Video is normally posted early Sunday Afternoon.
Video
Notes:
· Though at
the time of Christ it was a popular assumption that tragedy and disability were
indications of God’s judgment, Jesus made it clear (as does the Book of Job)
that natural disasters like earthquakes and volcanoes are not necessarily
evidence of personal sin. Jesus goes on to say that everyone is guilty and
without repentance will face judgment. The question changes from “Why did they
die?” to “Why are we still living?”
· Times of
prosperity and safety are evidence of God's patience with us.
· Scythopolis
was one of the cities of Decapolis (10 Cities) and the only one on the west
bank of the Jordan River. They had many great examples of Hellenistic (Greek)
architecture including a large Theatre and Roman Baths.
· The city
sided with Rome in the revolt in ad
66 so it survived the destruction that eventually befell Jerusalem.
· The city
was damaged by the Galilee earthquake of ad
363, but was rebuilt at a time when most inhabitants were Christian. Town
reached its peak of 40,000 people in the 6th Century.
· The town
captured in 634 by Muslim forces and renamed Beisan.
· On January 18, 749,
Beisan was completely devastated by the Golan earthquake. A few residential
neighborhoods grew up on the ruins, probably established by the survivors, but
the city never recovered its magnificence. These ruins are evidence of how quickly natural
disasters can destroy even the most impressive of human accomplishments.
· Some have
suggested that Jesus' mission as Messiah in Israel was like the extra time
given the fig tree in v. 6-9. During that time Jesus revealed the character of
God and the unfruitfulness of Israel.
Text: This week we’re
covering Luke 13:1-9 dealing with
Jesus’ dialogue with the disciples regarding a brutal act of violence by the
Roman governor Pilate and their understanding of why it happened. Jesus also
uses a parable of an unfruitful fig tree to help them get a better
understanding about God!
Other passages to read: We
encourage you to read "horizontally" in these passages that are
parallel to our text from Luke:
·
The idea that disaster and disability happens because
of sin: Job 4:7; John 9; Acts 28:3-4;
·
The unfruitful fig tree: Matthew 7:19; 21:19; Mark 11:13-14; Isaiah 5:1-7 (fig trees were often
planted in vineyards); Micah 7; Luke 3:8-9
·
Sample of other verses on God’s mercy: Exodus
34:5-7; Nehemiah 9:17; Psalm 86:15; Joel 2:12-13; 2 Peter 3:9-11.
Points to ponder: In your
study this week, you might want to think about one of these questions:
· Why do bad things
happen? Do bad things only happen to bad people?
· If you were to
characterize God, as he is revealed in the Bible, how would you describe him?
What metaphor would you use to describe his default attitude towards mankind?
·
When we consider
these two sections in verses1-5 and 6-9, what connections can we see between
these two sections?
· Are there repeated themes or phrases in these
verses?
· How many years of mercy did the fig tree
receive?
· How does the story of the fig tree end?
We try to answer these questions on this blog in the next week’s post (so you have time to think about
them and then check your work!).
Questions to ask ourselves: The
following questions are intended to help us move towards greater application of
what we learn about Jesus…
- What is my attitude
towards victims in a disaster? Do I explain their situation as a result of
personal sin?
- Do I think that I am, or
should be, exempt from violence and disaster?
- In what, or whom, do I
trust for my ongoing safety? (Not as easy a question as you might think.)
- Am I repentant or
stiff-necked? Am I fruitful or unfruitful?
- How have I experienced the
mercy of God in my life? This year? This week?
- Is there some area of “unfruitfulness” in my life that needs to be dug and dunged by God’s mercy and grace? Will I let him do it this week?
Pastor Randy’s Sermon Notes: "Falling Towers and Barren Fig Trees"
Read Luke 13:1-5
When Towers Fall:
1.
The Religious Response
(self-righteous)
"Bad
things happen to bad people"
2.
The Irreligious Response (skeptic)
"God
is unfair and life is tragic"
3.
The Appropriate Response:
· Offer
sympathy and prayer (Romans 12:15)
“Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn
with those who mourn.”
·
Help in practical ways (2 Corinthians
9:2, 8, 10-11)
“For I know your
eagerness to help, and I have been boasting about it to the Macedonians,
telling them that since last year you in Achaia were ready to give; and your enthusiasm has stirred most of them to
action...8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all
things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work...10 Now he who supplies seed to
the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed
and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 11 You will be made rich in
every way so that you can be generous on
every occasion….”
