As you read the Bible (which I hope that you do), do some of the statements by Jesus seem a little harsh? He pronounces woes on the Pharisees, for instance, and was pretty frank about certain sins.
The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. Then he said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard him say it.
Mark 11:12-14 NIV
Now, this might seem a little harsh on Jesus’ part, since one might not expect any figs on the tree anyway, being out of season. However, Jesus doesn’t do things for no reason. If we peek ahead to verses 19-20, we find that the fig tree was withered by the time Jesus and the disciples headed back to the city the next morning, so this wasn’t some sort of metaphorical curse (although I think that the fig tree itself is a symbol in the upcoming lesson).
In verses 22-25, Jesus uses this as an opportunity to teach about faith, including an example (which you may have heard; but if not, just read this chapter for yourself) about telling a mountain to throw itself into the sea. And, this may be part of the reason that the fig tree was cursed: sometimes – even back to the Fall, when the ground was cursed (see Genesis 3:17-19) – the natural world experiences bad things so that we can learn from it.
However, I wonder if there might be another reason that a fig tree that wasn’t bearing fruit was cursed:
- If the legalistic messages of hypocritical Pharisees (despite their movement having started out with a well-meaning goal) weren’t bearing true fruit for the Kingdom of God, perhaps it was time for their sect to fade away.
- If the selfish commercial desires of the merchants in the temple courts were interfering with the ability of God’s people to worship Him, it was time for those wrong attitudes to be expelled from the temple.
- And, as suggested by The Lookout, perhaps the people of Israel were making a good show of things (like the leaves on the tree), but weren’t bearing fruit.
Let’s look at the next few verses in the next article, and see if these hypotheses match the evidence.
In the meantime, though, let us consider this illustration for our own lives. Are we putting on a good “show”, but not bearing fruit for the Kingdom of God? (Want to know about good kinds of spiritual fruit? If so, read Galatians 5:22-26.) Or, are we yielding the results that a life of following Jesus is expected to?
In the same way, let us also consider whether God is putting examples around us to show what happens to unproductive parts of His creation. Let us be part of the fruitful part of what He has made!
From Sunday School lesson prepared for April 2, 2023
References:
- The Lookout, April 2, 2023, © 2022 Christian Standard Media.
- Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
- Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Copyright by The Lockman Foundation.
- The College Press NIV Commentary – Mark, by Allen Black. © 1995 College Press Publishing Co.
Those Who Sin Differently 