Encounter with the King - Luke 13

So Luke 13, 1-9, and that's page 1046.

Now there are some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans,

whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices.

Jesus answered,

Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way?

I tell you no, but unless you repent, you too will all perish.

Or those 18 who died when the Tower of Siloam fell on them,

do you think that they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem?

I tell you no, but unless you repent, you too will all perish.

Then he told this parable.

A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it, but he did not find any.

So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard,

For three years now I have been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven't found any.

Cut it down. Why should it use up the soil?

Sir, the man replied,

Leave it alone for one more year, and I'll dig it round and fertilise it.

If it bears fruit next year, fine.

If not, then cut it down.

Let's start.

Respect.

Thank you.

Four parables from the Gospel of Luke, and each one of them have a theme to do with the coming again of the Lord Jesus,

or in some way how the return of the Lord Jesus should affect us in our lives.

This morning we're looking at Luke chapter 13, verses 1 to 9,

Luke 13:1–9

and it's that kind of parable and the surrounding conversation with Jesus that raises all sorts of questions.

Now, I'm going to say I'm not going to answer every possible question that may arise from it,

so you may want to talk to me afterwards or talk to other people,

but we will try and work through the text as best as possible.

So let's ask for God's help as we do that together.

Our Father God, again, we thank you for your word and for its truth,

and yet we realize that in reading your truth,

it raises many questions and confronts us with difficult things.

And so we pray as we read it that we would have understanding with our minds.

You would give us acceptance in our hearts,

and that you would cause us to live and to submit our lives rightly before you

to all that we hear from you.

We pray that the coming of the Lord Jesus

would shape us

and change us into the kind of people you would have us be.

We pray it in your name and for your glory.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

The other morning I woke up very early.

It's not a usual habit of mine,

but I did on this particular morning,

and I wasn't able to get back to sleep.

So I went downstairs to catch up on some blogs that I like to read.

One caught my attention.

It was entitled,

Live Each Day As If It Were Your Last.

And as I read through it,

it directed me to take part in what was called the UBLE test,

U-B-B-L-E,

if you're interested.

And through a series of questions,

the UBLE test claims to predict your chances of being alive over the next five years.

So I completed the questionnaire,

which asked various things about my lifestyle,

my health,

and apparently I have a 0.4% chance of dying in the next five years.

That's pretty good, I thought.

But for all its scientific research and medical claims,

I have no idea what my lifespan is.

Today might be my last day.

I might have another 50 years.

Who knows?

So perhaps there is some truth in the title of the blog,

Live Each Day As If It Were Your Very Last.

Now in some sense,

that's what Jesus seems to be teaching us

through this text of Luke 13, 1-9.

Not because I don't know how long I'm going to live,

but because when we die,

we will all have an encounter with King Jesus.

Three things we're going to look at together,

three big ideas that we learn from this text.

The first one is this.

The inescapable reality of death.

The fact is,

while none of us like to talk about it,

is that death is not far from any one of us.

Have a look at verse 1.

Now there were some present at that time

who told Jesus about the Galileans

whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices.

Now we don't know the exact details of what went on,

but it was clear there was a terrible act of violence.

Pilate, of course, was the Roman ruler in charge

and he ruled with an iron fist.

Some Galileans back up in Jerusalem

had gone to the temple to worship

and as they went about their worship,

they were massacred by Pilate

for no other reason than they seemed to be

in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Instead of animals being sacrificed,

people have been slaughtered.

It's what dictators do to keep power.

One minute they are going to worship God,

the next their life ends violently.

Now this has obviously raised some important questions

for these people

and they're coming to Jesus with it

as if to say,

why?

Why has that happened?

But rather than give them a direct answer,

Jesus goes on to talk about another tragedy

in verse 4.

He says, as if to say,

haven't you heard about those 18

who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them?

Again, we don't know how it happened

or what went on,

but a tower which was part of the city wall

had collapsed.

And 18 people who happened to be in there

at that time

had their lives tragically cut short.

One minute going about their normal day,

the next their life is suddenly taken.

