Read Luke 13.
In the opening verses of this chapter, a horrific incident was reported to
Jesus. Pontius Pilate served as the governor of Judea. He had been
appointed by the Emperor Tiberius. Evidently, there were some Galileans
who had rebelled against Pilate's authority. When they came to Jerusalem
to offer sacrifices, Pilate had them massacred. Even more, alarming was
that their blood "had mingled with their sacrifices." This
sacrilege and the hatred of the Roman occupation added emotional fuel to the
fire of their spiritual misunderstandings.
It appears that the purpose of relaying this story had more to do with judging
those who died than their concern for human life. This is reveal by
Jesus' response.
During this time, the religious leaders in Israel taught that bad things happen
to bad people. Indeed, unchecked, personal, sinful behavior may lead to
disastrous consequences. Yet, in this life, that is certainly not a
universal truth. Bad things happen to everyone, even the godliest among
us. Physical maladies, accidents, and violence can happen to anyone at any
time. Our daily newspapers are filled with such examples. To
assume, as these in the crowd did, that the worshipers were killed because of some
great sin was a gross misunderstanding of God's character and the frailty of
human life. One way or another, everyone will eventually die physically.
Jesus tried to turn their focus away from judging others and to look at
themselves. Twice, He stated, "...unless you repent, you will all
likewise perish." Repentance of sin and faith in God is the only
guarantee of eternal life.
To illustrate His point further, Jesus told a story about a fig tree. The
owner planted it and then gave the tree some time to grow in order to produce
fruit. In his patience, he even allowed extra time before he took
decisive action. This delivered a thinly disguised message. Just
because one was born a Jew and went through the motions of obeying the Law does
not automatically spare one from God's ultimate judgment. He is looking
for the evidence (fruit) of a genuine believer. It is an inside out
faith.
The same is true with followers of Christ. Being born into a Christian
family and going to church will not suffice. God is looking for true
repentance from sin that is evidenced by a changed life and bears spiritual
fruit that others can see. This life is temporal at best.
Faith in Jesus secures our eternal life.
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