Luke 13:1-5--Repent or Perish

Luke 13:1-5
English Standard Version
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Repent or Perish
13 There were some present at that very time who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2 And he answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? 3 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. 4 Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? 5 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”

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Jesus has been talking about how the wicked will suffer in the afterlife and the people immediately start pointing fingers at others instead of engaging in introspection as Jesus had intended.  They looked at some people from Galilee that Pilate had killed by the altar so that their blood was mixed with the blood of the sacrifices they were offering to the LORD.  The Temple was supposed to be a sanctuary that would not be violated like this and where the only bloodshed that would happen there was for the blood shed by the priests killing the sacrifices to make atonement for themselves and the people.

Jesus asks if the people are trying to say that these Galileans were somehow worse sinners than other Galileans (like most of His disciples) because they died in this way?  Jesus answers His own question and says that unless every single one of them listens to Him and repents, they too will perish--but Jesus is not simply talking about physical death, since almost all of us will experience that with the exception of Elijah and those who are alive when Jesus returns to be transformed into His likeness without experiencing death.  No, Jesus is talking about the second death and those who will spiritually perish and face an eternity separated from God in hell and the Lake of Fire (Jesus seems to agree with the people that these particular Galileans did "perish" in the spiritual sense of the word).

Jesus then switches to another group of people that were from Jerusalem who died when the tower in Siloam collapsed on them.  Jesus then asks if the people would characterize the deaths of these people from Jerusalem in the same way (He's pointing out their prejudice against those that lived in Galilee as they imagined those who lived among the Gentiles to be less loved by God).  Natural disasters like what happened to these 18 men would clearly be seen as being the work of God, so did God kill these 18 men because they were evil and wicked?

The people would have been shocked to hear Jesus even suggest such a thing, but He quickly answers His own question and says "No."  Sometimes God allows things like that to happen in our broken and fallen world as a result of Adam's original sin and although all of us are sinners we cannot necessarily play "connect the dots" and say that this person died because that particular sin they committed.  The Jews loved to play this game with Jesus and often asked for instance if a child was suffering a disability because of his own sin or because of the sin of his parents and Jesus would have to tell them "neither, but so that God might be glorified."  Jesus brings the focus here back to the individual responsibility of each person listening to Him that they too must repent and believe the gospel or they too will likewise perish (again, Jesus does seem to indicate that these 18 people die "perish" apart from a relationship with God, even though the crowd didn't think that was what happened).

So, it doesn't matter where you live, or how religious or irreligious you might be.  All of us are born into sin and are in need of repentance.  There is no amount of "good" (we imagine we can do good things) that we can do to please God because even that which we imagine to be good is corrupted by sin and unacceptable to the LORD.  The only acceptable sacrifice is one that is innocent dying for those who are guilty and that is what Jesus did for us.  We must repent (turn around and go the other way), and stop trying to earn our own way to heaven and instead trust in the finished work of Jesus to pay our debt, change our nature, and to make us children of God instead of children of wrath.  Whether we are Jew or Gentile, male or female, young or old, rich or poor, we all are in need of repentance and all come to God by the same Way.  Jesus said, "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, no man comes to the Father except by Me." (John 14:6)