut it down.’”

Now the illustration of the fig tree obviously refers to the nation of Israel in this parable.  And for three years Jesus  had been teaching and preaching the gospel of repentance.  John the Baptist had preached it prior to Christ.  And so Jesus is saying that because they were rejecting His message and not bearing fruit in keeping with repentance, God was ready to cut down the  tree.  John the Baptist had said that the axe was already laid  at the root of the tree.  And Jesus would be with them just a little while longer and then He would be taken away.  The time for the Jews to repent and start bearing fruit was now. 

But history shows that they did not.  And within the lifetime of many of those who heard the message that day, in AD 70 the Romans would come and destroy the temple.  The massacre of the Galileans who blood mingled with the sacrifices in the temple would pale in comparison to the calamity that would come upon them then as thousands upon thousands  would be slaughtered while taking refuge in the temple.  And the temple itself would be burned and not one stone left upon another. God’s judgment would fall upon the Jews because they rejected His Son.  They had received all the care and benefits of being in God’s vineyard and yet they had not brought forth fruit.

Though this parable speaks primarily to the nation of Israel, it also has individual applications as well.  I know in my own life, I mentioned earlier that I eventually returned to the Lord.  And yet I did not return with my whole heart.  Perhaps I thought I was ok at the time.  I eventually married my wife, had children and became more involved in my church.  I thought I was doing more than most Christians.  I taught Sunday School.  I participated in various church functions and regularly attended services.  I tithed. I read my Bible every morning.  When I compared myself to most other people in the church I thought I was doing better than most of them.  And yet I held on to certain things.  My priorities took precedence over God’s priorities.  I was still in charge of my life and I wasn’t really producing much fruit.

The funny thing is, I was an ardent believer in the prosperity doctrine.  I thought I was a living example of God’s blessing.  I had built a beautiful home.  I had a great career.  I had a beautiful family.  I drove nice cars.  And I thought that I could offer myself to the unbeliever as an example of someone who was blessed by God.  That my example would be an inducement for others to come to Christ, that they might be successful like I was.

But God had other ideas.  He began to prune away the branches that were not fruitful.  He began to dig around my roots so to speak, and work in fertilizer that I might bring forth more fruit.  It took about three years, but by the time God was done with me I was broken physically and spiritually, bankrupt and ready to get serious about the things of God. 

You all are familiar with my testimony, so I won’t belabor it.  But I will tell you that I learned that we are to work out our salvation with fear and trembling.  That means we are to exercise our faith, live it out in our daily lives.   Christ didn’t suffer the indignities of human existence and rejection and the sufferings of the cross so that I might use Him as a talisman to ensure that I can enjoy all that life can offer and still get a free get out of hell card.  Christ suffered so that He might purchase salvation for us by the price of His blood, that we might be made righteous, and having been made righteous we might be transformed to live no longer for this world, but to live for Him.

I encourage you today to examine your life.  I believe that I was saved when I was a little kid.  And though there were times when you might have looked into my life and seen a period of spiritual stagnation, or even backslidden-ness, yet as I look over the timeline of my life I can see the hand of God working in me and bringing me into a closer walk with God.  I can see a progression of growth and fruitfulness.  Maybe not as much as I would like to see, but a steady progression in my life as God worked in me, and disciplined me, pruned and fertilized in order to bring about more growth and greater fruit for Him. 

And so I would ask you to examine yourself.  Some of you I know have fallen from time to time.  That’s ok.  Get back up, repent and ask God to help you not to fall again.  Confess your need for the Lord to help you walk in the Spirit and not according to the flesh.  God says if you sin 70 x 7 times, and repent, He will forgive you.  But when you say that you have no sin, you are deceiving yourself and the truth is not in you.  The sin that God hates is the sin of hypocrisy; the sin that says it isn’t sin.  The sinner that won’t repent.  That thinks that they are ok in their complacency, in their apathy.

Listen, the Bible says that if you are a true child of God then God will discipline those He loves.  But if you aren’t a true child but an illegitimate child, then there will be no discipline in your life and as a result there will be no fruit.  But there will be one day a certain terrifying certainty of judgment upon all that have not repented of their evil deeds.  I hope that you are a true son or daughter of God today.  If you examine yourself and find that something is lacking, then call upon God in repentance and faith today that you might be saved and that you might bear fruit in keeping with repentance.