“SIN, SUFFERING, AND SALVATION”
LUKE 13:1-9
I. Introduction
“Why do bad things happen to good people?” That is one of the most difficult questions anyone will ever ask. Yet it is a question that cuts right to the core of Christianity. If we are ever going to answer the question, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” we will need to begin by avoiding the temptation to use human wisdom, human emotion, and human logic, and cut straight to the heart of the matter.
In order to get to the heart of the matter we must do two things. First, we must see God for who and for what He really is. Second, we must see ourselves for who and for what we really are. Only if we do those two things, can we ever hope to deal honestly with the question, and only then will we be able to answer it with any degree of certainty.
But, of course, seeing God for who and for what He truly is, and seeing ourselves for who and for what we truly are, is an impossible task for unbelievers. And most of the time it’s unbelievers who ask the question, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” isn’t it?
However, far too many of those who profess to be Christians have the same problem. Because they neither know nor understand the Scriptures, they fail to see themselves as God sees them. It’s because they are either untaught or wrongly taught that their under-standing of basic doctrine and theology is seen through the foggy lens of their feelings and emotions. So they struggle with the question nearly as much as unbelievers do.
Having said all of that, we would be less than honest if we didn’t admit that those of us who are Bible-believing and sincere Christians sometimes wrestle with answering the question as well. “Why do bad things happen to us?” There is an answer to that ques-tion, a biblical answer, but it’s an answer that unbelievers do not want to hear. And, sadly, it’s an answer that many professing Christians don’t want to hear either.
In this morning’s text in Luke’s gospel Jesus will give the answer. It will not be difficult to understand, but it may be difficult to accept. Before we go to the text I want us to con-sider the question from the biblical perspective, then from an unbeliever’s concept of it, and finally, from the point of view of the Bible-believing Christian.
First, from a biblical standpoint, the very question itself is flawed. “Why do bad things happen to good people?” The question is built on the false premise that there are good people. But, biblically speaking, there are no good people. Right here at the beginning is where you lose the unbeliever as well as many who claim to be Christians. But you and I stand on the Scriptures, and what do the Scriptures say?
Romans 3:10-12 (speaking of the natural man – the unsaved man)
10 There is none righteous, not even one;
11 There is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God;
12 All have turned aside, together they have become useless; there is none who does good, there is not even one.
“..there is none who does good…not even one.” The reason there are none who do good is found in the doctrines of original sin and the total depravity of fallen man. But again, both the unbeliever and most liberal theologians reject those fundamental truths. And if they don’t reject them outright, they soften them to the point that they become almost meaningless. But the fact is that no one is good as God defines it; no one except God. When the rich young ruler addressed Jesus as, “Good Teacher,” the Lord asked him…
Matthew 19:17b
17b “Why are you asking Me about what is good (or calling Me good)? There is only One who is good…”
Since God Himself is the standard for righteousness and goodness, His standards are abso-
lute, without flaw or imperfection of any kind, and His are the only standards that count.
Romans 3:23
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…
So you can readily see the problem. “Why do bad things happen to good people?” is an illegitimate question. Biblically speaking, from God’s holy perspective, there are no good people, so the question rests on a false premise, and it has no answer.
Second, let’s consider the question from the standpoint of unbelievers. How can you answer the question from their perspective? What about people who are good in the eyes of the world? What about decent people who are honest and trustworthy, those who do not lie, don’t cheat, don’t steal, and those people who treat others with respect and digni-ty? Maybe they’re not perfect, but at least they usually try to do what’s right.
Why do bad things happen to them? Again, the question is virtually unanswerable be-cause unbeliever’s have no absolute standard for good and bad. The unbeliever’s stan-dards for good and bad are arbitrary and subjective. They constantly change based on circumstances, feelings, and emotions. What is good now may be bad later. What is bad here may be good somewhere else. Who is good? Who is bad? What is good? What is bad? The answers vary based on who you ask and when you ask them.
If there is no objective standard for good and bad the question, “Why do bad things hap-pen to good people?” becomes meaningless. Now to be sure, there is an objective stand-ard for good and bad. It is God’s standard as revealed in the Bible. It is God’s standard of absolute holiness, but unbelievers reject that out of hand. So you can’t answer the question, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” to an unbeliever’s satisfaction.
That’s because all unbelievers who the world considers good, but who are without Christ, are as lost as all unbelievers who the world considers bad. They’re all lost. All who are without Christ are lost because, “…all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
So first, the question is flawed, and second, unbelievers reject a biblical explanation.
