The Tree That Bore No Fruit

"The man who concentrates on the root system of his life is going to bear fruit upward, but if he concentrates on the eye-appealing foliage he may end up a rootless failure."

Join me as we continue our walk with Jesus and His disciples through the last week of His earthly life. It's amazing that Jesus was able to pack so much into a seven day period of time. He accomplished a lot during those seven days, and he didn't waste a single minute.

Sometimes though, we need to go back a few steps, so that we can move forward. Even though today is Tuesday, I thought we could  look at an event that occurred early on Monday morning of our Lord’s Passion Week. Doing this will help us see how this applies to today's message. This single event was designed to teach us about the judgment of God that was coming on the nation of Israel. They had rejected their Messiah and they were about to pay a terrible price.

While (Mark 11:12-14; 20-21) speaks primarily to Israel, there's also a word of warning here for all people. The Lord Jesus wants us all to know that He is examining our lives. He wants us to know that He is looking for genuine spiritual fruit in our lives. When He finds that fruit, we are blessed. When He doesn't find it, there's a high price to pay.

We'll begin by talking about the Lord's desire (Mark 11:12). As Jesus and His men travel from Bethany back into Jerusalem, the Lord Jesus becomes hungry, plain and simple. When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on the back of that little donkey, the Bible said, of that donkey, “the Lord hath need of him,” (Mark 11:3). It simply amazes me that the Lord could ever need anything. After all, He is God. He is the Creator. He is the Lord of Glory.

Yet, when Jesus was born into this world, He put aside His heavenly glory for a little while to live in this world as a man. The One Who made all things became dependent upon the things He had made. The paradox of the earthly life of the Lord Jesus Christ is summed up in the words of Paul in (2 Corinthians 8:9), “For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.”

• The Creator became a helpless infant, dependent upon His mother for everything.
• He owned all things, yet He possessed nothing. He created the stars, yet He had nowhere to lay His Own head (Matthew 8:20).
• He fashioned everything there is out of nothing, yet He had to borrow a boat from which to preach His Gospel.
• He created every drop of water that exists in the world, yet He cried “I thirst” as He was dying on the cross (John 19:28).
• He created every tree, but He died on a borrowed cross.
• He created every rock, but He had to borrow a tomb in which to be buried.
• He used the clouds as His chariots (Psalm 104:3), yet He had to borrow a donkey on which to ride.

All of these things are clear evidence of His humanity. When Jesus was born into this world, He remained fully God, but He became fully man (Philippians 2:5-8). This is seen in many areas of His life. Consider the following:

•  Jesus experienced hunger (Mark 11:12) (cf. Psalm 50:12)
• Jesus experienced thirst  (John 19:28) (cf. Isaiah 40:12)
• Jesus experienced weariness (John 4:6; Mark 4:38)(cf. Psa. 121:4)
• Jesus experienced pain (Matthew 27:35; Isaiah 52:14; Isaiah 53:4-6) (cf. Psalm 2:4)
• Jesus experienced rejection (John 1:11; John 7:3-5) (cf. Genesis 1:26)
• Jesus experienced loneliness (Mathew 26:56) (cf. Proverbs 15:3; Hebrews 13:5)
• Jesus experienced poverty (Matthew 8:20) (cf. Psalm 50:10-12)

Certainly, there's more that could be said about His human experience. But, we need to remember that He endured all He did so that He might identify with us. He did everything He did so that He might go to the cross and die for His people (2 Corinthians 5:21). He did all that He did so that He could experience life from our perspective and extend compassion and help to His people (Hebrews 4:15-16).

In Mark 11:12-13, we learn about the Lord's disappointment. The text tells that Jesus is hungry. As He walks Jesus sees a “fig tree afar off”. The tree is in full leaf, so Jesus goes to it hoping to find some figs to eat. When He comes to the tree, He finds nothing but leaves. Then the text tells us that “the time of figs was not yet”. In order to understand what is happening here, need to examine these verses a little closer.

Fig trees were and are very common in Israel. The common fig, which is mentioned over 60 times in the Bible, is one of the most important trees in the Word of God. Since the fruit grows as the tree produces its leaves, it was reasonable for Jesus to assume that there would be fruit on the tree when He came to it. 

