Daily Devotions
Luke
Luke 13 :1-9 "A SMUG ATTITUDE"
Day 172 – Luke 13
Text: Luke 13 :1-9
A SMUG ATTITUDE
One day, some people came up to Jesus and spoke to Him about a terrible incident that happened. Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor had mingled the blood of some Galileans with their sacrifices (Luke 13:1).
Jesus’ answer tells us lots about the people who spoke to Him. There must have carried a smug attitude when they spoke to Jesus. In reply, Jesus said,
“Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners
than all other Galileans, because they suffered
such things?”
Luke 13:2
Jesus must have caught a “holier-than you” self-righteous attitude in their hearts! In their hearts, they had judged the Galileans who were mercilessly killed by Pilate. The Roman Governor couldn’t have inflicted a greater insult than to mingle human blood with the sacrifices made at the Temple of Jerusalem. What Pilate did was sacrilegious. This was his way of openly defying the rebellious Jews who were constantly giving him trouble in the land.
In the minds of many, these Galileans who were slain by Pilate were probably deserving of their fate. They were probably so sinful that they deserved such a terrible death! Jesus just had to rebuke this smug sense of self-righteousness!
Did they suppose that the Galileans who were slain were worse sinners than others? Did they suppose that they were “better” than these Galileans? They were wrong in their supposition!
Jesus went on to say the following words,
“I tell you, no; but unless you repent,
you will all likewise perish.”
Luke 13:3
Jesus was not exonerating the evil that the slain Galileans must have committed to receive such a reprisal from Pilate. He was merely saying, that “sin is sin”. Sometimes, there is immediate judgment on some sins. Sometimes, sin is not judged immediately.
The person who is not judged immediately must not suppose that he is more righteous than the person who has already been judged, condemned and executed! Jesus warned that unless there is repentance, all will surely perish.
The Roman Governor may or may not mete out the punishment. Nevertheless, one day the judgment of God will fall on all who are unrepentant. Those who do not repent of their sins would never know what it means to be forgiven by God! He would one day judge those who do not know the forgiveness of God. They would receive their just condemnation. They would perish because they thought that they were already righteous and did not need to repent from their sins. They were wrong in their estimate of themselves.
JESUS WAS NOT UNAWARE OF THINGS THAT HAPPENED IN HIS DAYS
We must not suppose that Jesus was unaware of the things that happened in His day. He was fully aware not only of the fact that some Galileans were killed by Pilate, He was also aware of another fact that must have been the talk of the town when it happened. Jesus mentioned another incident where lives were tragically lost,
“Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell
and killed them,
Do you think that they were worse sinners
Than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem?”
Luke 13:4
It is so easy to speak of “an act of God”. Jesus was aware of how the people must have thought when this tragedy occurred. They must have thought that these eighteen people must have been so wicked that they were specially slain by God.
Jesus swiftly corrected this wrong perception! Tragic accidents that could be due to the fault of poor construction, or engineering skills cannot be equated with God’s judgment!
Again, Jesus made an important comment. He repeated Himself concerning the problem of not repenting from sins.
“I tell you, no; but unless you repent,
you will all likewise perish.”
Luke 13:5
WE CAN BE SO BLIND TO OUR OWN SINFULNESS
Jesus was dealing with a problem that made the people say what they did. They were far more sinful than they realized. They had become blind to their own sinfulness!
The blindness caused by sin is deadly. It is spiritual blindness. This “blindness” has an added strangeness that is peculiar. Though the person is blind to his own faults, he is “able to see” other people’s weaknesses, faults and sins. This is evidenced in the fact that the individual can become most critical of others.
WE NEED TO DEAL WITH OUR OWN SINS URGENTLY
Jesus pressed home His point about repentance vigorously. Twice, He warned His hearers that they must consider the sins of their heart. Though He did not mention these sins in particular, there were sins to repent of and confess.
Anyone who stood in the presence of the Lord Jesus ought to be conscious of his personal unrighteousness. There should come a recognition of the need to be forgiven of the many sins in the heart. There ought to come a realization that the sins of the heart must be dealt with urgently!
Jesus warned that there must be hearts that are repentant. Where the heart is obdurate and refuses to repent, there is only one fearful judgment left. “You will all likewise perish” is a fearful thought to consider.
Right from the beginning, Jesus preached a message of repentance. So did John the Baptiser. They were both right. We need humble and repentant hearts.