Third, we come to the point of view of the Bible-believing Christian. Why do bad things happen to Christians? While it is true that we are forgiven, it is also true that we still reside in a world that is wracked by sin, and sins effects are ongoing and everywhere.
We may be devoted to Christ and His word, we may separate ourselves from much that is foul and evil, but we still dwell in the flesh. We still live in a fallen and godless world, a world of sin. We are affected by it in the same way that we are affected by pollutants in the air we breath and in the water we drink.
But here is the difference. Scripture tells us that when bad things happen to us, people who truly love God, He not only can but, in His absolute sovereignty, He does use those things for His eternal glory our and eternal benefit. (repeat) As God’s redeemed children, we are called to live in this world with eternity in view.
That’s what the Apostle Paul is talking about in Romans 8. He’s saying that the whole creation is affected by sin and groans under the weight of it. And since we are in this world, a part of this creation, we too groan as it affects us while we wait for the Second Coming. In the meantime we have the assurance that Jesus will come back for us.
*Romans 8:26-28
26 And in the same way the (Holy) Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words;
27 and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
28 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.
The magnificent promise of v. 28 is that God will make all things – good things and bad things – ultimately work out for our good is not made to unbelievers who are “bad” peo-ple. Neither is it made to unbelievers who are “good” people, who live decent lives, and who try to do what is right. It is made solely to true Christians, those people “…who love God and are called according to His purpose.”
So why does God allow bad things to happen to His children? The complete answer is far beyond human understanding, but here are a few things we can understand. I think God uses bad things to teach us, to discipline us, and to improve our characters. But I think the main reason God allows bad things to happen to us is so that we will turn to Him, depend on Him, cling to Him, and grow our faith. Who knew that better than Job?
Job 1:21b-22; 13:15a
21b “The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.”
22 Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God. (Later Job said…)
15a “Though He slay me, I will hope in Him.”
Oh, how we need to remember that nothing bad can happen to us unless God permits it. And even then, He has our eternal interest in mind. How you and I need to believe that!
Ephesians 1:11-12
11 …we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will,
12 to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.
And consider this. It may help to put things in perspective. The worst and most terrible misery you and I could endure in this life is merciful compared to what we deserve, which is eternity in the lake of fire. Only when we acknowledge that, do we begin to understand God’s grace. Then we agree with the hymn-writer – “Marvelous, infinite, matchless grace, freely bestowed on all who believe…”
In Luke 13:1-9 Jesus teaches the essential principle that good and bad conduct in this life is not directly related to the good and bad things that happen to us in this life.
It helps us to understand why so-called good people sometimes suffer and die at an early age, while so-called bad people seem to suffer little and live long. It helps us to under-stand why so-called good people can struggle with physical and financial issues while so-called bad people seem to breeze through this life strong and healthy with their pockets filled with money and all the happiness that this world offers.
And it is a reminder to us that this life and all that this world offers is temporary. It is passing away. But for those in Christ, the next life is eternal and will never pass away.
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II. Text
When we were last in Luke’s gospel he related Jesus’ stern words to those who heard His preaching, His teaching, and saw His miracles and still refused to believe in Him and receive His salvation. These people were willfully ignorant and could not read “the signs of the times” – that their Messiah had come offering forgiveness for sins and eternal life.
That brings us to today’s text where Jesus will again teach something He has taught from the beginning of His ministry. We must all repent!
*Luke 13:1-9 (Please stand with me in honor of reading God’s Word.)
1 Now on the same occasion there were some present who reported to (Jesus) about the Galileans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.
2 And He answered and said to them, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were greater sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered this fate?
3 “I tell you, no, but, unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.
4 “Or do you suppose that those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, were worse culprits than all the men who live in Jerusalem?
5 “I tell you, no, but, unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”
6 And He began telling this parable: “A certain man had a fig tree which had been planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it, and did not find any.
7 “And he said to the vineyard-keeper, ‘Behold, for three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree without finding any. Cut it down! Why does it even use up the ground?’
8 “And he answered and said to him, ‘Let it alone, sir, for this year too, until I dig around it and put in fertilizer;
9 and if it bears fruit next year, fine; but if not, cut it down.’”
