Posted on Wednesday, February 08, 2012 - 12:57 pm:

Scripture: Luke 13:6-9

6 And He told this parable: "A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. 7 And he said to the vinedresser, `Lo, these three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. Cut it down; why should it use up the ground?' 8 And he answered him, `Let it alone, sir, this year also, till I dig about it and put on manure. 9 And if it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.'

Meditation: What can barren fig trees tell us about the kingdom of G-d? Fig trees were a common and important source of food for the Jews.  Bad figs or a decaying fig tree was linked with evil deeds and spiritual decay.  The unfruitful fig tree symbolized the outcome of Israel's unresponsiveness to the word of G-d.  The prophets depicted the languishing fig tree as signifying the desolation and calamity of Israel due to her unfaithfulness to G-d (see Joel 1: 7,12; Habakuk 3:17; and Jeremiah 8:13).  Jeremiah said that evil people are like rotten figs (Jeremiah 24:2-8).    This parable of J-sus depicts the patience of G-d, but it also contains a warning that we should not presume upon it.  G-d gives us time to get right with him, but that time is now.  We must not assume that there is no hurry. A sudden and unexpected death leaves one no time to prepare to settle one's accounts when he or she must stand before the L-rd on the day of judgment. J-sus warns us that we must be ready at all times. Tolerating sinful habits and excusing unrepentant sin will result in bad fruit and eventual destruction. The L-rd in his mercy gives us both grace and time to turn away from sin and from worldliness, but that time is right now. If we delay, even for a day, we may discover that grace has passed us by and our time is up. Do you hunger for the L-rd's righteousness and holiness?

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary
Re: Mark 11:12-18 Christ looked to find some fruit, for the time of gathering figs, though it was near, was not yet come; but he found none. He made this fig-tree an example, not to the trees, but to the men of that generation. It was a figure of the doom upon the Jewish church, to which he came seeking fruit, but found none. Christ went to the temple, and began to reform the abuses in its courts, to show that when the Redeemer came to Zion, it was to turn away ungodliness from Jacob. The scribes and the chief priests sought, not how they might make their peace with him, but how they might destroy him. A desperate attempt, which they could not but fear was fighting against God.