Matthew 21:18-20 The Fig Tree Withered
“Now in the morning, as He returned to the city, He was hungry. And seeing a fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves, and said to it, “Let no fruit grow on you ever again.” Immediately the fig tree withered away.”
If we don’t know anything about fig trees, we are likely to criticize Jesus severely for punishing this poor tree. Unlike other trees, fig trees produce leaves and then fruit very soon after the fruit, so leaves and fruit appear nearly simultaneously. If a fig tree is covered with leaves, it should also have fruit. Even though this fig tree had leaves in abundance, there were no figs. The tree LOOKED fruitful, but it wasn’t.
“But,” you might react, “it wasn’t really the season for figs.” Yes, and Mark notes that in his description of this incident in Mark 11:11-12. Obviously, Jesus also knew that it wasn’t the season for figs, so why did he punish the fig tree? Did Jesus hate that tree?
Jesus did not hate the tree; however, he was trying to teach his disciples a very important lesson. Since it was not the season for figs, the tree might not have had leaves at all. But when Jesus saw the leaves, he could reasonably expect that the tree was bearing figs out of season. Unfortunately, the tree looked fruitful, but it wasn’t.
This incident took place just after Jesus had entered Jerusalem, a city that appeared to be spiritually fruitful, but was not. While the common people hailed Jesus as Messiah, the religious leaders were incensed. Within a few days, spiritual leaders claiming to be waiting and longing for the Messiah would crucify the very One for whom they claimed to be waiting. Eventually, the Romans would attack Jerusalem, destroying the temple, leaving only the Western Wall, and slaughtering most of the remaining inhabitants.
Leaves but no fruit! Anyone desiring to be a follower of Jesus must be careful to bear fruit, rather than just leaves. When someone meets you, are they impressed by the love you demonstrate, or do they feel rejected and broken by your critical attitudes? Are you helping people to get free from the sins that have bound them for years, or are you putting more burdens on them?
There’s a story told of a young homeless man who wandered into a church during a Sunday morning service. The man’s hair was long and matted, his feet were bare, and he had obviously dressed himself from cast off clothing. This poor fellow didn’t sit in the back pew, but proceeded down the center aisle, eventually sitting on the floor in front of the pews and immediately below the pulpit where the pastor was preaching.
Seeing this stranger, the elderly head usher began his way to the front of the church. Many members assumed that the head usher would quietly remove this vagabond; after all, the man was disheveled and obviously hadn’t bathed in several days, perhaps even weeks. Imagine the shock of the congregation when the head usher quietly lowered himself to the floor, sitting next to the visitor. Noticing that the visitor’s bare feet were the same size as his, the head usher quietly removed his shoes and socks and helped the man put them on.
When the service was over, the usher hugged the man, inviting him to come home with him for a meal, a bath, and some clean clothes. By the next Sunday, this young man had found work at a local convenience store and appeared in church with clean clothes, his long hair shining. But the shiniest thing about this young man was the glorious smile on his face because now he too had become a Jesus follower. When queried about his actions, the head usher simply smiled and said, “That was me decades ago, and someone helped me. Could I do any less?”
Artists have attempted to paint portraits of Jesus for centuries, portraying him as tall, blond, and muscular with a halo surrounding his head. It’s quite possible that Jesus was actually short, wiry, and swarthy. None of the Gospel writers gives any physical description of Jesus. But no matter Jesus’ physical appearance, one thing is certain: when Jesus looked at people, he saw them with the eyes of love. Once people felt that love, they weren’t concerned about physical appearances, for they knew this man cared about them in a way nobody else ever had cared.
The question for us is simple: are we really bearing fruit, or are we just pretending, making a fine show of leaves without anything substantive? We cannot bear fruit all by ourselves; we must have the Holy Spirit living in us to do so. The good news is that when we choose to follow Jesus, then we also are choosing to follow the other members of the Trinity, the Heavenly Father and the Holy Spirit and they will come and be with us for the rest of our lives.
Is bearing fruit always easy? Far from it! Many times, the last thing we want to do is to be kind or loving. Galatians 5:16-26 tells us “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.”
Because Jesus has defeated sin and death on the cross at Calvary, we can live victorious lives through the power of the Holy Spirit. Apart from that power, we will fail, just like that fig tree that looked fruitful, but wasn’t. Let’s pray.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to truly follow You so that we will always be fruitful and never disappoint those around us. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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