People came to Jesus with concerned over the deaths of some Galileans whom Pilate had killed. Their questions came from a familiar Old Testament-related fear that suffering was the result of sin. Remember in the Book of Job that his friends accused him of being a sinner because of his suffering. God rebuked them for that belief.
Jesus said to them in reply,
“Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were greater sinners than all other Galileans? By no means!
But I tell you, if you do not repent,
you will all perish as they did!
Or those eighteen people who were killed
when the tower at Siloam fell on them—
do you think they were more guilty
than everyone else who lived in Jerusalem?
By no means!
But I tell you, if you do not repent,
you will all perish as they did!”
The greater lesson here is more like the message of John the Baptist, preaching repentance and preparation for God’s judgment of us. John,
… went throughout [the] whole region of the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins,
saying,
‘Prepare the way of the Lord,
make straight his paths.
The people shared with Jesus that they were concerned with the abomination of the Galileans’ death at the hands of Pilate. But Jesus was telling them, “you don’t know when you will die. Be prepared. Get right with God before you die.”
… if you do not repent,
you will all perish as they did!
During Lent we remember how short and unpredictable our life is. We could die before we are prepared. Don’t wait! Prepare now! Live prepared! Jesus is telling us not to put off getting our life in order, now! Get right with God – now! Or we could die unexpectedly like the Galileans, unprepared.
During Lent our scriptures invite us to do three things in preparation: Prayer, fasting and alms. Prayer includes repentance and confession. Repent. And, come to confession.
Repentance should be prayerful, planned and prepared. This was Jesus’ point. Our almsgiving should be planned, not a reaction on the spur of the moment. Actually, tithing is a powerful spiritual tool. Tithing requires self-examination, prayer and anticipation. Tithing without prayer is useless. Jesus tells us not to be like those unfortunate ones who died violently and unexpectedly, unprepared.
Everything that we have has been given to us, by God. Perhaps we worked hard and sacrifice for our income, but we must always prepare to share our treasure with others. God doesn’t ask us to give everything back to him.
In biblical terms tithing suggests planning to donate 10% of our income. Would you consider yourself, or anyone, as “generous” if you gave gifts to your friends or to yourself, but didn’t fulfill your obligations to your own family or those in need? In biblical terms, “generosity” doesn’t even begin for us until we have met our obligations and given 10%. Anything less cannot be considered “generous”.
Another way to think about tithing involves the concept of “first fruits”. In the bible we read about giving to God the first of the harvest, at the beginning of the harvest, not from what is left over. Too many Christians practice donating from what is left over, or from the change in their pockets; not a planned gift from the beginning.
Tithing could involve making certain we give, for example, the first hour of each week’s salary. If you make on Monday, $10 or $20 an hour, then, at a minimum you would give $10 or $20 in the collection plate. If you are tithing and working, say, 40 hours per week, then your full tithe on Sunday should be equivalent to 4 hours wages per week. Make plans! Prepare!
This week we will challenge the entire parish to make your annual pledge to the parish. We have spoken about this in previous weeks, being prepared to assure the parish, “You can count on me!” We have been calling all parishioners to think about all the ways we can and should support our parish, with our talent, time and treasure. We invite all of you to consider, can the parish count on you? We hope each of you will respond, “Yes. You can count on me!” This commitment makes our parish stronger. At the same time, each of us is challenged to keep our promises. This is one of the ways we prepare ourselves to meet our Lord for all eternity.
Jesus tells us to get right with God before you die.
… if you do not repent,
you will all perish as they did!
Be prepared!