In my Bible the start of chapter 13 of Luke is entitled "Repent or Perish", this is really quite appropriate after working our way through 2 Kings. Judah tried all sorts of things to survive except the one thing that would have worked, turning back to their God in repentance and trusting in Him. Turning to God is the one thing that we must do in all circumstances, and when we do we can be sure that it is the right thing to do.
The incident involves discussion about some Galileans who had been killed by Pilate. Now Galileans were looked down upon by other Jews (John 1:46, 7:52). Jesus raises another example of people dying in an accident.
Notice how Jesus answers. He does not deny the fact that the Galileans or the people in the tower were sinners. He is not saying no one deserves to die, rather that we all deserve to die. We are no better than they. Our human reaction is to look down on others and take some comfort or pride in that "fact" that we are not as bad as them. Jesus is warning us strongly against this. We all need to repent.
Then Jesus tells a parable of a fig tree that is failing to bear fruit. The tree deserved to be cut down, but instead it was given a period of time to improve, receiving much care in the meantime. God gives us time to repent and turn to Him, but it is so vital that we take advantage of that grace. If we do not we will be absolutely without excuse.
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