It was a time of great upheaval in Israel. Pilate had faced Jewish opposition groups before and usually dealt with them swiftly. This time was no different but it was shocking because these Galilean victims were actually in the middle of worship when they were ambushed and killed. Somehow this tragic report got to Jesus and his response was unexpected. We would have expected him to say how sad the situation was, just like we would expect for the tragic events of 911 or the Sandy Hook tragedy. This, of course was a matter of lament, but Jesus took this lament on another level: “
Repent, otherwise you will perish like them.” This is the heart of the Gospel message! It is as if he was trying to say to us: “
Unfortunately, lives get cut short in this world: Make peace with God now, without delay, because sudden death comes to us all just like the 18 who died when the tower of Siloam fell on them. They didn’t die because they were the worst offenders than us, we are given just a little more time so we can fix all that we can before our own death occurs.” Jesus goes on to give us the parable of the fig tree which truly cements his message to us, telling us to get ready so we don’t get taken by surprise unprepared. How ready are we, if tomorrow was to be our last? What constitutes readiness anyway? Let’s explore this together.
Often enough, it’s tough to prepare for an eventual disastrous event. Some people are good at it. In fact, maybe too good at it. I see it when all toilet papers in the grocery stores are suddenly all gone. I have always wondered why that particular choice. Perhaps it’s our feeble attempt to be in control. But seriously, Jesus was pointing our attention on what a true preparation should look like. It is not IF we die, it is WHEN we die. He said: “
When a fig tree could not produce fruit after 3 years, the owner proposed to cut it down, but the gardener pleaded with the owner: Please Sir, give it one more year, so I can dig around it and put manure on it, if it does bear fruit, great. If not, then cut it down!” We have been given just a little more time to produce fruit, a little more time to make peace with God!
What kind of fruits is God looking for? Fruits of the Spirit in Gal 5:
Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Our struggle with unfruitfulness is real! But God is working on us. It’s a kind of inner life transformation, which takes time and effort and God’s help. Have you ever wondered why we don’t always succeed at new year’s resolutions? Maybe we have been too concerned with getting fast results and not being committed to the process and discipline it takes to get there? Lent is such time for Christian believers for real work on our inner life and discipline. Jesus hints that we don’t have much time left and that change should be now. Otherwise, when it is time to face our fate, we realize that there is no turning back to fix anything. Make peace with God, make peace with your family, there is no time like now.
Jesus is pictured here as that gardener pleading with the owner to give us a little more time to grow fruit. The way out of our predicament is to go to God, the source of life, and kneel before the presence of the Lord/ in the front of the burning bush experience: Get to know your God, understand his dealings with you. What if the reason why sometimes our life stinks, (kind of hard around the edges) could be that the Lord/gardener is busy putting manure on us, working on us, so we can grow in our knowledge and understanding of God and His purposes for us? That’s why Paul encouraged Christians to endure everything no matter how difficult they are! He told them not to complain like Israel did. Tough journeys contain a path to growth and fruit bearing.
Be ready, time is short, let us return to the Lord and repent!
Amen.
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