March 7th: "Repent, It Matters"

Luke 13: 1-9

"Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans?" I suspect those who heard this question were hoping the answer was, "yes", because if those who died were worse sinners then maybe the others would be safe. Jesus response is interesting, "No, I tell you; but unless you repent you will all perish as they did." The question or concern that follows sounds something like this. 

Surely Jesus can't be talking about you and me.  Jesus can’t be calling us to repent. After all we may not be perfect but we are far from a bad person. We care about others. We do good things. We try to be a positive role model for those around us. We can think of a whole bunch of folks who need to hear the call to repent more than we do.

And herein lays the problem.  This is exactly why we and all people need to repent.  There is a part of each of us that wants to believe:

"If I work hard, I will succeed. If I live a good life, I will be rewarded. If I pray hard enough, work long enough, live a regulated life, God will help me, guide me and work life in my favor." (Joan Chittister, Scarred by Struggle, Transformed by Hope, pg. 8)

This very thinking puts the focus on us making it all about what we do.

The call to repent is really a call to see the world differently. It is a call to view life from a different perspective, because while God will help and guide us; God does not work life in our favor. We are no more important than anyone else. The call to repentance is an invitation to enter into a dialog with God; one in which we hear not what we want to hear but what God has to say as we take to heart those words we sing:

Lead me, guide me, along the way, for if you lead me I cannot stray.
Lord, let me walk each day with thee. Lead me, O Lord, lead me.

What would happen if we repented, if we changed and…

let God be more a part of our decision making?
prayed not for what we want, but for God to show us what we need?
let God guide us when it comes to being good stewards of all God has entrusted to us, including our time and financial resources?

I suspect we would find some of our priorities changing. We would probably discover that we have more time to spend in prayer and reflection; more time for good works. I suspect we would spend our money differently and we would do so joyfully, giving thanks for what has been entrusted to us.

Psalm 51 reminds us "the sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart." These words remind me that God desires for us to surrender our pride, ego and will. God desires for us to listen more closely to how God desires we live.

It is hard for us to do this.  A recent editorial in the NY Times talked about a privatization of human existence.  Too many live in a lonely chamber of self-absorption a kind of narcissistic neurosis as we connect through social networking and the ala-cartelife as defined by 600 TV channels and a gazillion blogs.” (Roger Cohen, NY Times 2/23/10)

The result is no real human contact. We don’t see people as people.  We see them for what they can give us; how they can serve us.

"Unless you repent you will all perish as they did."  These are words of warning.  I don’t believe God seeks to break us down as a way of belittling or punishing us.  I believe God seeks to build us up by showing us a more loving way. We can't see this more loving way unless we repent; unless we let go of some things. I suspect you know what those things are for you. Certainly those who know you and love you best would be willing to share these things with you. The question is; do we have the courage to ask them? Do we have the courage to sit and listen to their loving responses?

This morning's scripture ends with a parable which asks the question, "Why this barren tree should be wasting the soil?" This leads to my wondering, "Are we wasting the soil? Are we making good use of our lives?" This is another way to hear the call to repent; not because we are so bad, but because we have lost sight of what is important. In the process we are foolishly wasting the time we have. 

Ready or not, some day it will all come to an end.
There will be no more sunrises, no minutes, hours or days.
All the things you collected, whether treasured or forgotten, will pass to someone else.
Your wealth, fame and temporal power will shrivel to irrelevance.
It will not matter what you owned or what you were owed.
Your grudges, resentments, frustrations and jealousies will finally disappear.
So too your hopes, ambitions, plans and to-do lists will expire.
The wins and losses that once seemed so important will fade away.
It won’t matter where you came from or what side of the tracks you lived on in the end.
It won’t matter whether you were beautiful or brilliant.
Even your gender and skin color will be irrelevant.

So what will matter?  How will the value of your days be measured?

What will matter is not what you bought but what you built, not what you got but what you gave.
What will matter is not your success but your significance.
What will matter is not your learned but what you taught.
What will matter is every act of integrity, compassion, courage or sacrifice
that enriched, empowered or encouraged others to emulate your example.

What will matter is not your competence but your character.
What will matter is not how many people you knew,
but how many will feel a lasting loss when you’re gone.
What will matter is not your memories but the memories of those who loved you.
What will matter is how long you will be remembered, by whom and for what.

Living a life that matters doesn't happen by accident.
It’s not a matter of circumstances but of choice.
Choose a life that matters.
(by Michael Josephson)

The message is clear.  Now is the time to repent; the time to change. Life is unpredictable; guarantees are few and far between. We don't know what tomorrow will bring.

Remembering this let us hear again Jesus concern; unless we repent we will perish having missed an opportunity. Don't waste the soil. Instead choose to live a life that matters.