“And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs….And he said to it, ‘may no one ever eat fruit from you again.’ And the disciples heard it.” Mark 11:13,15
April 3, 2023
Jesus never had a bad day when it came to disappointments and His disposition. When we read the account of Jesus pronouncing a curse on a fig tree because it didn’t provide a breakfast of figs, we need to understand the lesson it taught. On Sunday, Jesus made His royal entrance into Jerusalem, but the crowds were unaware of what was happening. Within a week they would be calling for His crucifixion. On Monday Jesus was on His way to the temple to clear out the abusers of its holy significance. The cursed tree was a sign of Israel’s dysfunctional worship. As the fig tree failed to provide what it had promised, so had the nation of Israel failed to be the witness nation it was designed to be. Israel’s spiritual barrenness was a disgrace. She would be set aside by divine discipline and God would make the church a fruitful witness to the glory of Jesus Christ as Israel’s Messiah and the coming kingdom. Israel’s rejection of her Messiah was the ultimate act of her fruitlessness. Judgment on the figless fig tree became a call to a life of unflinching trust in God to accomplish mighty things (Matt. 21:21) as the gospel drives us to every nook and cranny of a Christless world.
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Think and pray about this on this Monday of the coming Good Friday and Easter Sunday.