Greg McDonell's sermon for Mar 07, 2010
at Central Presbyterian Church
Reading: Luke 13:1-9
“Coming to Our Senses”
Luke 13:1-9
20100307
Unless you repent, you will likewise perish!
Unless you repent, you will likewise perish!
Yes, twice Jesus says this in the short span of nine verses. I wish he hadn’t said it at all, much less twice. Now I like the part where he says that those who suffered at the hands of Pilate and those unfortunate enough to be standing near the tower at Siloam when it fell were no greater sinners than the rest of us. While I know the people of Jesus’ day were prone to equate personal disasters with unrighteousness, the fact is we are simply too enlightened to believe that bad things happen only to bad people and fortunate things happen only to good people. Our own experiences speak to the falsehood of such thinking.
But we hear that haunting exhortation for our lives: Unless YOU repent, you will likewise perish!
What does such a refrain have to do with the ongoing message and meaning of the ministry of Jesus of Nazareth? But bringing it even closer to home, what does this admonition have to do with me, with you, and with us as a Christian community? (PAUSE)
=======================================
Now, Jesus had become quite famous as a story teller. His picture-parables were worth a thousand words. So Luke shares with us the image of a vineyard and in this vineyard there was a fig tree. What can this story tell us about or need for repentance?
If you have ever been to the Holy Lands you will confirm that the fig trees were often found planted in the vineyards. It was prized for its delicious and delectable fruit.
But there is an enormous problem with this particular Fig tree. It simply was not producing the fruit it was supposed to produce…..nothing, no figs whatsoever. For three years no fruit! That is bad enough in itself, but in the Middle East, where water is at a premium, one could not allow a non-bearing fruit tree to rob the surrounding vineyard of valuable nutrients.
The owner of this particular vineyard must have attended the same horticultural school that this pastor attended; for the solution is an easy one….simply cut it down! Get rid of it. If it has no value…. Lose it. Cut the darn thing down.
But wait…. there is a surprise ending to this parable. The vinedresser, who really knows the soil and the plants, intercedes and offers a radical alternative to axing it. He asks for permission to give this particular tree a little TLC, by digging around it and applying precious manure to it to see if it will bear fruit. The fig tree is given a temporary reprieve….even though it would have been reasonable to cut it down.
Well, what do you know….a merciful fig tree story. Literature of old is full of fig tree parables where the tree gets the axe. In fact you can find Jesus zapping one in the Gospel of Matthew. But the story in Luke is different. It speaks of mercy and not condemnation. But of greater importance it speaks of expectation. What is expected of this tree over the next year is for a radical change to take place. This tree must bear fruit if it is to be allowed to remain in the vineyard.
This Fig Tree parable is being told by Jesus so that we might understand the importance of repentance in our lives. You see, Jesus wanted his listeners, you and me, to turn to the God who loves and redeems the people. All that is being asked is for us to change our minds and our very lives to reflect the love of God – thus producing the fruits of grace, joy, hope and peace.
As much as I don’t like hearing it, Jesus’ words are direct, clear and simple: Repent! Turn around! We are being asked this Lenten Season to claim the life of Christ. We are being urged to enter into the love, compassion and mercy of Jesus Christ. Repent! Change your mind. Turn around from the direction you are heading.
And we resist because we conjure up visions of John the Baptist….sack clothes and ashes…dwelling forever in the paltry past, burdened with regret and sadness as we wallow in guilt and shame!!!
On the contrary, this Lenten Season offers us an opportunity to come to our senses.” That is how novelist and spiritual writer Frederick Buechner defines repentance: repentance is not so much about what we do, but is more about something that happens. True repentance spends less time looking at the past and saying, “I’m sorry,” than to the future and saying, “WOW!”
It is true for my life and I suspect for yours as well that we COME TO OUR SENSES about many things….about our belief and relationship with God, about our priorities in life, about anything and all things that draw us away from God. We need to look to the future and be able to say, WOW”…Wow….God holds great promise and possibility for our lives.
=========================
Of course, we need to examine our lives, and make amends when necessary, and ask for God’s forgiveness. But God simply does not want us to get stuck there. Real repentance is more than mere recognition of our short comings and asking for forgiveness. Real repentance means that we have come to our senses and are now heading in a new spiritual direction where we can enter our future with a sense of hope, love, and companionship that God offers to each of us. Repentance is changing our minds and turning toward tomorrow filled with faith, hope and love!
