Repent or You Will Likewise Perish

Kongsvinger Lutheran Church

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Welcome to the teaching ministry of Kungsvinger Lutheran Church. Kungsvinger is a beacon for the gospel of Jesus Christ and is located on the plains of northwestern

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Minnesota. We proclaim Christ and him crucified for our sins and salvation by grace through faith alone.

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And now, here's a message from Pastor Chris Roseberg. Holy Gospel according to St.

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Luke chapter 13 verses 1 through 9. There were some present at that very time who told

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Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And he answered them, do you think that these

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Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered in this way?

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No, I tell you, but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.

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Or those eighteen on whom the tower of Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem?

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No, I tell you, but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.

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And he told this parable. A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard and he came seeking fruit on it, found none.

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He said to the vine dresser, look for the for three years now I've come seeking fruit on this fig tree and I could find none.

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Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground? And he answered him, sir, let it alone this year also.

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I'll dig around it and put on manure. Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good, but if not you can cut it down.

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In the name of Jesus. All right, so we've all seen in our lifetime some pretty tragic things happen from tsunamis and earthquakes and tsunamis to nuclear reactors melting down after tsunamis.

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You know, notice the tsunami theme here, it's all wet, but to, you know, construction accidents, cranes collapsing, people dying, death and destruction everywhere, and everyone wants to know the answer to the question, what does it all mean?

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What is God up to? What is he saying in all of this? Right? And there are whole

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YouTube channels, which are quite entertaining if you actually take the time to watch them, where people are trying to have an open

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Bible and an open newspaper or web browser now and try to figure out what's the message that God is sending us.

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Well, Jesus gives us the definitive answer to what does it all mean.

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He does so in our text today, and I would have you pay close attention, because what he tells us has everything to do with not only the season of Lent, but also the very

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Christian life that we live every day outside of Lent, from day to day, every day, seven, you know, what is that, 24 -7, 365, just put the numbers together, right?

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So let's return to our gospel text. There were some present at that very time who told

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Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. Now, why was this being brought up?

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Well, everybody knows, look at Pilate. He's a dictator. He's a terrible politician.

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What do you think about that, Jesus? Look at what he did. Those Galileans, those innocent brothers of ours, they were slaughtered by Pilate, and then he took their blood and he mixed it with the sacrifices.

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He's desecrated the altar. He's desecrated these people. What do you think about that,

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Jesus? With the expectation that Jesus is going to say something political, something, well, important, you know, like, well, that political leader, mm -hmm, well, we all know how wicked and evil he is, right?

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Or maybe Jesus was going to comment on the Galileans, because everybody understands historically the Galileans were a little sketchy at this time, and what

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I mean by that is that, well, the Galileans were known to, well, not be so good and obey

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Rome category. No, there was a lot of them that were very zealous. In fact, the

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Romans had a whole bunch of them crucified all at once to basically send a political statement, you mess with us, we kill you, right?

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So, maybe the Galileans weren't exactly innocent, but clearly Pilate is more evil, and we do the same thing today, right?

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What's going to happen to our country if this person gets elected or that person gets elected? How are we going to survive?

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Look at that what that person has done. Consider the email scandal. Consider how many divorces that person's had.

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What are we in for? God, what do you have to say about all of this, right?

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We all do the same thing. We want to know what God thinks. Watch what Jesus does.

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So, he answered them, all right, do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other

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Galileans? What? Because they suffered in this way, do you think they were more sinful?

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Were they? Was this karma striking? No. Jesus says, no, listen,

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I'm not going to talk about that. He says, no, I tell you, I tell you, unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.

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Now, if they were in a room when this was said, I'm sure you can just hear the oxygen being sucked out of the room.

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What? You're supposed to talk about the Galileans and how innocent they are, and Pilate, how evil he is, and you're telling us to repent?

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And then Jesus picks up on another news story at the time. There was a construction accident that happened in Jerusalem.

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Construction accidents. We just had a construction accident happen in New York City. The video was quite, well, shocking to watch when that crane came down in New York City.

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Right? Did anyone watch the actual footage on that? The people who died? So, in a similar way,

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Jesus says, or those 18 on whom the tower of Siloam fell and killed them.

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Do you think they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? Huh? No, I tell you, unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.

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So, Jesus, rather than scratch their itching curiosity about what

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God is saying, in a very real way, gives us the definitive divine interpretation of all of these natural disasters and calamities that happen that just seem so random.

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The message that God is sending to us, in all of them, is repent.

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You see, by Jesus asking the question, do you think these people were worse sinners than the other

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Galileans? Or these sinners, the sinners in Jerusalem, were they any worse? The answer to the question is no.

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They were all sinners, indeed. And those who died? Well, God has already dealt with them.

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Their fate is determined. As for Pilate, give it time. It'll happen. He'll stand before the judge himself.

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The question is, what about you? What about you? You want to talk about them?

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Jesus wants to talk about you. And what Jesus wants to talk about with you is your need and my need to repent.

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We heard it in our Old Testament texts. The Hebrew word, shuv, turn away, to turn back.

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We hear it in the words of Jesus in the Greek text here today, metanoia, which means to have a change of mind.

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It's important that we understand what repentance is and what it is not. We think repentance is something to the effect of, well, it's

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December 31st, midnight's about to strike, I've got to make some kind of a resolution, right?

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This is the year. This is the year I finally begin to make some progress on regaining my 18 -year -old physique.

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This is the year that I'm going to sock away a certain amount of money. This is the year that I'm going to treat my spouse a little bit better.

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Not much, but a little bit. This is the year that I'm going to just fill in the blank, right? We think this is what repentance is.

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That's not repentance. That's putting the cart before the horse.

