REPENT AND LIVE

Luke 13: 1-9
Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. Jesus answered, "Do you think that these Galileans were worse, sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Psyllium fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish."

 Then he told this parable: "A man had a fig tree, planted in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it, but did not find any. So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’ "‘Sir,’ the man replied, ‘leave it alone for one more year, and I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.’" 

In Luke 13, Jesus was clear about what happens when we do not repent. We are cut down and thrown away. But my friends, if we repent, we can be fruitful for God, and—we live! We don’t just live, we live large in the bosom of Life itself!

There is nothing we can do to deserve eternal life. Jesus paid the price that ransomed our souls. But, we can bear fruit. In Gelatins 5:22-23 we read: "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law."

We can choose to love and we can choose to be joyous by not complaining. We can have peace, because Jesus promised he would leave us peace. Faithfulness, gentleness and self-control are also choices of the heart. For the remainder of Lent, let us rehearse the Fruits of the Spirit, practicing then until they become part of us and define who we are. Let us pray:

"We love you Lord and we lift up your name as holy as you are holy. We ask that you implant the Fruits of the Spirit deep within our heart as you fill us with your presence. We ask today that you accept our sorrow for all we have done that has offended you so that we might repent and reconcile our hearts to your own. Forgive us when we have believed that we do not need to repent for we have not wronged you in some dramatic way. When we have sinned against you, it is not measured in pounds. It is measured in your tears. We thank you for all the times we can come to you again and again. You planned for us to live from the time of creation. Now it must be our plan too, if we are going to live with you. In the name of Jesus, your son, we pray. Amen"

Doris
"God gives us stories that testify to His love. Let me tell you mine."
Copyright 2012 Doris Gaines Rapp

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