Luke 13
A Call to Repent
13:1 Now there were some present on that occasion who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices.
Pilate was a ruthless dictator who would kill in order to keep his power. Pilate killed some Galilean Jews for some type of seditious act against Rome. He killed the Galilean Jews when they were making a sacrifice to God in the temple. He mixed their human blood with the blood of the lamb. This would have been blasphemous to the Jews. Pilate often controlled the people with shocking actions like this, spurning their hatred of him.
13:2 He answered them, “Do you think these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered these things?
The Greco-Roman religious system possessed many Stoics and Epicureans who believed in karma. Karma means that “what goes around comes around.” Karma teaches that the reason these Galileans died was because God was judging them for some type of terrible sin that they committed. They were getting what they deserved.
13:3 No, I tell you! But unless you repent, you will all perish as well!
Jesus informed His listeners that they did not suffer this death because of karma. Karma is pagan superstition. These people were living in the satanic world system. Calamities and catastrophes will happen. These kinds of deaths could happen to them as well. Therefore, since death was just around the corner, they could all die in the same manner. These people needed to repent and change their attitude about Christ. If not, many of them would die by the hands of Titus in the Temple destruction of 70 A.D.
13:4 Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower in Siloam fell on them, do you think they were worse offenders than all the others who live in Jerusalem?
There were eighteen people who died an accidental death in Siloam. They were not killed by karma.
13:5 No, I tell you! But unless you repent you will all perish as well!”
Everyone needs to change their attitude about Christ, or they could die in the same way. It is important to note that after the resurrection of Christ, Satan controls the death of an unbeliever, but Christ controls the death of a believer.
Warning to Israel to Bear Fruit
13:6 Then Jesus told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came looking for fruit on it and found none.
All of the Gentile nations were pictured as trees in a vineyard. God would cut down the Gentile trees which were not producing fruit. The fig tree was an Old Testament symbol of Israel. Israel was not producing any fruit.
13:7 So he said to the worker who tended the vineyard, ‘For three years now, I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and each time I inspect it I find none. Cut it down! Why should it continue to deplete the soil?’
Just as God cut down the other Gentile trees for not producing fruit, He was now going to do the same thing with Israel. He was going to cut down the fig tree.
13:8 But the worker answered him, ‘Sir, leave it alone this year too, until I dig around it and put fertilizer on it. 13:9 Then if it bears fruit next year, very well, but if not, you can cut it down.’”
God was being patient with Israel. Jesus would fertilize Israel. If the fertilization did not work, then He would cut down the tree. The tree was cut down in the temple destruction of 70 A.D.
Healing on the Sabbath
13:10 Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath,
Visiting rabbi were often invited to teach in the synagogue.
13:11 and a woman was there who had been disabled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten herself up completely.
Demons are evil. They wish to torment humans on earth. A demon had caused the woman to be partially paralyzed for eighteen years.
13:12 When Jesus saw her, he called her to him and said, “Woman, you are freed from your infirmity.”
Jesus publicly healed the woman on the Sabbath in the synagogue.
13:13 Then he placed his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God.
The woman was free from the demonic symptom. Demons can cause symptoms in people. They can also remove the symptom at the request of a faith healer. This is a deception used to deceive Biblically ignorant Christians in charismatic churches. Satan wants the charismatics in his churches taught by his faith healers. This way, the charismatics will think that they are hearing the Word of God, but they will actually hear truth mixed with error.
13:14 But the president of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, said to the crowd, “There are six days on which work should be done! So come and be healed on those days, and not on the Sabbath day.”
Jesus broke the man-made Oral Law, not the God-inspired written Law.
13:15 Then the Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from its stall, and lead it to water?
The Jewish religious leaders were hypocrites. They broke their own man-made Oral Laws when they untied their donkeys and oxen and led them to water. However, they accused Jesus of breaking the law when He healed an actual man.
13:16 Then shouldn’t this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen long years, be released from this imprisonment on the Sabbath day?”
This woman had been bound by Satan for eighteen years. Jesus chose to heal her on the Sabbath day as authentication that His message was from God. Should the man-made Oral Law taught by hypocrites keep her from being healed of satanic diseases?
13:17 When he said this all his adversaries were humiliated, but the entire crowd was rejoicing at all the wonderful things he was doing.
The religious leaders were humiliated. The crowds were rejoicing. Jesus was gaining popularity. The religious leaders were losing their congregations. Satan was losing hold of the religious instruction of the people.
On the Kingdom of God
13:18 Thus Jesus asked, “What is the kingdom of God like? To what should I compare it?
Like most rabbi, Jesus began His teaching with a question.
13:19 It is like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the wild birds nested in its branches.”
