Luke 13:1…

Sometimes we may think of disaster as a form of judgement. An “act of God.”

We look back to 9/11, and we well-remember some who were prominently stating this to be “God’s judgment” upon our nation.

If it were so, this “judgment” would be well-deserved, as our nation has strayed far from God’s commands - but even more than that from devotion to and love for God.

Truly we can say this nation’s separation from God is not God’s doing but our own. The United States has turned away from God. This has happened so often and in so many ways it is probably impossible to note all them all at this point.

Our court system has certainly played a large part, beginning with a new doctrine supposedly based upon the 1^st Amendment to the Constitution, which since the 1940’s has been interpreted as a doctrine of ‘separation of Church and State.’ (That the 1^st Amendment to the Constitution says no such thing only makes matters worse pertaining to how we may view God’s opinion about this.)

Is God angry? Did He bring judgment against us on 9/11, or in any of the subsequent disasters that have seemingly become a regular feature of life in the United States? Did God pour out His judgment on secular-humanist France on November 13^th? Would God employ terrorists to be a thorn in our sides? Would wild-fire, hurricane, tsunami, earth-quake, rampant disease and the like be God’s means of communicating with His creation that He is displeased?

It’s easy to fall into this pattern of thinking isn’t it?

And so it was when it was reported to Jesus about the Galileans whose blood had been mingled with their sacrifices by Pilate. (The Galileans were known to be sinners as a people group. Indeed it was said, “Can anything good come out of Galilee?”) But what about those from Judea, killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them? (These were Judean Jews, so they must have been “good” people.)

The real point Jesus makes here is life is fragile. Very fragile. Life teaches us this over and over again. We must be prepared to die, and repentance is the necessary preparation. To go on and pretend this is not so is foolhardy.

-Pastor Bill