1 Pastor Pieter Reid Peace Lutheran Church, Sun Prairie WI February 28, 2016 Lent 3 Luke 13:1-5 Christ s call to repentance 1 Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. 2 Jesus answered, Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? 3 I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. 4 Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. Luke 13:1-5 My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, Pilate had the reputation of ruling with an iron fist. Pilate didn t want the Jews to ever forget that he was in charge and he had the power of life and death. Apparently there was a group of pilgrims from
Galilee making sacrifices at the temple in Jerusalem when the soldiers of Pilate killed a few of the worshipers as they were offering sacrifices. Jesus questioned the crowd as to whether those individuals who suffered death were worse sinners than the others who were not killed. Then Jesus gives another example of tragic death. Eighteen people were killed in Jerusalem when the tower of Siloam fell on them. Jesus asks if these 18 were guiltier than others living in Jerusalem at the time. In both cases, Jesus states that we must not assume that unusual earthly suffering or death is a specific punishment for some specific sin that an individual has committed. Brutal murders, freak accidents, death in whatever form are all reminders of God s law: the soul that sins will die (Ezekiel 18:20) and each of us will die some form of death. After each of these examples Jesus states: unless you repent, you too will all perish (Luke 13:3,5) perish eternally. As I desire to live for God, I want to do more than just hear what God says; I want to do what He says. In the Lord s Prayer we don t say, May I listen to Your will but Thy will be done (Matthew 6:10) 2
in me and through me. And so James writes: Do not merely listen to the word. Do what it says (James 1:22). So what does Jesus say to us? When Jesus began His public ministry, His message was: Repent, for the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 4:17), the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news! (Mark 1:15). And in our text Jesus declares, unless you repent, you too will all perish (Luke 13:3,5). What does the word Repent mean in the Bible? The word is used in Scripture in a narrow sense to mean a sorrow over sins, a godly sorrow (2 Corinthians 7:10) and contrition (Psalm 51:17). The word repent is often used in a wider meaning that includes both sorrow over sin and faith in Jesus for the forgiveness of sins as when Jesus said that there is joy in heaven over one sinner who repents (Luke 15:7). This is also the meaning of the word repent in our text. Unless you repent, unless you have sorrow over your sin and faith in Jesus, you too will all perish eternally. We are especially reminded this Lenten season that it wasn t just the chief priests, the Sanhedrin, and Pilate who caused the crucifixion of Jesus. Each 3
one of us needs to realize: I crucified Jesus with my sins. With the hymn writer each of us must confess, Ah! I also and my sin / Wrought Your deep affliction; / This indeed the cause has been / Of Your crucifixion (CW 98:3). I certainly need to repent! If I do not repent, I reject the forgiveness of God. There is one very important point I want to make about repentance. My repentance does not and cannot ever earn my forgiveness. Some Bible passages might sound like my forgiveness is dependent on my repenting of my sins let me give you a couple of examples. After Solomon completed the construction of the Temple, the Lord appeared to him and said, When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, 14 if My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land (2 Chronicles 7:13 14). It sounds like God is saying, IF you repent and turn from your wicked ways, THEN I will forgive your sin. In Acts chapter 3, after Peter and John healed a lame beggar, 4
Peter addressed the people and said, Repent, and turn to God, so that your sins may be blotted out (Acts 3:19). It might sound like my repentance is a necessary action I must do so that God forgives me. Remember, the Law makes all of its promises conditional upon obedience. When one of the experts in the Law tried to test Jesus, he asked Jesus, What must I do to inherit eternal life? The man was asking what he must do to earn his way to heaven. The expert in the Law knew that the Law demanded, Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind ; and, Love your neighbor as yourself. Jesus replied. Do this and you will live (Luke 10:25-28) Jesus used the Law to tell this man, IF you can do this perfectly, THEN you will live. But the conditions imposed by the Law are impossible for any person to fulfill perfectly. We can t save ourselves. Jesus completely provided for your salvation and because of that you have you already have complete forgiveness through Jesus. This is the Gospel message. There are no conditions or strings attached to the Gospel. There are no Ifs or IF 5
you do this, THEN you receive forgiveness. My repentance and your repentance do not and cannot ever earn our forgiveness. Jesus has already completely provided for your forgiveness and salvation and it is not dependant on anything you or I do. My repentance does not and cannot ever earn forgiveness. But, to not repent puts one on a slippery slope where one is turning away from Jesus, abandoning Him, losing His forgiveness, and bringing upon themselves eternal damnation (Exodus 32:7-10; Judges 2:8-23; Isaiah 5:1-16; Luke 13:34-35; John 3:16). As we look at the meaning of repentance, we will use the Law as a guide for living a God-pleasing life, recognizing that this is part of our Gospel-motivated response for all that God has done for us. We can t repent on our own; we need to be spiritually motivated Jesus reminds us, "I am the true vine. Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. 6
Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me (John 15:1,4). It is Christ s love that moves you and me to live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself for us (Ephesians 5:2). With this as our motive we say with the Apostle Paul, Christ's love compels us; He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for Him who died for them and was raised again (2 Corinthians 5:14,15). Repentance includes Recognition of sin This is the first step. The Psalmist in Psalm 32 takes us from this first step to the final result: Then I acknowledged my sin to You and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, I will confess my transgressions to the LORD and You forgave the guilt of my sin (Psalm 32:5). Repentance includes Sorrow over sin After Peter denied even knowing Jesus for the third time, the realization of his sin just clobbered Peter and he went outside and wept bitterly (Luke 22:62). This kind of godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation (2 Corinthians 7
7:10). This sorrow over one s sin comes from the heart. God declares, Return to Me with all your heart. Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love (Joel 2:12-13). Repentance includes Confession of sin God tells us: He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy (Proverbs 28:13). In 1 John chapter 1 (verse 9) we read: If we confess our sins, He will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. Repentance leads to Fruits of repentance John the Baptist spoke of this when he said: Produce fruit in keeping with repentance (Matthew 3:8). To both the Jews and the Gentiles, Paul preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds (Acts 26:20). True repentance is more than just saying, I m sorry. True repentance shows itself in fruits of repentance that includes changing our life. In 8
Ephesians we read: He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need. (Ephesians 4:28). Repentance means I am to no longer live in sin (Romans 6:2); I am to turn from my wicked ways (2 Chronicles 7:14) and turn to God (Isaiah 55:7). When we pray, And lead us not into temptation we are asking God to help us live for Him, shun evil (Proverbs 3:7), and avoid tempting situations. We must remember that it is the grace of God that teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives. Our Savior Jesus Christ gave Himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for Himself a people that are His very own, who are eager to do what is good (Titus 2:11-14). Repentance is to be part of our daily life Living for God is very difficult because each of us as a Christian living in this world has a Christian living in us and we also have a sinner living in us. These two natures are struggling within 9
us to gain control. So Paul encouraged Christians to put off or lay aside the former way of life of the old man and to put on the new man (Eph 4:22-24). The writer to the Hebrews encouraged believers to throw off everything that hinders (Hebrews 12:1). This is something we need to do every day. In speaking about the Meaning of Baptism for Our Daily Life, our Catechism states: Baptism means that the old Adam in us should be drowned by daily contrition and repentance, and that all its evil deeds and desires be put to death. It also means that a new person should daily arise to live before God in righteousness and purity forever. Yes, daily repentance is to be part of our daily life. When we repent, when we have both sorrow over our sins and faith in Jesus, we are assured that the forgiveness He won for us is there for us Our God is a forgiving God. He invites us, Turn to the LORD, and He will have mercy for He will freely pardon (Isaiah 55:7). The Psalmist was inspired to write: I will confess my transgressions to the LORD and You forgave the guilt of my sin (Psalm 32:5). 10
The LORD declares, I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more (Jeremiah 31:34). As Jesus assured the paralyzed man, He comes to you today through His Word and through the Lord s Supper and assures you, Take heart, my son; Take heart, my daughter; your sins are forgiven (Matthew 9:2). Through Jesus, you stand before God forgiven not just for the original sin you inherited at birth, not just for the sins that you can remember and have confessed (Psalm 19:12), but all your sins past, present, and future have already been forgiven. God s Word and God s promises assure you: God has hurled all your iniquities into the depths of the sea (Micah 7:19). Your sins have been blotted out completely (Acts 3:19). The blood of Jesus purifies us from all sin. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:7,9). God has forgiven you completely, for there is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1). 11
In our text Jesus declares, unless you repent, you too will all perish. Thank God that He worked true repentance in your heart so that you now have both a sorrow over sin and faith in Jesus, the forgiveness of sins, and the certainty that you shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16). In Christ s call to repentance there is a message of love. God our Savior wants all people to be saved (1 Timothy 2:3-4). God does not want anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). A message of repentance leads us to see our sin and our need for a Savior. A message of repentance leads right into the open arms of a forgiving God. And the message of repentance leads right into the open forgiving arms of your Savior, dying on the cross for you. Amen. 12