March 07, 2010 3rd Sunday of Lent Ex. 3:1-8, 13-15; 1 Cor. 10:1-6, 10-12; Lk. 13:1-9 _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________   Readings:    http://www.usccb.org/nab/030710c.shtml    ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________       In today’s Gospel, Jesus twice calls his listeners to repent, to reform their lives. "Unless you repent, you will likewise perish." Jesus presents the word-picture of a vineyard and uses the image of a fig tree in its midst to illustrate the call to repent.   "So then," says Jesus, "unless you repent, change, turn around, bear fruit… you will likewise perish." The parable of the fig tree tells the story of God's call to repentance. Jesus wanted his listeners to turn to the God who loves and redeems His people. He wanted them to change their minds and their lives to reflect the compassion and care that God had given to them. And, he wanted them to bear fruit: the fruits of repentance, of new life in God and God's love -- the fruits of grace, joy, hope, and peace.   We need to come to our senses about some things, about our belief in and relationship with God, about our priorities in life, about some things that draw us from the love of God. God offers great love and great hope for us and for our life.   Of course, we need to take stock of our lives. We do need to examine our own personal history, make amends when necessary, and ask for God's forgiveness. To repent is to come to our senses, to change our mind, to turn in some new directions, and to enter our future with a sense of the hope, love and companionship that God offers to us in our lives.   Jesus told the parable of the fig tree to call his listeners to turn towards him and to change their minds and their hearts. The result for the fig tree and for the listeners is the same: to bear fruit. As Jesus tells the story, the hope for the changed fig tree is that it will bear fruit. He has the same hope for the human beings who would listen to his words, that they would bear fruit.   The ultimate sign of our changing of the mind, our repentance, our turning in a new direction is the action of our life. It is not words. It is not sentiment. It is not feelings. It is action, bearing fruit, doing some new things in our lives. The fulfillment of the call to change and repent is new action of faith in our living.   <<   Previous: 2nd Sunday of Lent  | Next: 4th Sunday of Lent >>   Go Back to SERMONS (Year C)