We're faced with this reality every day

in the news.

I will never forget

as a young kid

the day when I was watching a helicopter

fly overhead

and it was going to land down

in the nearby hospital.

So I jumped on my bike

as I always did

when the helicopters came

and cycled over to the hospital

to watch it land.

They took the person out of the hospital

out of the helicopter

and into the hospital.

I cycled home again,

didn't think much more about it.

Until later that evening

we got news

to hear that my friend Richard

had been tragically killed

and had fallen from a cliff

and they had taken him

to the hospital

by helicopter.

That day reminded me

and hit me like a ton of bricks

to say

my life

will not last forever.

Sad and tragic

as that event was

it suddenly awoke me

as a young kid

to say

I am not going to live

forever.

Forever.

You see

that's the case

for all of us.

Faced with sudden death

we are confronted

with our own mortality.

And of course

when these tragic

and sudden deaths

come to us

it raises all kinds

of questions.

It causes us to ask

why?

Why has God allowed

this to happen?

why did it happen

to my friend?

Why so young?

Why did that person

get cancer?

Why did this violent act

happen in the temple?

Why did the tower fall?

It's a natural

and normal question

for us to ask.

But the surprise

through this

is that Jesus

doesn't actually

give an answer

to that question.

instead

he brings us

to another truth

something

that he wants us

to all see

and understand.

Because behind

every death

is this.

Jesus says

the primary reason

and the cause

for all death

is sin.

Have a look

at verse 2.

Jesus answered

do you think

that these Galileans

were worse

sinners

than all the other

Galileans

because they suffered

this way?

You see

those who come

to Jesus

with this incident

assume

that their

violent end

means that

God must be

punishing them.

These Galileans

must have committed

some terrible act

or some awful

sin in their life

for this tragedy

to happen to them.

in fact

they thought

that the more

tragic the death

the greater

the sin

must have been.

It's almost

this kind of

karma-like

outlook on life.

You do something

good

you live long

if you do

something bad

your life

will be cut short.

But no

that's not the case

says Jesus.

Look at verse 3

I tell you

no

don't

think like that.

How

we die

is not

evidence

of how

good

or bad

we are.

We may

live a good

and moral

life

and die

early

or we may

live a bad

and immoral

life

and live

a long

long time.

Verse 4

what of those

18 who died

when the tower

in Siloam

fell on them

do you think

that they were

more guilty

than all the

others living

in Jerusalem?

I tell you

no.

We are

actually no

better

or no

worse

than each

other.

It's not

how

we die

but the

fact that

we all

die.

The point

is

death

is evidence

that each

one of us

have all

sinned.

The

Apostle Paul

put it like

this

in Romans

5

as he was

speaking about

the fall

of Adam

the very

beginning

of creation.

Therefore

just as sin

entered the

world through

one man

that was

Adam

and death

through sin

and in

this way

death

came to

all people

because

all

sinned.

You see

each and

every one

of us

have all

ignored

and rejected

Jesus as

King.

I may

live a

healthy life

till I'm

90.

I may be

struck down

with cancer

tomorrow

and die

within a

year.

But

however I

die and

whenever that

time may be

the reason

for my

death

is

ultimately

sin.

when we

die the

coroner's

report may

say heart

failure

it may

say

suffocation

it may

come up

with some

other

reason

but Jesus

says I want

you to look

behind all

of that.

The cause

and the

reason

for all

death

for all

people

in all

the world

is because

of our

rebellion

because we've

turned against

God

we will

all die.

