Welcome to Reflections
Deacon's Corner Reflections Page.....
|
|
Sunday (3/7): "If it does not bear fruit, you can cut it down"
Meditation:
What can a calamity, such as a political blood-bath or a natural
disaster, teach us about God's kingdom and the consequences of bad
choices and sinful actions? When calamity and disaster hit the Jewish
people, such as their 400 year enslavement in the land of Egypt, they
often saw it as the consequence of their unrepentant sin and
persistent unfaithfulness to God. God, however in his mercy, promised to
deliver the Israelites when he sent his servant Moses to lead his people
to freedom.
Jesus was asked by some listeners to address the issue of sin and its consequences in the light of two current disasters that befell the residents of Jerusalem. The first incident occured in the temple at Jerusalem. Pilate, who was the Roman governor of Jerusalem at the time, ordered his troops to slaughter a group of Galileans who had come up to Jerusalem to offer sacrifice in the temple. We do not know what these Galileans did to incite Pilate's wrath, nor why Pilate chose to attack them in the holiest of places for the Jews, in their temple at Jerusalem. For the Jews, this was political barbarity and sacrilige at its worst! The second incident which Jesus addressed was a natural disaster, a tower in Jerusalem which unexpectely collasped, killing 18 people. The Jews often associated such calamities and disasters as a consequence of sin. Scripture does warn that sin can result in calamity! Though the righteous fall seven times, and rise again; the wicked are overthrown by calamity (Proverbs 24:16).
The real danger and calamity which Jesus points out is that an
unexpected disaster or a sudden death does not give us time to repent of
our sins and to prepare ourselves to meet the Judge of heaven and earth.
The Book of Job reminds us that misfortune and calamity can befall both
the righteous and the unrighteous alike. Jesus gives a clear warning -
take responsibility for your actions and moral choices and put sin to
death today before it can destroy your heart, mind, soul, and body as
well. Unrepentant sin is like a cancer which corrupts us from within. If
it is not eliminated through repentance - asking God for forgiveness and
for his healing grace, it leads to a spiritual death which is far worse
than physical destruction.
Jesus' parable of the barren fig trees illustrated his warning about the
consequences of allowing sin and corruption to take root in our hearts
and minds. Fig trees were a common and important source of food for the
people of Palestine. A fig tree normally matured within three years,
producing plentiful fruit. If it failed, it was cut down to make room
for more healthy trees. A decaying fig tree and its bad fruit came to
symbolize for the Jews the consequence of spiritual corruption caused by
evil deeds and unrepentant sin. The unfruitful fig tree symbolized the
outcome of Israel's unresponsiveness to the word of God. The prophets
depicted the desolation and calamity of Israel, due to her
unfaithfulness to God, as a languishing fig tree (see Joel 1:7,12;
Habakuk 3:17; and Jeremiah 8:13). Jeremiah likened good and evil rulers
and members of Israel with figs that were good for eating and figs that
were rotten and useless (Jeremiah 24:2-8). Jesus' parable depicts the
patience of God, but it also contains a warning that we should not
presume upon patience and mercy. God's judgment will come – sooner or
later – in due course.
Why does God judge his people? He judges to purify and cleanse us of all
sin that we might grow in his holiness and righteousness. And he
disciplines us for our own good, to inspire a godly fear and reverence
for him and his word. God is patient, but for those who persistently and
stubbornly rebel against him and refuse to repent, there is the
consequence that they will lose their soul to hell. Are God's judgments
unjust or unloving? When God's judgments are revealed in the earth,
the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness (Isaiah 26:9). To
pronounce God's judgment on sin is much less harsh than what will happen
if those who sin are not warned to repent.
God, in his mercy, gives us time to get right with him, but that time is
now. We must not assume that there is no hurry. A sudden and unexpected
death leaves one no time to prepare to settle one's accounts when he or
she must stand before the Lord on the day of judgment. Jesus warns us
that we must be ready at all times. Tolerating sinful habits and
excusing unrepentant sin will result in bad fruit and eventual
destruction. The Lord in his mercy gives us both grace and time to turn
away from sin, but that time is right now. If we delay, even for a day,
we may discover that grace has passed us by and our time is up. Do you
hunger for the Lord's righteousness and holiness?
"Lord Jesus, increase my hunger for you that I may grow in righteousness
and holiness. May I not squander the grace of the present moment to say
"yes" to you and to your will and plan for my life."
This reflection is courtesy of Don Schwager, whose website is located
at: http://www.rc.net/wcc/readings/
|
|
|