This passage can be readily divided into two parts. The first, vv. 1-5, contain clear state-ments of historical and theological truth. The second part, vv. 6-9, is a parable that Jesus teaches to explain the reality of two incidents that had recently taken place, and to help the people see truth from God’s eternal perspective.
In vv. 1-5, some bad things had happened to some people. They had happened without regard to how “good” those who had died may or may not have been. The Jews assumed that because the deaths had been unexpected and violent (some had been murdered – some had died in an accident) that the victims were worse sinners than those who had survived. But Jesus will tell them otherwise.
*Luke 13:1
1 Now on the same occasion there were some present who reported to (Jesus) about the Galileans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.
Luke says, “…the same occasion,” tying 13:1 directly back to 12:59. This is significant because judgment has been the subject of Luke 12 and now it continues in Luke 13.
Neither when this incident happened, nor precisely why it happened, is known. But many
of the Jews believed that the murdered Galileans must have been extremely wicked in order for them to have suffered such a cruel fate. Certainly, they reasoned, God would never have allowed “good” people to die such horrible deaths, especially while they were in the midst of a worship service.
*Luke 13:2
2 And (Jesus) answered and said to them, “Do you suppose that these Gali-leans were greater sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered this fate?”
Although the people have not asked Jesus to address this issue, He knows their thoughts and corrects their thinking. The Jews of Jesus’ day had a simple explanation when bad things happened. They said bad things were God’s judgment and punishment for sin.
Job’s friends were like that. They repeatedly accused him of hiding some gross sin and failing to confess it. But Job’s sin wasn’t the issue at all. The issue was God’s glory.
Job 1:1b, 22
1b Job…was blameless, upright, fearing God, and turning away from evil.
22 Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God.
The disciples and the first century Jews thought the same way as Job’s friends thought.
John 9:1-3
1 And as (Jesus) passed by, He saw a man blind from birth.
2 And His disciples asked Him, saying, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he should be born blind?”
3 Jesus answered, “It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was in order that the works of God might be displayed in him.”
So the theology of the day was wrong. God does not single out especially evil people for punishment in this life. When a tornado rips through a community, do only evil people die? No! We know better than that. When a plane falls from the sky, are the passengers and crew the worst sinners around on that day? No! We know better than that. Were there only evil lost sinners in the twin towers, in the Pentagon, or on any of those four airliners that were brought down on September 11? No! We know better than that too.
Listen, all people deserve death because all people are sinners. All sinners, whether good or bad in human terms, are living on borrowed time. Yet our patient and merciful God holds back His judgment. All people are sinners, and God’s patience with the lost will eventually run out, but the saved, His own, will experience forgiveness and blessings.
So all people are called to repent and turn to Jesus. And the call is urgent because all people, regardless of their how good or bad they may be, are living on borrowed time. That’s the point of these verses in Luke’s gospel this morning.
So after Jesus asks, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were greater sinners than all other Galileans…?” He answers it in v. 3, and His answer is emphatic. “No!”
*Luke 13:3
3 “I tell you, no, but, unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”
Had His answer been in the affirmative, it would have lined up with the religious thinkers of the day. But Jesus’ answer is, “I tell you, no.” That’s not it. This can be confusing because we know there are inevitable consequences for certain sins. For example, alco-hol abuse can destroy the liver, and it often does. Sexual immorality can lead to STDs, and it often does. Criminal behavior can lead to violence and death, and it often does. But that’s not the kind of thing Jesus has in view here.
Rather, He is talking about things like the victims of criminal acts or natural catastrophes such as those described in our text.
God uses bad things to remind us all that death is imminent and we need to be prepared.
Jim Eliot, the missionary who was martyred in Ecuador in 1956, said, “When it comes time to die, make sure that all you have to do is die.” When it came time for Jim Eliot to die, he had already repented of his sin, and so he was ready. (back to the text)
Jesus has spoken of the criminal act committed by Pilate. Next He speaks of a natural catastrophe or an accident. It isn’t known for sure what it was, but eighteen people died.
*Luke 13:4-5
4 “Or do you suppose that those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, were worse culprits than all the men who live in Jerusalem?
5 “I tell you, no, but, unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”
Those who died in Siloam weren’t being judged for their sins. Those who died were no worse than those who survived. But there is a judgment everyone will face. God’s judg-ment and its consequences are infinitely more severe than the murder of the Galileans or the deaths in Siloam. All who do not repent will perish.