so first

the inescapable

reality of

death

second

the immediate

need to

repent

you see

we might

see death

as a

problem

it robs

us of

friends and

family

it steals

away our

joy

but it's

what follows

death that

is the real

problem

you see

death

is not

the end

we don't

just die

and that's

it

no more

it leads

to an

encounter

with God

and that's

what Jesus

is implying

through this

discussion

that he has

with these

people

he's making

it clear

that when

we die

we will

face the

judge

of all

the earth

regardless

of who

we are

or how

we've

lived

we will

all have

to give

an account

to God

so instead

of wondering

if someone's

violent

or tragic

death

is God's

special

judgment

on them

he's saying

you shouldn't

think like

that

what you

should be

thinking

is about

how are

you

going to

stand

before God

when we

are judged

death is

not the

end

it brings

us into

an encounter

with God

and with

that

Jesus

says

the

prospect

of

hell

look

again

closely

to what

Jesus

says

in

verse

three

they've

come to

him

with this

tragedy

behind it

is this

question

of

well why

would

this

happen

and

Jesus

turns

them

and

points

them

to

something

much

greater

that

we

need

to

consider

in

verse

three

he

says

I

tell

you

no

but

unless

you

repent

you

too

will

all

perish

to

perish

is to

face

the

terrible

reality

of

hell

which

is

separation

from

God

and

all

that

is

good

and

beautiful

it's

not

a

threat

it's

an

expression

of

God's

just

and

fair

response

to

all

that

is

wrong

hell

exists

because

God

cares

about

injustice

God

cares

about

violent

crime

God

cares

about

how

we

treat

each

other

and

he

cares

about

how

we

treat

his

son

it's

real

it's

not

made

up

and

it's

what

every

one

of

us

deserve

because

we've

all

broken

God's

good

gifts

every

one

of

us

in

this

room

have

caused

hurt

to

those

we

love

the

most

we've

all

made

selfish

decisions

that

have

ended

close

relationships

we've

all

lived

as if

we

were

the

center

of

the

universe

deciding

this

is

what's

right

or

this

is

best

for

me

go

and

god

can't

let

us

and

the

world

go

on

breaking

and

ruining

our

lives

and

the

lives

of

each

other

and

all

the

tragedy

that

we

see

around

us

in

this

world

hell

is

god's

just

and

fair

response

to

sin

and

what

he's

making

it

clear

to

us

is

he's saying there is something much worse

than dying at the hands of a violent dictator.

There is something far more terrifying

than dying in a natural disaster when a tower should fall.

It is the fearful prospect

of an eternity in hell

being separated from God.

All his good gifts

and his grace and mercy.

And knowing that this is the true reality

Jesus pleads with us all

look again at verse 3

but unless you repent

you too will all perish.

He says the same again in verse 5

unless you repent

you too will all perish.

Now I know we talk about repentance often

but we've got to be clear as to what true repentance is.

Sometimes we can be remorseful

but that's not repentance.

Being remorseful means

we regret what we've done

because of the consequences to our life.

So the adulterer

well they may be remorseful

because they've been caught

and their wife has ended up leaving them.

And they go I wish I hadn't done that

because of the impact on their life.

They're only sorry because they've been caught.

But being repentant means

we seek genuine heart change

regardless of the consequences to our life.

So the one who's had the affair

is repentant

and they will face up to the seriousness

of their actions.

They will accept the consequences

and seek to change their ways.

They repent

because they do not want

to do the same things again.

Judas and Peter

who were disciples of Jesus

are good examples of this.

You know the story of Judas

and of Peter.

Both of them acted in denial and betrayal.

Both of them had sinned

just like us.

Judas.

Judas

well he was remorseful.

He was found out

what he had done.

And because he was found out

he ran away

and he hung himself.

Because remorse leads to

despair.

Peter on the other hand

well he was repentant.

He knew what he had done wrong too.

He had been found out

but he ran back to Jesus

in confession.

Repentance always leads to

a restored

and reconciled relationship

with God.

So the right response

Jesus says

is not remorse

but true repentance.

Now as we work through this

we may struggle with some of the things

that Jesus is saying.

And we can even think that

well God sounds very harsh.

I don't like this God.

But if we look carefully

and see

well he's speaking the truth

and he's actually

persevering with us.

In fact through this

as he goes on to tell a parable

he cares about us

intimately.

He cares about us

so much

that he has actually

delayed

his judgment.

Look at verse 6.

He then told this parable.

A man had a fig tree

planted in his vineyard

and he went to look for fruit on it

but didn't find any.

