Skip to main content

174. Pleading for the Fig Tree


Proverbs 27:18, Luke 13:6-9
Key Verse: He who tends a fig tree will eat its fruit, and he who looks after his master will be honored.
Proverbs 27:18

We have here three main characters: a master, who acquired the tree in hopes of eventually enjoying its fruit, a servant, who looks to the tree to reflect his care and attention, and lastly, the tree itself. The master has the right to expect his investment to pay off. The servant, who has obviously put much effort into the tree, would also like to see fruit. The servant's interest is not only to show his own talent in gardening, but because he wants to please his master. Both the servant and the master are dependent upon the tree to do what it was designed to do.

Their little parable is an interesting way for Jesus to finish off His exhortation to, "repent or perish."  God is the Master. He had a purpose for you before you were even born. (Jeremiah 1:5 & Psalm 139:16) He planted you on this earth to fulfill that purpose. He checks on you to see if you are on or off track and He cares very much about the outcome.

Jesus is the care taker. He loves you and tends to you. He has sacrificed for you and He longs to see you succeed in your mission. When God is disappointed, Jesus still pleads for you, "Give another chance, Father!  Let Me care even more and see what We get."

Then there is us, the tree in the vineyard. Unlike the tree, we have a will. We can choose to serve and obey or not. The fig tree may not be able to help it if it doesn't bear fruit, but we can. That is why Jesus uses the parable of this fig tree to illustrate His point, "if we don't repent, we will perish."

It is true that the Lord is patient and long suffering, usually way beyond anything that we could imagine as a human being. To be honest, there have been times when I myself have longed for God to stop being patient and deal with those who have caused me pain. Unfortunately, my prayers, of this sort, are selfish and short sighted, not taking into account the full picture of redemption. However, the truth is, there will be an end. Jesus spoke of judgment and an end in His parables about the Kingdom in Matthew 13. The history of Israel includes the exile, in which God said, "enough." We do not have forever to decide to get around to obeying Him and fulfilling His purpose for us on this earth. He is watching and He does care, and you have a decision to make. "Repent, or perish." It's as simple as that.

Hymn: "Softly and Tenderly"

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

October 27 Save the Glaze for the Bunny

Like a coating of glaze over earthenware are fervent lips of an evil heart. A malicious man disguises himself with his lips. But in his heart, he harbors deceit. Though his speech is charming, do not believe him, for seven abominations fill his heart. His malice may be concealed by deception, but his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly. If a man digs a pit, he will fall into it. If a man rolls a stone, it will roll back on him. ~Proverbs 26:23-28 For there are many rebellious people, mere talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision group. They must be silenced, because they are ruining whole households by teaching things they ought not teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain. Even one of their own prophets has said, “Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons.” This testimony is true. Therefore, rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith and will pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the commands of those who reject the truth. T...
Post a Comment
Read more

July 16 Thick Skinned Love

Whoever covers over an offence promotes love, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends. ~Proverbs 17:9 If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. ~Matthew 18:15  The end of all things is near. Therefore, be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. ~1 Peter 4:7-8  Being offended seems to be the battle cry of the day. Instead of freedom of speech, everyone has the right not to be offended. If one is offended, then one has the right to exact vengeance on the offender because, of course, the offender KNEW that he or she was being offensive and just didn’t care. Is that how you see much of society behaving today?  There seems to be all of this offending and finger pointing that just keeps growing and growing. Nothing is being resolved, just more blame that grows louder a...
Post a Comment
Read more

January 24 You’ll See, He Remembers

The wise inherit honor, but fools He holds up to shame. ~Proverbs 3:35 “Tell the righteous it will be well with them, for they will enjoy the fruit of their deeds.” ~Isaiah 3:10 “God is not unjust; He will not forget your work and the love you have shown Him as you have helped His people and continue to help them. We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.” ~Hebrews 6:10-12 “The sins of some men are obvious, reaching the place of judgment ahead of them. The sins of others trail behind them. In the same way, good deeds are obvious, and even those that are not cannot be hidden.” ~1 Timothy 5:24-25 “But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” ~Matthew 12:36-3...
Post a Comment
Read more