A mustard tree was the largest tree in a garden. The wild birds were unclean, reprinting false teaching. Christendom is a mustard tree, where unclean birds sit in the tree. The purpose of the unclean birds is to mix theological truth with satanic error. There will be false teachings inside the local churches.
13:20 Again he said, “To what should I compare the kingdom of God?
The rabbi asked a second question.
13:21 It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of flour until all the dough had risen.”
Yeast is a symbol of evil. Christendom will evolve into local churches which will teach a mixture of truth and error. These errors will continue in the local church until Christ returns at His second coming.
The Narrow Door
13:22 Then Jesus traveled throughout towns and villages, teaching and making his way toward Jerusalem.
The most corrupt Jewish leaders are in Jerusalem. Jesus is traveling to Jerusalem to discredit them, proclaim His last message, and then die.
13:23 Someone asked him, “Lord, will only a few be saved?” So he said to them,
Jesus was called “Lord,” meaning that Jesus was recognized as deity. This messianic Jewish believer in the crowd wanted to know what percentage of people would be saved.
13:24 “Exert every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to.
The broad road that leads to destruction is Judaism. It is the road of works salvation. No one can enter into the kingdom of God through the works salvation door. The narrow road is through Christ. Only faith alone in Christ alone by grace alone saves.
13:25 Once the head of the house gets up and shuts the door, then you will stand outside and start to knock on the door and beg him, ‘Lord, let us in!’ But he will answer you, ‘I don’t know where you come from.’
Only those who believe in grace alone by faith alone in Christ alone will enter into the kingdom of God. Anyone who attempts to get into heaven by their works will not get into heaven.
13:26 Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’
Many teach a mixture of truth and error about Christ.
13:27 But he will reply, ‘I don’t know where you come from! Go away from me, all you evildoers!’
Anyone who teaches works salvation will be shut out of the kingdom. See Galatians 1:8.
13:28 There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves thrown out.
The Jewish religious leaders taught that all Jews would enter heaven, just because of their nationality. They taught that Abraham would stand at the gate of eternity and pull all Jews inside the kingdom gates. Jesus taught differently. He taught that the only way through the door of the kingdom was by grace alone by faith alone in Christ alone. Just simply being a Jew would not get one into heaven.
13:29 Then people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and take their places at the banquet table in the kingdom of God.
Since many of the Jews would reject Jesus, then many Gentiles from the four corners of the earth would replace them and enter through the narrow gate of salvation.
13:30 But indeed, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”
The Jews were the chosen people of God. They considered that they would be the first to enter into the kingdom of God (with some Gentiles following behind). Jesus told them that the opposite would happen. Many Gentiles would come into the kingdom first. Many Gentiles would later teach some Jews on how to enter into the kingdom.
Going to Jerusalem
13:31 At that time, some Pharisees came up and said to Jesus, “Get away from here, because Herod wants to kill you.”
Jesus was traveling to Jerusalem to die. The Pharisees attempted to scare Jesus away so that He could not persuade the crowds to follow Jesus instead of Judaism.
13:32 But he said to them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Look, I am casting out demons and performing healings today and tomorrow, and on the third day I will complete my work.
Jesus was not a seeker-friendly teacher. He gave a special message to King Herod. Herod was not tricky enough to stop Jesus from teaching the people about the kingdom of God. Jesus was going to travel to Jerusalem. On the way to Jerusalem, not only will Jesus teach the people, but He will cast out demons as well. He will perform miracles to authenticate that His message was from God. Jesus will die in Jerusalem and raise Himself from the dead to prove that He is God in human flesh.
13:33 Nevertheless I must go on my way today and tomorrow and the next day, because it is impossible that a prophet should be killed outside Jerusalem.’
Christ continued on His mission and there was nothing that Herod could do to stop Him.
13:34 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those who are sent to you! How often I have longed to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would have none of it!
Jerusalem was the seat of Judaism. Instead of teaching the people about God, Judaism had killed the prophets of God. Jesus wanted to bring the Messianic kingdom to their city, but the people were not interested.
13:35 Look, your house is forsaken! And I tell you, you will not see me until you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’
This is a quotation from Psalm 118. God will have nothing to do with Jerusalem until they cry out, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.” Jesus will not return to earth to establish His Millennial Kingdom until the Jews make this call. The Jews will not make this call until the last day of the Great Tribulation. The Rapture is imminent and can happen at any time. The Second Coming in not imminent. It has three definite signs. First, Jesus will return exactly seven years after the Antichrist signs a peace treaty with Israel. Second, Jesus will return exactly three and one half years after the Antichrist steps into the Jewish temple and declares that he is God. Third, Jesus will not return until the Jews cry out “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord”.