Luke 13:1-9 (NRSV)
Read Luke 13:1-9 on biblegateway.com
Chapter 13At that very time there were some present who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. Verse 2He asked them, "Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans? Verse 3No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as they did. Verse 4Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them-do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others living in Jerusalem? Verse 5No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did."
Verse 6Then he told this parable: "A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and found none. Verse 7So he said to the gardener, 'See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?' Verse 8He replied, 'Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it. Verse 9If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.'"
Devotion
“Let it alone for one more year . . .” One of the most central aspects of God, and one that we often overlook or undervalue, is God’s patience. We know that God is love; indeed, God is the essence of love. But equally important, God is patient, and indeed is the essence of patience itself. Put yourself in God’s place for a minute; don’t you think that God should grow frustrated with the ways we wander and fall into sin? It would only be natural for God to give up on us after those so many times we are a disappointment. But look at the Old Testament, where the people of Israel are constantly betraying God, and God continues to stay with them, regardless. We are so fortunate that God is patience itself, always with open arms, longing for us to return.
Prayer
Dear God of patience, we give you thanks for your steadfast and constant love. Amen.
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