Bearing What You Boast
Notes
Transcript
We all present ourselves a certain way. There are even different versions of our presentation depending upon our audience. See, there’s a part of me the Dream Center gets to see, that not everyone who attends church on Sunday morning gets to see. But then, there’s a part of me TR gets to see, that the DC guys will never see. He is my accountability partner. My brother. We get even deeper when we take it to the home. My wife sees a side of me none of you will ever see. There’s something about the intimacy of marriage that allows the best, and at times the worst of us to be seen.
But GOD, He sees every part of us. He knows us, our deepest secrets, our darkest thoughts, our best abilities, our strengths, our weaknesses. God knows. Most of us here tonight, if not all of us, would boast the title of Christian. We would make a profession of faith. But how many bear the fruit, of what we boast?
In the streets, most of us boasted about the lifestyle we lived. We ate the fruit of our ways. But you know, it’s sort of like a fisherman, or a golfer.. There’s always a bit of an exaggeration when we boast. How much money we had, how much dope we had access to. The list goes on and on. If we are not careful, our walk with Christ can be the same. A boast that really bears no fruit.
18 In the morning, as he was returning to the city, he became hungry.
19 And seeing a fig tree by the wayside, he went to it and found nothing on it but only leaves. And he said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you again!” And the fig tree withered at once.
20 When the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, “How did the fig tree wither at once?”
21 And Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen.
22 And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”
First let’s give some background context. So in verse 18 it says that Jesus was returning to the city. Why was He returning and where did He come from? John 12:1 lets us know that Jesus was was in Bethany 6 days before the Passover, and the next day, which we recognize as Palm Sunday, Jesus rode in to the city, lowly on the foal of a donkey, fulfilling old testament prophecy and claiming publicly to be the Messiah. So Jesus and His disciples are in Jerusalem for the passover, but staying in the city over night was not only dangerous for Jesus, but the lodging would be expensive. Verse 17 of this chapter tells us they went to lodge in Bethany for the night, only about a two mile journey from Jerusalem.
So the next morning, after staying the night in Bethany, Jesus and His disciples are heading back to Jerusalem, and that’s where we pick up in verse 18.
18 In the morning, as he was returning to the city, he became hungry.
19 And seeing a fig tree by the wayside, he went to it and found nothing on it but only leaves. And he said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you again!” And the fig tree withered at once.
Why would Jesus curse an inanimate object? Why would Jesus take the time to curse a tree? This is the only time recorded in scripture where Jesus used His Divine Power for destruction. Now when He returns He will bring judgement and destruction for the wicked. But during His earthly life, notice all other uses of power were blessings, healing, miracles. This to me is a huge deal. It is a sign with big bold letters screaming PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT YOU’RE READING!! There is a reason this is here. To get a better understanding of why Jesus would curse the fig tree, there are two things we need to look at. First, some botany of sorts. And then, something Jesus did as soon as He entered Jerusalem immediately following the triumphal entry.
First we need to know there are several varieties of Palestinian figs. Two different crops are gathered; the first is ripe about June and grows from the previous year. While the second is ripe in about August and is produced by new spring shoots. By December all figs have shed their leaves in the mountain regions and new leaf buds appear only in March; when tiny figs will also appear in the leaf axils. These figs grow to about the size of a small cherry. This “winter fruit” is known to the Arabs as “Taksh”. In April and May the fig leaves develop and by June they reach maturity. Frequently, ripe winter figs can be found HIDDEN BY LEAVES while summer figs are growing in August and September.
Christ cursing the figtree happened during Passover (So about April) so now this fig tree situation makes a little more sense. If I’ve lost you with all this fig talk, this is where you need to pay attention again..
When young leaves appear in spring, every fertile fig will have some Taksh on it. But if a tree with leaves has no fruit, then it will be BARREN FOR THE ENTIRE SEASON! Why is this significant? Let me tie this is with what Jesus did immediately upon entering Jerusalem..
12 And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons.
13 He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers.”
14 And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed them.
15 But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying out in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were indignant,
16 and they said to him, “Do you hear what these are saying?” And Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read, “ ‘Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise’?”
17 And leaving them, he went out of the city to Bethany and lodged there.
Jesus entered this beautiful temple. The place where in the presence of God was to dwell. The temple was so important to the Jewish faith. It was where they were to pray to The Lord. It was where God’s presence dwelled, and sacrifices were to be made for the sins of the people. Later in Matthew, we see the disciples on the mount of Olives just in awe over the beauty of the temple. But Jesus sees more than just the outside of a thing.
He walked in and saw a market place. Buying and selling overpriced animals for sacrifices. See the Dove was reserved as a sacrifice for the poor who could not afford to bring a lamb, or any other animal. And they were being forced to pay unfair prices. But notice Jesus was not just driving out the seller of animals, but the buyers as well.
He saw money changers tables. See, the only currency allowed in the temple was the Shekel. And so all other currency (there was many, such as Leptas, and Denarius) had to be exchanged at the money changers tables so that the people could pay the temple tax and provide for their sacrifices. These money changers were charging massive interest on the currency exchange. Taking off the top and stuffing their pockets.