However, when He searched the tree, He found it was all leaves; there was no fruit to be found. This fig tree was deceptive because its leaves promised something the tree could not deliver. The leaves promised fruit, but there was none. There was nothing wrong with the soil. There was nothing wrong with the sap. There was simply no fruit.

This tree had been given everything it needed to foolish. It sat in a good location. It grew in good soil. It had enjoyed the sunshine and the rain. Still, this tree wasn't fruitful. A fig tree in full leaf in April should have been covered with early fruit. Since this tree had no early fruit, it was a sign that there would be no sweet fruit when the time for harvest arrived. This tree had nothing to offer and it was therefore useless!

When we consider this text, we must take it in its context. In verse Mark 11:1-11, Jesus had just presented Himself to Israel as her King. He had publicly declared His identity and Israel would ultimately reject their King. Israel was just like this fruitless fig tree. 

They had all the signs of spiritual life, but they had no fruit. They were keeping the letter of the Law. They were carrying out the Temple ceremonies. They were observing the ancient feasts and the sacrifices. They were religious in every detail, but they had no spiritual fruit.

Israel had been given every advantage that could be afforded to a people. They had received the personal attention and redemption of Almighty God. They had been planted in a good land. They had the Word of God, the prophets of God and the Temple of God. They had everything they needed for a spiritual bumper crop, but they remained fruitless.

Israel had no fruit now and there would be none in the future. They were useless spiritually and fit for nothing but the fire of judgment. As you might imagine, there is a message here for us. When the Lord examines our lives, and He does, what does He see? Does He see us bearing fruit to the glory of God? Or, does He see a tree that has gone to leaf? 

Let's face the facts. We've been given every spiritual advantage God has to offer. We have His Word, His church and His Spirit. He has blessed us in abundance. There is no excuse for us being a fruitless branch! Not everyone bears the same amount of fruit (John 15:1-8). But, everyone who is saved bears some fruit! In truth, every life, saved or lost, bears some sort of fruit, but only those in a right relationship with God will bear His fruit (Matthew 7:18).

Mark 11:14 brings us to the Lord's declaration. Because the fig tree was barren when it promised fruit, the Lord Jesus pronounced a curse upon it. He declared that it was to be fruitless forever. Some people read this and reach the conclusion that Jesus operated in rash anger here. The phrase at the end of verse 13, “for the time of figs was not yet come,” leads them to conclude that Jesus was expecting something from the tree that the tree could not do. 

We have already discussed that matter. If there were leaves on the tree, there should have been fruit as well. Jesus cursed the tree for its hypocrisy. The lack of fruit was not the reason for the curse. It was the pretense of the leaves! The tree was making promises it couldn't deliver!

The point is this. The Lord is looking for fruit. If He finds it in our lives, He will bless us and cause us to be even more fruitful. If He does not find fruit in our lives, He will take whatever steps are necessary to make us fruitful. The question is, what will it take to bring you to a place of fruitfulness? What will the Lord have to do in your life to cause His fruit to appear? These are great questions and worth considering today!

Lastly, Mark 11:20-21 tells us about the Lord's demonstration, and as I mentioned at the beginning, brings us up to Tuesday during the Passion Week. The disciples heard Jesus when He cursed the fig tree (Mark 11:14). The next day, as they passed by, they saw that the fig tree was “dried up from the roots”. 

Peter called the Lord’s attention to the miracle. These men could see that the Lord had worked a miracle and that this miracle had a special lesson to teach. This miracle was a clear demonstration of the Lord’s sovereignty over all things, including nature.

Usually, when a tree “dries up”, it does so from the top down. The root system will be the last part of the tree to die. Not this tree! Jesus cursed it and it died from the roots up. It is a picture of total destruction! Again, this tree is a picture of Israel. They had been judged by the Lord for their hypocrisy and their rejection of the Messiah. They were destroyed from the root up.

In closing, The disciples saw what happened and took it to heart. At least, some of them did! One of them, Judas Iscariot, was like Israel. He was all leaf and no fruit. He preached, healed and cast out devils, but it was all leaf! There was no reality in what he did, it was all hypocrisy! He did not know the Lord. As for you, make sure that you know Him!

Prayer: Dear Lord, take my hands and lead me through my journey until the end. I know that I will not be alone. You will be my companion and stay with me in my hour of need. Amen

Have a blessed day!

Kim