You see, my friends the Parable of the Fig Tree is meant to lead us toward God so that our hearts and minds might be radically changed…..and we can move from barrenness to fruitfulness.
The ultimate sign that we have come to our senses is found not in the words we speak but in the actions we take. God is saying, “If you love me, show me!” The result of repentance is activity rooted in faith for each of us as individuals and for all of us as a community of faith.
As individuals, we are all called to do actions of generosity, compassion, service, peacemaking, justice, witness, and respect. Each of us is being called to bear fruit in our lives. And as a community of faith we are being called to bear fruit as well. It is not enough for us to gather for worship, to enter and stay within our comfort zones of common sentiment. No, we are brought together by Christ as a community to bear fruit…to engage in God’s mission in the world, to be active in the renewal, restoration, and reconciliation of the world.
This Season of Lent is indeed a time to take an inventory of our own hearts, souls and life in Christ. Let me suggest a few steps that might serve as that good manure that will help us begin to bear fruit.
First, Let us acknowledge our need for God and let us recognize that yearning for a deeper more intimate relationship for God to be at the very center of our lives.
Second, let us confess our sins. Let God know the things that you really want to leave behind as you begin to move in a newer healthier direction in life.
Third, accept God’s forgiveness and lay claim to God’s love. We must never forget that our God is much more ready to forgive than we are to receive that forgiveness and much more ready to love than we are to own that love.
Fourth, change your mind, reexamine your life and discover things about your life, your priorities, and patterns of activities. Allow God’s Holy Spirit to renew your mind with God’s grace and love.
And Finally, BEAR FRUIT! Take up some new action. Start a new practice that demonstrates the love God has for you and the love you have for God.
Repent! Change your mind! Bear fruit! These are the ingredients for spiritual renewal during this Lenten Season. We still have time to Come to our Senses!
We still have time! The Parable of the Fig Tree calls us to change. And the tree on which Christ will die reminds us of God’s never ending love. What more motivation do we need to be able to Come to our Senses?
Let us pray: Change our minds and hearts, our directions, our soul. Let us receive the forgiveness and mercy that you so abundantly give. Nurture and nourish us in your grace that we may bear the fruit of service and compassion. Inspire us to actions of mission and ministry. Rouse us from the sentiment and words only to new Gospel activity in your Spirit. Grant that we here at Central may serve you as renewed and confident people. Amen
Luke 13:1-9
20100307
Unless you repent, you will likewise perish!
Unless you repent, you will likewise perish!
Yes, twice Jesus says this in the short span of nine verses. I wish he hadn’t said it at all, much less twice. Now I like the part where he says that those who suffered at the hands of Pilate and those unfortunate enough to be standing near the tower at Siloam when it fell were no greater sinners than the rest of us. While I know the people of Jesus’ day were prone to equate personal disasters with unrighteousness, the fact is we are simply too enlightened to believe that bad things happen only to bad people and fortunate things happen only to good people. Our own experiences speak to the falsehood of such thinking.
But we hear that haunting exhortation for our lives: Unless YOU repent, you will likewise perish!
What does such a refrain have to do with the ongoing message and meaning of the ministry of Jesus of Nazareth? But bringing it even closer to home, what does this admonition have to do with me, with you, and with us as a Christian community? (PAUSE)
=======================================
Now, Jesus had become quite famous as a story teller. His picture-parables were worth a thousand words. So Luke shares with us the image of a vineyard and in this vineyard there was a fig tree. What can this story tell us about or need for repentance?
If you have ever been to the Holy Lands you will confirm that the fig trees were often found planted in the vineyards. It was prized for its delicious and delectable fruit.
But there is an enormous problem with this particular Fig tree. It simply was not producing the fruit it was supposed to produce…..nothing, no figs whatsoever. For three years no fruit! That is bad enough in itself, but in the Middle East, where water is at a premium, one could not allow a non-bearing fruit tree to rob the surrounding vineyard of valuable nutrients.
The owner of this particular vineyard must have attended the same horticultural school that this pastor attended; for the solution is an easy one….simply cut it down! Get rid of it. If it has no value…. Lose it. Cut the darn thing down.
But wait…. there is a surprise ending to this parable. The vinedresser, who really knows the soil and the plants, intercedes and offers a radical alternative to axing it. He asks for permission to give this particular tree a little TLC, by digging around it and applying precious manure to it to see if it will bear fruit. The fig tree is given a temporary reprieve….even though it would have been reasonable to cut it down.