So he said to the man

who took care of the vineyard

for three years now

I've been coming to look for fruit

on this fig tree

and haven't found any.

Cut it down.

Why should it use up the soil?

Now the point of the story

is that

the owner of the vineyard

has been delaying

his decision.

He's given the fig tree

every opportunity

to start doing

what it is meant to do.

You plant a fig tree

because it's meant

to produce figs.

But three years

he's waited

which is a very long time

when your livelihood

depends on good harvest.

So why waste

the good ground

with a bad tree

if it's not doing anything?

Get rid of it

and put in a new tree.

But he's waited

three years.

And he's saying

this is what God is like

in the way in which

he deals with us.

You see this vineyard

image of the owner

and the vineyard

was very often used

to describe

God's relationship

to his people Israel.

God looked for fruit

but he didn't find any.

He looked for a change

in the lives

of the people of Israel

but it didn't come.

But rather than

bring his judgment

he waited patiently.

He longed for them

to return.

Listen to what God said

through the prophet Ezekiel.

to the people of Israel.

As surely as I live

declares the sovereign Lord

I take no pleasure

in the death of the wicked

but rather that they

turn from their ways

and live.

Turn.

Turn

from your evil ways.

And so it is with us.

God has been

delaying

his judgment

not just three years

but for well over

two thousand years.

He has persevered with us.

He is patient with us.

He is longing

that none perish

but that all would come

in repentance

to him.

God is gracious

and full of mercy

persevering

and long

suffering.

In fact

judgment

is not only

delayed

in the gospel story

we discover

that judgment

has already

fallen.

You see

Jesus too

would suffer.

Not just

these people

were slaughtered

but Jesus

would also

be slaughtered.

Cut down

in the prime

of his life

just 33 years

old

when he was

murdered

and hung

on a cross.

Slaughtered

at the hands

of Pilate

and his soldiers.

But Jesus'

death was

no accident.

This was all

planned by God

from before

the creation

of the world.

His death

was the

true sacrifice.

Jesus died

not because

he was

the worst

of sinners.

He had

never

sinned.

But he

died

because he

took my

sin

and your

sin

on himself.

And so

as he hung

on the cross

the judgment

of God

fell

not on

us

but on

Jesus.

Crushed

beneath

the wrath

of God

experiencing

the reality

of hell

for you

and for

me.

God

in his

mercy

allowed

his

judgment

to fall

on his

own

son

rather than

on us

so that

we could

have life

with him.

And so

because judgment

has fallen

God acts

in incredible

mercy towards

us

and to

this world.

Look at

verse 8.

Sir, the

man replied,

leave it

alone for

one more

year

and I'll

dig round

it and

fertilize it.

If it bears

fruit next year,

fine.

If not,

then cut it

down.

You see,

the image

here is of

the vineyard

who goes

above and

beyond what

we think

he should

do.

he does

all that

he can,

giving the

tree every

opportunity,

fertilizing it,

watering it,

pruning it,

whatever it

may take

to produce

fruit.

If it

takes another

year,

I'll give

it another

year.

And again,

that's God's

dealing with

us.

God responds

to our

stubborn hearts

with incredible

mercy,

giving us

every

opportunity

that we

would turn

to God,

but not

just turn

to God,

but to

change our

lives,

to produce

fruit in

keeping with

a true

disciple.

But please

note,

the offer

of God's

mercy is

not infinite.

Look at

verse 9.

If it

bears fruit

next year,

fine.

If not,

then cut

it down.

A sober

warning that

a time will

come when

God's offer

of mercy

will come

to an end.

The time

of grace

will be

over.

And all

those who

have not

taken refuge

under the

cross

will face

the just

and fair

judgment

of God.

God is

merciful.

God is

gracious,

long

suffering and

persevering,

longing that

all would

turn to

him.

And this

is the

God

that we

need to

tell people

about.

This is the

God that we

need to pray

to people

about,

that they

would turn

and that

we would

get our

lives

ready to

meet him.

Let's pray

together.

and let's

bear.

By Acts,

we will

carre M

together.