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What is repentance? Is repentance the thing that you did that one time when you walked the aisle at the

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Billy Graham crusade? What is repentance? Put simply, repentance is saying,

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God, you're right, I'm wrong. It's saying,

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God, you're holy, and I'm ungodly. It's confessing what you truly are.

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It's speaking the truth about yourself, about your sin, about your ungodliness, and about your need for forgiveness.

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Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, the scriptures say.

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Return. And so, you're thinking, well, are you saying that cleaning myself up isn't part of it?

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Yeah, no. Actually, that's kind of a funny way of putting it. I'm glad you asked the question, because the one who recognizes that he is ungodly and that God is in the right, and that he is in the wrong, confesses that he's not living right, that he's not thinking right.

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Remember, we sin against God in thought, word, and by our actions and deeds. By the things we do, oh, and the things we don't do.

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Remember the Seinfeld television program? That was, yeah, I'm dating myself now.

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That was quite the fun experience when it was on every week. I remember people, you know, every week talking about Seinfeld and the latest episode at the water cooler, you know, at the office.

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Well, it was a program that was the show about nothing. That's what they said. Seinfeld is the television program about nothing.

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And in a very funny way to end the whole series, when the last

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Seinfeld was actually aired, it was the story of how the main characters were arrested and go to prison for doing nothing.

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There was a crime that was being committed in front of them, and they did nothing to stop the crime.

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But the place where this occurred was one of those states where they have a good Samaritan law. If you see somebody in need and you don't help them, you are criminally liable.

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And so they all ended up going to prison for doing nothing, which is what all of us actually deserve, because the law of God is summarized as love

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God and love your neighbor as yourself. So when your neighbor has a need and you do not help your neighbor, and you do nothing, not only in God's court do you deserve to go to prison, no, you deserve to go to hell.

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So examine your life, how you measuring up. Are you holy?

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Are you righteous? Are you good? Or do you fall short?

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Jesus says, repent, repent. And you'll notice he's not talking to unbelievers, he's talking to the children of Israel, and this should tell us something.

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Repentance is not a flu shot. Repentance isn't something you did one time back then.

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Repentance is something that you do every day. Repentance is a lifestyle for a

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Christian, because the difficulty of being a Christian is just beyond description.

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You see, because you have been raised from the dead through the preaching of the

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Word, through the waters of baptism, God has given you new life and regenerated you. And at the same time, you still have your old sinful nature to contend with.

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Being a Christian feels a lot like being schizophrenic. The Apostle Paul in Romans 7 says, oh, the things

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I don't want to do, I keep on doing. The things I don't, the things

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I want to do, I don't do. Who will rescue me from this body of death?

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That's why Paul in our text and epistles in 1st Corinthians, careful, lest you think you're strong and you're standing, lest you fall.

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Repentance, daily repentance, is the type of lifestyle that basically says, God, you're right,

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I'm wrong. And you wake up the next day and you say, God, you're right, I'm wrong. It's confessing that I still have all kinds of wickedness and evil living within me, and I truly still am in and of myself not holy, and I need to do better.

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You see, the doing better is the fruit of repentance. It is not repentance itself.

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And so consider now, the Scriptures clearly teach that it's God's kindness that leads us to repentance, not his wrath, it's his kindness.

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And I want you to see this in the next part of our gospel text, verse 6, chapter 13,

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Luke. So Jesus told this parable, a man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard.

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He came seeking fruit on it, and he found none. That's me.

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That might even be you. What do you do with worthless fig trees?

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What's the point of having a fig tree if it doesn't bear any fruit, right? Well, it's real simple. So he said to the viner, look, for three years now

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I've come seeking fruit on this fig tree. I find none. What kind of a selfish fig tree is this, right?

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So cut it down. Why should it use up the ground? Kill him. Send him to the grave.

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Why should that person continue to breathe my air? Another way of putting it, right? Cut it down.

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Why should it use up the ground? He says, sir, sir, sir, let alone this year. Let alone this year also.

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I'll dig around it and put on manure. Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good.

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If not, then you can cut it down. Look at the patience. Where's Jesus in this story?

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He's the one saying, no, no, no, no, don't cut it down. I'll take care of it. Let me dig around it.

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Let me put manure on it. Now this parable is called the parable of the barren fig tree.

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I think a better name for this parable would be the year of manure. The year of manure.

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I love it because look at the tender, loving, kindness. No, no, no, don't kill it.

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Let's let's let's help this tree out. This is what Jesus does with each and every one of us.

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You look at your life and you sit there and go, this bearing fruit of the spirit thing just isn't working out so well for me.

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I know I deserve to be cut down and you're right, you do. But here today,

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Jesus is here to dig around the roots, put some manure on you, to help you, to strengthen you, to sustain you.

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He doesn't want you thrown into the fire. He's going to help you bear fruit. That's how kind our

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Jesus is. That's how good and merciful and gracious he is. And it's his kindness that leads us to repentance.

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Lord Jesus, you're right. I'm wrong. You're good. I'm not.

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Have mercy on me, Lord. I truly want to do better. Right.

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So today, I recommend repent.

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Confess that Christ is right and you are wrong. Confess that your fruit is so lacking and wanting.

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And ask Jesus to come and care for you. To come and care for you the way he cared for the fig tree.

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And you know what? You didn't even have to ask. He's already doing that here today, to the preaching of his word.

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In the name of Jesus, amen. If you would like to support the teaching ministry of Kungsvinger Lutheran Church, you can do so by sending a tax -free donation to Kungsvinger Lutheran Church, 15950 470th

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Avenue Northwest, Oslo, Minnesota 56744. And again, that address is

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Kungsvinger Lutheran Church, 15950 470th

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Avenue Northwest, Oslo, Minnesota 56744. We thank you for your support.

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