New Year’s Day is a special day for two reasons. It is special because on this day we can look back at the past year and take stock of the good, bad and the ugly things that have happened in that year. It is also special because it gives us a fresh start like opening a new book. It is also a day to start afresh by making New Year resolutions that are realistic and achievable so that by the end of the year you will look back and give thanks to the Lord for what you have been able to accomplish. While making resolutions it might help us to look at some of paraphrased resolutions of Jonathan Edwards, the 18th century preacher and one of
“Resolved, that he will do whatsoever he thinks to be most to the glory of God, and for his own good, profit, and pleasure, all of his life.”
Resolved, to do whatever he thinks to be his duty, and most for the good and advantage of mankind in general.
Resolved, Never to lose one moment of time, but to improve it in the most profitable way he possibly can.
Resolved, Never to do anything out of revenge.
Resolved, to study the Scriptures so steadily, constantly, and frequently, as that he may find, and perceive, and grow in the knowledge of the same.
Resolved, Never to give in to the fight over his sinful nature.”[1]
I too have made certain New Year resolutions. It is one thing to write down lofty resolutions but it is another thing to recognize that through Christ’s help we keep any of those resolutions. As I spend the last week of the year seeking God’s direction for the New Year. I sense that God wants to give us “a Fresh Start” or a New beginning this year. Let me direct your thoughts to Luke 13:1-9 to find out God’s heart for a” Fresh Start.”
For some the past year may have been a tough year, you may feel like a failure and at the verge of giving up. Let me encourage you not to give up because God has not given up on you yet. Consider the following examples in the Bible where God never gave up on his people even when they did not live up to His expectation.
Adam and Eve disobeyed the very First Rule. But God never gave up.
Abraham wandered, and Sarah laughed. But God never gave up.
Moses hid and shook with fear. But God never gave up.
Saul went insane. But God never gave up.
David plotted against Uriah. But God never gave up.
Ahaz sold out to
The Jewish people became exiles. But God never gave up.
John the Baptist was beheaded. But God never gave up.
Peter denied he even knew him. But God never gave up.
The disciples all ran away. But God never gave up.
In the parable we read a fascinating conversation between the owner of the vineyard and the gardener who never gave up on a fig tree that was slow to bear fruit. Let me set the scene for you. The crowds gathered to listen to Jesus. He addressed a number of topics relevant to his second coming crisis. Now Jesus calls his audience to change their hearts and live fruitfully so that they might escape the up coming judgment. The heart of God for us each individual is that we too might bear fruit and escape the impending judgment that is coming upon this world. I see two essential truths in this parable. 1. God expects fruit from us. 2. God gives us a Fresh Start. Let’s explore them one by one.
I. GOD EXPECTS FRUIT FROM US (Vs 6)
God’s heart from the beginning of creation is that mankind would be “fruitful and multiply”, to that affect He blessed the first couple saying, “Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it.”(Gen 1:28) In the New Testament Jesus further emphasized the fruit bearing concept by saying, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you, and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain.”(John 15:16) These two scriptures clearly express God’s heart for us that we should bear fruit that will remain.
In the parable we read what the owner of the vineyard said to the man who took care of the vineyard, “For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any.” Just imagine the frustration in the face of the owner; for three whole years searching for fruit!! How disappointing that must have been. Jesus specifically mentions here “three years” why three? Could it be that Jesus was frustrated, by those even after listening to his teachings for three years yet were unwilling to repent and produce fruit of their repentance? Or was he giving them an ultimatum saying this is it, I taught you three years, no more it is high time you repent.
We don’t know exactly why three, in Biblical language, the number three often represents a sense of “divine completeness and perfection.” One commentator suggests, “three years here indicates ample time or opportunity” In other words the audience who were listening to Jesus’ parable had enough opportunities to repent, but it looks like they refused to repent.
Let me bring this into our context. There are certain individuals, who hear great teachings year after year but never repent and produce fruit of their repentance. They continue to remain in their sinful sate, doing the same old detestable things.
They continue to act just like the people of the world. Do you think God would be fed up with such un repentant, slow to bear fruit people? What would he say of them? In the parable we read in frustration the owner said to the care taker “cut it down why should it use up the soil.” This is where we see the heart of God who wants to give us a “Fresh Start” Let’s see how the gardener went about pleading the master for a fresh start to the slow to fruit fig tree.
II. GOD GIVES US A FRESH START: (Vs 8-9)
In the parable the fig tree would have been taken down and burned in fire if it was not for the appeal of the care taker who said, “Sir, the man replied, leave it alone for one more year, and I will dig around it and fertilize it. If it bears fruit next year fine! if not then cut it down.” I see in the eyes of the gardener such tenderness, care, concern and above all hope that one day the fig tree will blossom and bear fruit. He volunteers not to give up on the slow-to-fruit fig tree. He pleads with the master not to cut it yet. He bargains for more time as he commits himself to a year of shoveling manure. In a sense he wants the fig tree to have a fresh start.
The fig tree in the parable represents the nation of
Let me illustrate this. A parent searching for a lost child can never give up. Ever read some of those heartbreaking "missing children" posters hanging in the post office or stapled to neighborhood telephone poles?
Look carefully, and you will be shocked to see that the "last seen" dates on some of these pictures are 1986, 1983, 1982, 1979. Even when over a decade has passed, a parent cannot stop the search. Some time back, a brief news story recounted how a 2-year-old boy had wandered off and become lost in the woods outside a certain Southern town. Hundreds of local townspeople searched all night for the lad. The next morning, the family dog led the distraught parents and others to where the little tyke, worn out from fear and crying, was sitting under a bush at the edge of the woods. The father became a living expression of joy as he ran to his son, swept him up and hugged him close. Answering a reporter's question, the father said later, 'I felt at that moment as though the whole world was mine!' [2]
That’s how God must feel over each of his lost children. When the hope-less becomes the hope-filled, it is a moment of pure grace. This is what God accomplished when the Crucifixion became the way to the Resurrection. Judgment and death the ultimate "give-it-ups" have been replaced by redemption and everlasting life the eternal "never-give-ups."
What powerful truths we can learn from this parable. On one hand we see the heart of God who wants us to bear fruit in our lives. On the other hand we see a God who gives us a “Fresh Start” so that we might bear fruit. The parable ends without the reader's knowing if the additional year of growth and the enriched soil succeed in bringing fruit to the fig tree's branches that next year. The gardener had agreed that if there were no results forthcoming after this special attention, the tree should indeed be cut down. The intervening mercy of both the gardener and the landowner is a great gift, but it is not intended to last forever. Mercy is offered with the understanding that repentance must follow. The Day of the Lord may be mercifully delayed, but it is surely coming, so never give up in your pursuit of God. You can have a “Fresh Start” Amen
[2] (As quoted by Donald J. Shelby in his sermon, "I Once Was Lost, but Now Am Found," 6 September 1992.)
