1 Now there were some present at the same time who told Jesus about the Galileans, whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. 2 Jesus answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered such things? 3 I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all perish in the same way. 4 Or those eighteen, on whom the tower in Siloam fell, and killed them; do you think that they were worse offenders than all the men who dwell in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, no, but, unless you repent, you will all perish in the same way.”

6 He spoke this parable. “A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it, and found none. 7 He said to the vine dresser, ‘Behold, these three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and found none. Cut it down. Why does it waste the soil?’ 8 He answered, ‘Lord, leave it alone this year also, until I dig around it, and fertilize it. 9 If it bears fruit, fine; but if not, after that, you can cut it down.’”

Luke 13:1-9 - World English Bible

Luke 13 opened with the question of evil. Several people in the crowd commented on news about some Galileans whom Pilate executed for banditry or revolutionary activities. Jesus compared those men with others who died when a tower fell on them. Were the criminals different from any other Galileans? Were they different from those who died in the accident? In God's eyes, everyone was equal; all die at some point. The Lord did not consider the justice of executing the criminal vs. the tragedy of the innocent who died when a structure collapsed. He only thought of the ultimate evil, death itself.

How should one face death? Repent. He punctuated his moral with the parable of the fruitless fig tree. The owner wanted to cut down the tree, while the gardener wanted to nurture it for another year. With the story, he flipped the question of evil on its head. Instead of asking “why do people die?”, he mused, “why do people live?” Yes, everyone will face their end at some point, but, in the meantime, God gave all a chance to live to turn back to him.

Yes, we will all die, but we have a chance to live with God. That is a chance worth taking.

Repentance is a day-by-day project. What progress have you made in your efforts to turn to God?