·
Repent (Luke 13:6-9)
“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 did not find any. 7 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?' 8 "'Sir,' the man replied, 'leave it alone for one more year, and
I'll dig around it and fertilize it. 9 If it bears fruit next year, fine! If
not, then cut it down.'
o What
does God want from you where you are planted?
The essence of sin is not breaking
rules but putting yourself in the place of God.
o God
is a God of second chances
Confession
Contrition
Change
Quotes
and Commentary:
v.1 They may have been telling Jesus this to discourage him from going to
Jerusalem. “You don’t really want to go there do you? They kill people like
us!”
v. 2 Josephus records other violent acts by Pilate that angered people,
but says nothing about this incident. Though that is also not unique as there
are documented atrocities that he does not include in his histories. This is
all we know about this event. Jesus was very
aware of their suffering even if Josephus wasn’t!
v.3 & v.5 are word-for-word
the same. Jesus was making his point very clear.
“Jesus is making it clear that those who refuse his summons to change
direction, to abandon the crazy flight of national rebellion against Rome, will
suffer the consequences. Those who take the sword will perish with the sword.
Or, if not the sword, they will
be crushed by buildings in Jerusalem as the siege brings them crashing down…Building
accidents happen; but if the Jerusalemites continue to refuse God’s
kingdom-call to repent, to turn from their present agendas, then those who
escape Roman swords will find the very walls collapsing on top of them as the
enemy closes in. (N.T. Wright, Luke for Everyone, 163.)
v. 4 Some may have thought this
happened because of their collaboration with the Romans on an aqueduct project.
v. 5 In case you didn’t get the personal application
the first time. Everyone is guilty. Everyone will face judgment sooner or
later. God wants us to repent of our self-love and autonomy (sin)!
v. 6 It was not uncommon to have a fig tree in a
vineyard. See Isaiah 5:1-7.
v. 7-8 The emphasis here is the amazing mercy of the
vinedresser and his commitment to work and do everything possible for the tree
to be fruitful, but the future of the tree lies in its response to such mercy
and privilege by bearing fruit (repentance). If there is no repentance then
there will be a “cutting out” of the tree.
v. 9 “The story is left
open. There is no closure. We are left wondering about the fate of the tree.
That is where the power of the parable lies. The crowd is left in silence to
determine if their fruitlessness might have anything to do with the fig tree.
Or if the advocate who saves the tree from destruction until it might bear
fruit could possibly be Jesus himself. As readers of Luke’s Gospel, we too are
left in that same silent place, to determine if we might be, in some sense,
like the fruitless tree and if Jesus just might become our Advocate.” (Michael
Card, Luke: The Gospel of Amazement, 169.)
Previously on “Ponderables”:
- What makes Jesus sad and/or mad about the Pharisees and experts in the Law? Remember that “Woe” is not just a pronouncement of judgment but a term of mourning. In reading through the list of “woes” in this section the answer should not be difficult to complete. Each “woe” provides a reason. N.T. Wright comments that the woes were not just an indication “that he happened to disapprove of the objectionable practices of these other groups. It was, rather, that he could see where they would lead: to a terrible conflagration in which the present generation would pull down on its own head the pent-up devastation of the centuries.”
- If the Pharisees were a religious party, very like a political party, and the Lawyers were the Biblical scholars of that day, what does this say about religion and power? What should the church’s attitude towards worldly power and leadership be? This question is considerably harder to wrestle with. When Jesus spoke critically of the social-political group of the Pharisees the religious experts told Jesus that he was insulting them too…then Jesus spoke critically of them too. The point of following Christ is not to change the world politically from the top down, socially through insider “pressure groups” but to respond to the love God offers and allow it to change the world from the inside out, from the bottom up, from the margins in.
- What is the
relevance of “inside” and “outside” in this passage? Is one more important
than the other? It is key to
notice the Pharisees and lawyers focus only external compliance to
religious regulations. They are seen to have missed the point. What is
inside is what is important. You can look good on the outside and be
corrupt inside. However, if you are clean inside you will also be clean in
your outward behavior.
- What does Jesus say in this passage about fear and value? How are they related to hypocrisy? We are not to fear man nor death. We are to fear God. What this means is that we value most highly God’s opinion of our life and heart. Why? Because He is the One who loves us and we desire more than anything to return that love!
- What is the “key to knowledge”? Do our methods open it or close to the people? The key to knowledge is the “fear of the Lord.” Our methods, when they are law based and external close knowledge off to people. However, when we live out God’s love sincerely we become those who do what we can to bear the burden for others rather than making it harder.
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