Now Is The Time
7 let the wicked forsake their way and the unrighteous their thoughts; let them return to the LORD, that he may have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. 8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:7-9)
6 Then he told this parable: "A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came looking for fruit on it and found none. 7 So he said to the man working the vineyard, 'See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?' 8 He replied, 'Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it. 9 If it bears fruit next year, well and good, but if not, you can cut it down.'" (Luke 13:6-9)
As Jesus taught his disciples, and the large crowd gathered with them, he also listened. In Luke 13, we are given Jesus' response to a story that had been shared with him about two tragic events that caused the deaths of many people. We are not given the details of the incidents, but it's clear that those speaking with Jesus were troubled and seeking spiritual reasoning for their pain. Jesus' answer implies that he must have been asked if the sins of the victims were so grievous that they were deserving of their fate. Jesus' initial response was not terribly comforting. Jesus answered that, while sin was not the cause for these deaths, that same fate - that is, death without eternal life - would await anyone who does not repent. But then Jesus told the story of a fig tree that had been planted and had not produced any figs for three years. The owner was ready to give up on it and cut it down, but the gardener asked for one more year to work with it in the hope that it would yield fruit.
Because of God's mercy we remain in this time of grace, of God's forgiveness and patience with us. We do not know when we will draw our last breath, so now is the time to repent - to actively endeavor to turn away from sin and turn toward God. Every decision we face is an opportunity to choose between God and sin - between selflessness and selfishness, between love and hate, between forgiveness and anger, between compassion and judgment. May God open our eyes daily to the ways we choose sin, and change our hearts and minds so that we can choose God. It's not a call to perfection but a call to introspection, honesty and humility.
Thank God for this grace!
11 These things happened to them to serve as an example, and they were written down to instruct us, on whom the ends of the ages have come. 12 So if you think you are standing, watch out that you do not fall. 13 No testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it. (1 Corinthians 10:11-13)
1 O God, you are my God; I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. 2 So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory. 3 Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. 4 So I will bless you as long as I live; I will lift up my hands and call on your name. (Psalm 63:1-4)
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