Luke 13 Devotional

Mercy That Waits for Fruit

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!”Luke 13:34 (BSB)

Some people tell Jesus about Galileans whom Pilate killed, and he answers with a question: were they worse sinners than everyone else? No, he says, and unless his hearers turn from their sins, they too will perish (13:1-5). Jesus does not soften it: everyone needs to turn to God, not only those struck by disaster.

Then he tells of a fig tree that has borne no fruit for three years. The owner orders it cut down, but the vineyard keeper asks for another year to dig around it and fertilize it (13:6-9). The story promises no endless delay, but it shows a patience with a purpose. Jesus embodies that patience. He frees a woman bent double for eighteen years (13:11-13). He grieves over Jerusalem, longing to shelter her people like a hen with her chicks, though they refused (13:34). The time to turn is now, and the one calling you to repent is the same one who longs to gather you in.

To think about: Is there an area of your life where you have been treating God's patience as permission to put off turning back to him?