“Perish” is an important word. We usually equate it with the word “death,” but that can lead to misunderstanding. “Perish” carries with it the idea of eternal destruction in hell. It’s translated from the Greek “apŏllumi” meaning “to destroy.” While the NT some-times uses it to refer to physical death, Jesus uses it to distinguish between the physical death we will all undergo, and the spiritual death that only the lost will suffer.
John 10:27-28
27 “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me;
28 and I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish…”
Yes, Christians will die, but Christians will never perish, that is, will never be eternally destroyed in hell. How important is repentance? It’s so important that Jesus says not once, but twice, “I tell you…unless you repent, you will all…perish.” That is the result of the judgment that is coming. Could the Lord make that any clearer?
People must change their minds about their sinfulness and agree with God about their lost condition and the judgment to come. And they must recognize and believe that Jesus Christ is the only One who can save their souls. This is the point of the Lord’s teaching, and He illustrates it with a parable.
*Luke 13:6-9
6 And He began telling this parable: “A certain man had a fig tree which had been planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it, and did not find any.
7 “And he said to the vineyard-keeper, ‘Behold, for three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree without finding any. Cut it down! Why does it even use up the ground?’
8 “And he (the vineyard keeper) answered and said to him (the vineyard owner), ‘Let it alone, sir, for this year too, until I dig around it and put in fertilizer;
9 and if it bears fruit next year, fine; but if not, cut it down.’”
If the lesson learned from vv. 1-5 is “Repent and be saved,” then the lesson from vv. 6-9 is “Repent and be saved NOW!” Jesus’ parable of the fig tree emphasizes the fact that the nation of Israel is living on borrowed time. But it isn’t only Israel. We’re all living on borrowed time. This parable of the fig tree can be understood by all who hear it.
It’s clear in v. 6 that this fig tree hasn’t been planted to provide shade or firewood. It has been planted to produce fruit. It may not be expected to produce any fruit in its first year, or possibly even in its second year, but it is most certainly expected to produce fruit in its third year. But it has not. The vineyard owner has been patient, but now his patience is wearing thin. So in v. 7 he tells the vineyard keeper to cut it down. It is wasting space and it is consuming valuable nutrients in the soil.
Again, Jesus uses this parable to emphasize the urgent need for repentance because we are all living on borrowed time and judgment is coming. Now look again at v. 8. The “he” is the vineyard keeper. The “him” is the vineyard owner.
In this analogy the vineyard owner represents God, the One who will judge. The fig tree that bears no fruit represents the unrepentant sinner, the one who will be judged. And the vineyard keeper represents Christ, the One who intervenes with the vineyard owner on behalf of the unfruitful tree.
What does the vineyard keeper do? How does He intervene? He pleads with the vine-yard owner for patience. He says, “Let the tree alone, don’t cut it down yet.”
He says, and I’m paraphrasing now, “Let me have a little more time with it. Let me try to cultivate it a little more. Let me try to feed it a little more. Maybe then it will bear fruit and you will not have to cut it down. But I know that if it still bears no fruit, then you will cut it down.” In Matthew’s gospel John the Baptist adds to the sense of urgency.
Matthew 3:10
10 “And the axe is already laid at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”
The axe is near. Judgment is coming. But even now Jesus is pleading with His Father for unrepentant sinners. Before we were saved we deserved death and judgment. But Jesus intervened for us. If anyone here has not repented, that is, changed your mind about your sinfulness and Jesus’ ability to save you, please do it now. Don’t wait. Not one of us is guaranteed our next breath.
2 Corinthians 6:2b
2b …now is the acceptable time, behold, now is the day of salvation.
Jesus said it, not once, but twice. “I tell you…unless you repent, you will all…perish.”
III. Conclusion
What can we take from all of this? I believe it is this: true repentance always leads to fruitfulness. What is that fruitfulness? It can be seen in everything that produces holi-ness in a Christian’s life on this earth.
Theologians refer to it as our sanctification, our growth in Christ. It began the moment we were justified by faith, and it will continue until that moment when we stand glorified in His presence.
Listen, unexpected and unexplained tragedies, disasters, and calamities are reminders that sin is universal, life in this world is uncertain, and repentance – turning to Christ – is urgent. And for the Christian, those tragedies, disasters, and calamities are opportunities for us to grow in our faith and to glorify God before a lost and dying world.
May we all remember Jesus’ parable of the fig tree? “Are we being fruitful for Christ?”
~ Pray ~