Well, what do you know….a merciful fig tree story. Literature of old is full of fig tree parables where the tree gets the axe. In fact you can find Jesus zapping one in the Gospel of Matthew. But the story in Luke is different. It speaks of mercy and not condemnation. But of greater importance it speaks of expectation. What is expected of this tree over the next year is for a radical change to take place. This tree must bear fruit if it is to be allowed to remain in the vineyard.
This Fig Tree parable is being told by Jesus so that we might understand the importance of repentance in our lives. You see, Jesus wanted his listeners, you and me, to turn to the God who loves and redeems the people. All that is being asked is for us to change our minds and our very lives to reflect the love of God – thus producing the fruits of grace, joy, hope and peace.
As much as I don’t like hearing it, Jesus’ words are direct, clear and simple: Repent! Turn around! We are being asked this Lenten Season to claim the life of Christ. We are being urged to enter into the love, compassion and mercy of Jesus Christ. Repent! Change your mind. Turn around from the direction you are heading.
And we resist because we conjure up visions of John the Baptist….sack clothes and ashes…dwelling forever in the paltry past, burdened with regret and sadness as we wallow in guilt and shame!!!
On the contrary, this Lenten Season offers us an opportunity to come to our senses.” That is how novelist and spiritual writer Frederick Buechner defines repentance: repentance is not so much about what we do, but is more about something that happens. True repentance spends less time looking at the past and saying, “I’m sorry,” than to the future and saying, “WOW!”
It is true for my life and I suspect for yours as well that we COME TO OUR SENSES about many things….about our belief and relationship with God, about our priorities in life, about anything and all things that draw us away from God. We need to look to the future and be able to say, WOW”…Wow….God holds great promise and possibility for our lives.
=========================
Of course, we need to examine our lives, and make amends when necessary, and ask for God’s forgiveness. But God simply does not want us to get stuck there. Real repentance is more than mere recognition of our short comings and asking for forgiveness. Real repentance means that we have come to our senses and are now heading in a new spiritual direction where we can enter our future with a sense of hope, love, and companionship that God offers to each of us. Repentance is changing our minds and turning toward tomorrow filled with faith, hope and love!
You see, my friends the Parable of the Fig Tree is meant to lead us toward God so that our hearts and minds might be radically changed…..and we can move from barrenness to fruitfulness.
The ultimate sign that we have come to our senses is found not in the words we speak but in the actions we take. God is saying, “If you love me, show me!” The result of repentance is activity rooted in faith for each of us as individuals and for all of us as a community of faith.
As individuals, we are all called to do actions of generosity, compassion, service, peacemaking, justice, witness, and respect. Each of us is being called to bear fruit in our lives. And as a community of faith we are being called to bear fruit as well. It is not enough for us to gather for worship, to enter and stay within our comfort zones of common sentiment. No, we are brought together by Christ as a community to bear fruit…to engage in God’s mission in the world, to be active in the renewal, restoration, and reconciliation of the world.
This Season of Lent is indeed a time to take an inventory of our own hearts, souls and life in Christ. Let me suggest a few steps that might serve as that good manure that will help us begin to bear fruit.
First, Let us acknowledge our need for God and let us recognize that yearning for a deeper more intimate relationship for God to be at the very center of our lives.
Second, let us confess our sins. Let God know the things that you really want to leave behind as you begin to move in a newer healthier direction in life.
Third, accept God’s forgiveness and lay claim to God’s love. We must never forget that our God is much more ready to forgive than we are to receive that forgiveness and much more ready to love than we are to own that love.
Fourth, change your mind, reexamine your life and discover things about your life, your priorities, and patterns of activities. Allow God’s Holy Spirit to renew your mind with God’s grace and love.
And Finally, BEAR FRUIT! Take up some new action. Start a new practice that demonstrates the love God has for you and the love you have for God.
Repent! Change your mind! Bear fruit! These are the ingredients for spiritual renewal during this Lenten Season. We still have time to Come to our Senses!
We still have time! The Parable of the Fig Tree calls us to change. And the tree on which Christ will die reminds us of God’s never ending love. What more motivation do we need to be able to Come to our Senses?
Let us pray: Change our minds and hearts, our directions, our soul. Let us receive the forgiveness and mercy that you so abundantly give. Nurture and nourish us in your grace that we may bear the fruit of service and compassion. Inspire us to actions of mission and ministry. Rouse us from the sentiment and words only to new Gospel activity in your Spirit. Grant that we here at Central may serve you as renewed and confident people. Amen