Mark 11:11-23 - Refreshing Fruit!

And Jesus went into Jerusalem and into the temple. So when He had looked around at all things, as the hour was already late, He went out to Bethany with the twelve.

 

Now the next day, when they had come out from Bethany, He was hungry.

 

And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it. When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.

  

In response Jesus said to it, “Let no one eat fruit from you ever again.” And His disciples heard it.

  

So they came to Jerusalem. Then Jesus went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.

 

And He would not allow anyone to carry wares through the temple.

 

Then He taught, saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it a ‘den of thieves.’ “

 

And the scribes and chief priests heard it and sought how they might destroy Him; for they feared Him, because all the people were astonished at His teaching.

  

When evening had come, He went out of the city.

 

Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots.

 

And Peter, remembering, said to Him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree which You cursed has withered away.”

 

So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God.

 

For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says

Refreshing Fruit!
photo by Flickr user Diamond Geyser, used under the creative commons license.
check out more photos at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/diamondgeyser/

On his way to Jerusalem, to worship the Father in His temple, Jesus noticed a fig tree. He had the reasonable expectation that this tree would bear fruit but it did not. Jesus pronounced: "This tree will never bear fruit again." Right after that, He went into Jerusalem and saw a spiritual death, much like the death He saw on the fig tree. The people of God were not bearing fruit. Instead, they were turning the spiritual into a money-making scheme.  This upset Jesus so much that He drove them out. Other Gospel accounts mention whips. Jesus was serious about this and He was mad!

Jesus has the right to expect fruit from mankind. But I really cannot concern myself with what the rest of the world does. I can only be responsible for what I can do. What are the things in my life that bear fruit? How do I treat those I live with? Like image bearers of God? Am I engaged in the proper Worship of God? Do I make time for Him?  The Didache, an ancient early 2nd century document, instructs Christians to pray  the Lord's Prayer at least 3 times a day. Do I even do that?

Jesus would have been refreshed, had He eaten a fig from that fruitless tree.  May Jesus be refreshed by the fruit in my life.  Amen.