In Luke 13.1-9, Pontius Pilate had just done the unthinkable. Apparently, his soldiers attacked worshippers in the temple while they performed their sacred rituals. One might expect heartfelt compassion from Jesus, but he doesn’t respond that way at all; rather he gives a warning of sorts. One that might lead the listener to think that maybe God was punishing people for their sins- you know, the sort of thing modern preachers do when a natural disaster causes the death of “sinful people.” Before the listeners can get their head around what Jesus is saying, he launches into a parable.
The parable is about a fig tree that doesn’t bear fruit. And at the end, it sounds like the tired caricature of an angry axe-wielding God who wants to cut the whole thing down. But what if Jesus’ parable was intended to wake the listener up? And what about the gardener in the story who defends the tree? The one who wants to give it a whole year to tend to it, to see that it will bear fruit? Maybe this parable shows that bad things don’t happen because God is angry. For whatever reason they do happen, and they have a chance to wake us up. And when we do awake, maybe there is a gardener who wants to tend to us – so that we can bear the fruit we were made to bear.
February 14, 2021: An Anchor for the Soul
February 7, 2021: Provoking the Good and Beautiful – Scott Oppliger
January 31, 2021:What is Hope Anyway? – Michael Hidalgo
January 24, 2021: Living with Hope in the Past Tense – Jonathan Merritt
January 17, 2021: As Real As It Gets – Michael Hidalgo
January 10, 2021: What Is Emerging From The Chaos of This Moment? – Michael Hidalgo
January 3, 2021: Returning Home –Scott Oppliger
December 20, 2020: Dear Tiny Infant Jesus – Michael Hidalgo
December 13, 2020: As Much Dirt As You Can Handle – Dave Neuhausel
December 6, 2020: Not So Far From God –Amanda Lum
November 29, 2020: Christ of the Cosmos – Michael Hidalgo
November 22, 2020: Not Becoming a Monster to Defeat a Monster – Bekah Stewart
Spiritual Formation Podcast: Prayer of Examen
Spiritual Formation Podcast: Advent 2020 – Week 4
Spiritual Formation Podcast: Advent 2020 – Week 3
Spiritual Formation Podcast: Advent 2020 – Week 2
Spiritual Formation Podcast: Advent 2020 – Week 1
November 15, 2020: Drunk, Naked and Passed Out – Michael Hidalgo
November 8, 2020: What the Hell? – Nick Elio
November 1, 2020: Set Apart for No Mercy – Michael Hidalgo
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