Why do bad things happen to good people? Jesus had a surprising answer to that question.

Transcript

August 10-11, 2019

Pastor Joe Wittwer

Summer Bible Series

Repent!

Luke 13:1-5 (p. 896)

Opening:

ILL: When I ride my motorcycle, the bike tends to go where I’m looking.  If I’m staring at a beautiful scene off to my right, the bike drifts right.  If I’m looking at an obstacle in the road, I’m more likely to hit it. You look where you want to go.  The bike follows your eyes.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to correct after looking away.  Steering my bike is a constant series of small corrections. Occasionally, a U-turn is required—I’m going the wrong way!  But most of the time its hundreds of small corrections to stay on the road.

Following Jesus is like this: it’s a life of repentance, of making changes, large and small.  Today we’re going to talk about what it means to repent. It’s good!

Introduction and offering:

This Mission Interview

What is This Mission? What is your mission? 

Tell us about this summer, what did you guys do? 

How did you guys get started in This Mission?

What are some of the trips you have funded or some stories from them?

Tell us how we could get involved/support you

This is the Summer Bible Series and we’re working our way through the gospel of Luke.  Let’s dive in.

Luke 13:1–5 (p. 896)

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.” 

Someone asks Jesus about a current event: Pilate had recently killed some Galileans while they were in Jerusalem worshiping, mixing their blood with their sacrifices.  We don’t have any other information about this event—no other historians mention it. But we do know that Pilate did not get along with his Jewish subjects, and on more than one occasion reacted with unnecessary force and bloodshed, and was removed by Roman authorities in 36 AD.  

This event was an outrage—what did Jesus think of it?  In His answer, Jesus brings up a second current event. A tower had recently collapsed and killed 18 people.  One a political tragedy, the other an accidental tragedy.  

Jesus responds to these tragedies by making two points.  First, these people didn’t die because they were worse sinners than others—Jesus was challenging the prevalent theology of suffering.  Second, you need to repent or you will perish too—Jesus insisted that everyone must repent because everyone sins. We’re going to talk about those two things—points 1 and 2 on your outline.  We won’t get to 3 and 4 today.  

Offering

A theology of suffering.

First, Jesus corrects the prevalent theology of suffering. The prevalent theology in Jesus’ day (and it’s still popular today) was that you got what you deserved.  

If you were suffering, you must have done something bad to deserve it.  

If you were doing well, you must have done something good to deserve it.

If you were rich, you must be righteous and God was blessing you.  

If you were poor, you were being punished for your sins.  

If you were sick, you had done something to bring it on yourself.  

For example, look at:

John 9:1–3 (p. 921)

1 As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 

3 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.”

Jesus’ disciples assumed that the man had been born blind because of sin—either his sin or his parents’ sin—although one has to wonder what sin he could have