Bear Fruit or Wither

 

"The next morning as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus felt hungry.  He noticed a fig tree a little way off that was in full leaf, so he went over to see if he could find any figs on it.  But there were only leaves because it was too early in the season for fruit.  Then Jesus said to the tree, 'May no one ever eat your fruit again!'  And the disciples heard him say it.  The next morning as they passed by the fig tree he had cursed, the disciples noticed it was withered from the roots.  Peter remembered what Jesus had said to the tree on the previous day and exclaimed, 'Look, Teacher!  The fig tree you cursed has withered!'" Mark 11:12-14, 20-21 (NLT).

 

Why would Jesus curse a fig tree?  What's more, why would he curse a fig tree for not having figs on it when it was too early in the season for fruit?

 

Well, first, keep in mind that even though it was too early in the season for full grown figs to be on the trees, it was not too early for buds to be on the trees.  The original language of the New Testament does not literally say Jesus went to the tree to find figs, but to find "something" (Greek "Ti").  It was likely that he was looking for the early buds that came out on fig trees and that many people did in fact eat.

 

But when he found nothing, he cursed the tree and it withered and died.  Why would he do this? 

 

Well, he didn't do it simply because he was hungry and became angry at the tree.  He did it to give his disciples an object lesson.  You see Israel had bore no fruit for God just as this fig tree had bore no fruit.  Despite the fact that many had only recently shouted praise as he rode into Jerusalem on a borrowed donkey, they still rejected him as their king (See Matthew 23:37-38).   In fact, just after Jesus curses the fig tree (which represents Israel), he goes into the Temple and drives out the merchants and bankers who had turned God's house into a den of thieves.  In doing this, he showed clearly just how sinful and spiritually blind Israel had become.  They not only failed to bear any spiritual fruit, they rejected Jesus as their Savior and king - the ultimate sin.  So, like the fig tree, they were cursed.

 

God expects those who follow him to bear fruit for his kingdom.  But what kind of fruit must we bear?

 

First we must bear the fruit of Christlike character. Galatians 5:22-23 says, "When the Holy Spirit controls our lives, he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control" (NLT).  Jesus possessed all of these qualities in his character and those who follow him must surrender to God each day and allow him to develop these Christlike traits in them as well.  It takes time, and we will never be perfect in any area, but we should always be growing and making progress.  If we aren't, then something is wrong.  We should declare a state of spiritual emergency and do whatever it takes to discover why we aren't making progress.  We have become like the fig tree that produced no fruit, and are in danger of spiritually withering or walking away from God as Israel did.

 

A second kind of fruit we should bear as Christians is the fruit of saving lost souls.  Now we don't do the actual saving, but God does.  Yet we must be actively contributing to or involved in world evangelism in some way.  Paul called this "fruitful service" (Philippians 1:22).  And Jesus told his disciples that the fruit they harvested was the people they brought to eternal life (John 4:36).  He also said that the harvest was plentiful but the laborers few.  So, clearly, a second kind of fruit Christians are to bear is the fruit of working to save lost souls.  God expects this - - no, he commands it!  His son died to make it possible, and he wants us to be committed to the cause for which his son died - the salvation of lost souls.

 

Now there are a gazillion ways to be involved in evangelism: invite people to church or small group or a personal Bible study; share your personal testimony with an unbeliever; pray for the salvation of a friend or acquaintance; give your tithes and offerings to a church that is reaching lost souls; serve in your local church as part of a team that is striving to reach unbelievers; give someone a ride to church; tell someone about Jesus; support missionaries; get involved in mission trips and mission events - - on and on the list goes.  But the key is that every Christian should be involved in God's cause to save the world.  If they are not, then they are not bearing a crucial fruit that God expects them to have in their lives.  And if a Christian is not involved in the evangelism game, he or she is shriveling up and dying spiritually.

 

One day, Jesus will come back to inspect us as he did the fig tree.  Will he find fruit?  Or will he see a tree barren of life?  Will we enter the joy of heaven as fruit-bearers, or will we wither and die in his very presence?

 

Jesus said, "My true disciples produce much fruit.  This brings great glory to my Father." John 15:8 (NLT). 

 

Are you a true disciple of Jesus or a phony?