I was reading Luke and a parable I've read over before, but never really sank in. Yesterday, it just kind of hit me as my brain tied it to another scripture from Mark. Let me preface this with "I may not have any idea what I'm talking about." Still, sometimes stepping out and laying it out for others to read is a good way to process the idea and to think through the initial light bulb.
The parable I read yesterday is in Luke 13:6-9.
"A man had a fig tree which had been planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and did not find any.
"And he said to the vineyard-keeper, 'Behold, for three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree without finding any. Cut it down! Why does it even use up the ground?'
"And he answered and said to him, 'Let it alone, sir, for this year too, until I dig around it and put in fertilizer; and if it bears fruit next year, fine; but if not, cut it down.'"
The first thing that struck me was that this hit me out of the blue. I've read through Luke before a few times...seems like I would have remembered this one, but I didn't! Wow! Then I thought about the story, and whether I'm completely on target or not, I pictured Jesus talking with God and one or the other said, "Look at those poor excuses for creation just using up that beautiful earth we made, and they're not even producing any fruit! Let me just wipe them out and let's try with another planting!"
To me, this inserted conversation reminds me of the flood, and sparing Noah to re-seed the human existence. But even with new trees, the Jewish nation was not producing the fruit God desired. I like to refer to the Jews of that time and Israel to ignore the fact that my branches could go for some better fruit production too. Are any of you similar to me in that?
Along with this image of a conversation with the Trinity, in which I left out the Holy Spirit--my fig production is really lacking--thankfully, the Holy Spirit didn't leave me out! He led me to the recent parable I read in Mark that I've always found interesting and somewhat perplexing.
To sum up Mark 11:13-14 and 20-24, Jesus found a fig tree without any figs, cursed it for not having any fruit, even though it wasn't in season, and then Peter noticed the next morning the tree all withered from the roots up.
Now of itself, this is a perplexing verse. Jesus does not seem to be very green, right? But something clicked in my head making the connection between the two Gospels. Was Jesus giving the disciples a vivid reality shot of what was about to happen? When he withered the fig tree, he had just finished with the triumphal entry into Jerusalem, the tongue-lashing of the moneychangers and chief priests in the temple and was preparing for the crucifixion and resurrection to come later that weekend.
He told the disciples of the parable of the fig tree getting a little reprieve until after some fertilizer and another year to produce fruit. Could He have been indicating with this unfortunate fig tree that He was done fertilizing. His death was to come and with His coming resurrection, we're done with figs.
Perhaps our lives have been fertilized by the Spirit to produce His fruit. When in our final "year" to produce the fruit of the Spirit. If we dig deep with our roots to drink in the Spirit and allow Him to permeate our branches, we will produce fruit...love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Don't reach with your branches as if it's by your own power to earn life; rather, reach with your roots, your heart for Him to live in and through you! Don't allow your roots to wither...But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! To Him be glory, both now and forever! Amen.
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