The Gospel Of MarkSample

"God demands true worship from the heart; He loves and values His Children"

Jesus appeared to be in a foul mood when He lambasted a fig tree in Mark 11:12-14 for the seemingly minor infraction of having no fruit. After all, it wasn’t even in season.

The message begins to crystallize when we consider this took place during the spring, when fig trees sport both foliage and a crop of small knobs the size of almonds, forerunners to the real figs that appear about six weeks later. When Jesus found “nothing but leaves” (Mark 11:13), He knew this particular nub-less perennial would never bear fruit and was therefore useless.

Jesus used the fruitless tree as a prophetic symbol for Israel’s hypocrisy. God’s chosen people had stopped producing the real fruit of relationship with Him through prayer and worship and were instead engaged in the ostentatious but spiritually barren practice of ritual and legalism. Jesus was making the point that our Creator will not allow unrepentant sinners masquerading as spiritual folks to flourish indefinitely.

When Peter nervously pointed out the withered shrub, Jesus stopped to reassure His disciples of their favored position as the family of God.

This passage in Mark reminds me of a parable in Luke, the parable of the friend at midnight.

Often teachers focus on the neighbor’s persistence in this parable and emphasize how we need to be similarly relentless in our prayer life. The problem with that perspective is the implication that God is a supernatural sleepyhead, reluctant to rouse Himself and answer our cries for help. Numerous descriptions of God’s compassion throughout Scripture refute that idea.

The point of the parable is contrast (“how much more,” v.13), illustrating how we don’t have to beg for God’s attention or twist His arm to get Him to act on our behalf. He hears our faintest whispers because we’re under His roof so to speak, plus we can freely ask Him for anything because He’s the kind of dad who absolutely adores His children!

Jesus wrapped almost exactly the same promise around His followers after the fig tree fizzle and shortly before facing the cross. It was the beginning of His earthly end, yet the Lord of all still took the time to calm His friends’ fears with the reminder that they could approach the throne of God with confidence because they were now considered family.

Jesus made that motley crew of often obtuse disciples feel completely known, loved, and valued.