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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. So he said to the gardener, ‘See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?’ He replied, ‘Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it, If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’” (Luke 13:6-9)

“This parable means that God offers patience and opportunities for repentance, but ultimately expects the bearing of spiritual fruit as evidence of growth. The act of cutting down the fig tree signifies judgment for those who remain unproductive despite the opportunities and care provided by the Lord. A key lesson of this parable is that it illustrates God’s patience and willingness to give us time to repent and bear fruit in our lives. However, this patience has a limit, and we should not take it for granted. The vine dresser’s request for more time to tend to the fig tree represents the opportunities God gives us to turn from our unproductive ways and start producing spiritual fruit. The owner’s initial desire to cut down the barren tree serves as a warning of the eventual judgment that will come upon those who fail to live a fruitful Christian life. The expectation for the fig tree to bear fruit is akin to the expectation that Christians will show evidence of their faith through their actions and character. As a Christian, you should reflect on your spiritual condition, make the most of your time and grace given by God, and strive to live a life that bears good fruit. You can do this by praying to the Lord and asking for the Holy Spirit to guide you in bearing good spiritual fruit. The gardener’s intervention to fertilize and care for the tree suggests that, with divine help and personal effort, it is possible to change and become fruitful in our spiritual lives.” (Biblevise)

I find it fascinating that folks can call themselves Christians and yet do not follow Jesus in the way they live their lives. At St. John’s, we put politics aside and help you to build a relationship with Jesus Christ. We teach children in our Sunday school and in our nursery school that they are loved by God. We are all asked to love God and to love one another. Today, we will feed the homeless. Tomorrow, we will cloth the naked at our Thrift Shop and visit the sick and homebound folks. Sunday, we will bring food to feed the hungry. Monday, I will go to the day shelter and pray for some men in very difficult situations. Tuesday, we invite everyone to learn to read the bible in Alpha at 6:00 pm. We encourage non-believers to join us so that we might bring them living water. After that we will grow organic vegetables from seed with our children and do all that God calls us to do and be.

You are the fig tree in the parable. Please join us and bear fruit.

In Christ, 
Fr. Duncan

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O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy: Be gracious to all who have gone astray from your ways, and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of your Word, Jesus Christ your Son; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

I invite every member of St. John’s to a holy Lent through prayer, study, and worship. Our Alpha program will be on Tuesdays at 5:30 PM with Stations of the Cross. Dinner is at 6:00 PM followed by our program and a discussion. Monday to Friday at 9:00 AM, we have Morning Prayer on zoom. On Wednesdays, we have Noonday Prayer in the church. Our children and youth are preparing for Confirmation and First Communion. First Communion will be held on April 27th at 10:00 AM. Confirmation and Reception will be held on June 14th at 11:00 AM at Trinity, Northport. 

Lent is a time of preparation, when we teach our confirmands, newcomers, children, and youth to draw closer to the one we love. It is by our example of worship, study, prayer, and outreach that they will see that Jesus Christ came that we might have life and live it abundantly. Jesus Christ came that we might be transformed from sin to the beautiful children of God that we were created to be. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life” (John 3:16).

Eternal life begins today and never ends. Please use these next few weeks of Lent to draw closer to the one who loves you deeply. The most significant preacher in a congregation is not the person in the fancy vestments in the pulpit, but the people in the congregation going out into the world. Apostles have been transformed by the bread of our Lord, to do the will of God, through the power of the Holy Spirit. The fact of the matter is that priests come and go, but the power of the Holy Spirit to transform the lives at St. John’s goes on from generation to generation. God loves us so deeply that Christ, God’s Son, suffered on a cross that we might be forgiven of our sins. 

We have the power to transform the nightmare that the world can be into the blessing of the Kingdom of God. We are transformed through the bread of life and we become the transforming power in the world. The world seems more chaotic than usual this spring and you might feel anxious or even fearful of what is ahead. Have faith that you can come to the altar at St. John’s and receive the bread of life that has the power to transform us all to righteousness. Please join us at St. John’s this Lent. Join us on Sundays at 8:00 AM or 10:00 AM and stay for coffee and breakfast after the service.

In Christ,
Fr. Duncan

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“Lead us not into temptation” is the most common way people pray that line in the Lord’s Prayer. Perhaps you’ve noticed that it sounds like we are asking God not to lead us into temptation which makes us wonder why God would lead us into temptation. For doesn’t the Epistle to James say, “For God cannot be tempted by evil and does not himself tempt anyone” (1:13). So we know that God wants what is best for us and our temptations are sure bets down a path of self-destruction. So this line, rather, is a plea for the saving work of God in our lives.

Temptation is all around us. Most of us, thankfully, have some level of self-control. But perhaps we know the pains of addiction in which the temptation to indulge in whatever that addiction is rears its ugly head. But non-addicts too experience temptation. Road rage, gossip, anger, the list can go on and on in which our everyday lives are confronted with experiences that tempt us to be less than who God is calling us to be. And sometimes, we fall.

But listen to the words of the Psalmist this weekend,

“Because you have made the Lord your refuge,

and the Most High your habitation,

There shall no evil happen to you,

neither shall any plague come near your dwelling.”

Fleeing temptation going to our refuge, our God, is the sure-fire way in which to combat temptation and sin. When we focus our eyes and our minds on Christ Jesus, then can we find the deliverance from evil that we pray next in the Lord’s Prayer.

I pray that this Lent, us here at St. John’s can learn how to renew our minds, seek the shelter of the Most High, and gaze our eyes upon the one who was tempted in every way like we are (Hebrews 4:15), Jesus Christ, and through these things rest in the hope and joy of the One who loves and saves us.

Yours in Christ,
Fr. Zach