Do you see it? A beautiful temple on the outside. Signifying the presence, the worship, and sacrifices to the One True God, and on the inside, corruption. People treating the worship of God as an opportunity to gratify their fleshly, greedy and sinful desires.
We see immediately following this cleansing of the temple, Jesus going back and forth with the Pharisees and religious leaders. Jesus was pointing out the corruption. They had the appearance of religion, but inside were full of greed, wickedness, selfishness.
Therein lies our first application.
Are We Presenting Outwardly, Who We Truly Are Inwardly?
It’s easy to act spiritual when the lights are low, and the worship music’s on, and the atmosphere is conducive to holiness. It’s easy to show adoration for God here; but what about when you’re alone? See, if you’re here and you’re not saved, it’s easy for you to present outwardly who you are inwardly. It’s written all over your face. See, when i was doing bad, there was no question of what i was into. When you’re unregenerate, when you’re not born again, it’s easy to see. You have no problem being who you genuinely are.
But for those who profess Christ; there’s a whole new challenge. You now have two natures colliding. You have the person you used to be, and the person Christ wants you walk in, and these two are in all out war.
16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.
17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.
For some here today the application lies heavily within these two verses. Perhaps you profess Christ, perhaps you truly have salvation, but you at times make a conscious decision to give in to the flesh, as we all do. But perhaps its becoming more of a frequent problem, perhaps you see the downward spiral awaiting you on the other side. I’m telling you brother or sister in Christ, RUN! We all fall short, but we need to understand that knowing God’s will, knowing God’s stance on a certain behavior, and choosing to indulge anyways; it is IDOLATRY in its highest form. It is saying no God; I know the truth, I know how you feel about these things, but MY desires are more important than Yours. What you’re doing is worshipping the false god of self.
If you walk in the Spirit, you will not gratify your flesh. Do you know what that means? There is power, there is ABILITY to walk away from a sinful lifestyle. We’re not talking perfection, we’re talking about making a willful decision to life a lifestyle that glorifies Christ. We may not be perfect, but our lifestyle as a whole is one that exalts Him and not us.
But, I conclude that We must see that this cleansing of the temple as directly related to the cursing of the fig tree.
As we said, the temple from the outside was this beautiful place that represented God and His covenant with His people. But inside the worship was amiss. Jesus leaves the temple, spends the night in Bethany and after awaking, starts His journey back towards Jerusalem, when He sees this fig tree. It’s bearing spring leaves. It boasts of ripe winter figs; edible, delicate in flavor. But upon further inspection; Jesus finds NO FRUIT. He cursed the fig tree for its pretentiousness. For its perversion. At first glance, before further study, it may have seemed offhanded that Jesus would curse a fig tree. But when we see the parabolic nature of this act, we understand Jesus is teaching the disciples a lesson, one that we must learn too. Jesus is showing us that the religion of the day was no religion at all. Jesus anger was about Religion without substance. Which brings us to our next application.
Does Your Religion Have Substance?
See, just as the fig tree which looked good from a distance, but upon closer examination had no fruit, so did the Temple look beautiful at first glance, but it’s sacrifices and other religious activities were hollow, empty, because it wasn’t done in sincerity of worship.
Is everything we do out of sincerity of worship? Or are there selfish motives involved? Do we get into our word and pray only when we need something, or are fearful or worried, or do we do this daily out of true seeking of intimacy? Do you read and pray at all? Or is social media more important? Do you read and pray everyday, yet find it as just a check off of the to do list? We must bear the fruit of what we boast. We must come to God in sincere worship. Out of reverence, awe and fear. Out of love.
See, in the same way that the spring leaves on the fig tree boasted of a winter fruit that it did not have; so the pharisees and religious leaders of Jesus’ day boasted of something they did not have the substance of. See, the Jewish nation stood apart from all other nations, it was the nation that God had lavished all of His love upon, by choosing them out of all of the people on earth. This should have produced great righteousness and fruit among the Jewish people. But instead what do we see? A people boasting to be children of Abraham, the special heritage of God, gifted with the highest privileges, the sole possessors of the knowledge of God, the Israelites professed to have what no other people had, yet in reality were empty and bare. There was plenty of outward religious showings; observances of ceremonial cleansings and such, but no real devotion, no real righteousness, no heart worship, no good works.
Other people were equally fruitless, but they did not claim to be holy. Other people were sinners, but offered no cloak to cover their sinfulness. The Jewish nation was equally sinful; yet they were hypocrites and boasted of the good they had not.
Look at what Jesus says here in John
39 Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.”
40 Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, “Are we also blind?”
41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.
The only things worse than a sinner who has not repented and received forgiveness, is a person who claims to see, claims to have had a spiritual awakening and had the scales removed from their eyes, and yet does not practice what they preach. They are blind to their own wickedness. And this blindness causes stumbling for others as well.
See, the Jews, while boasting to have what no other nation had as far as the things of God, they had this temple, where they would worship God. But they set up their money changer tables in the court of the gentiles. The court of the gentiles was the most outer court, the only place at the temple where foreigners and gentiles may come. And the Jewish people had it filled with corruption, clogging up the outer courts to the point where gentiles probably had no room to worship. These foreigners came to the temple, to see the beauty of the God of Israel, and all they saw was the wickedness and corruption of the people of God.
Here comes our next application.
Do People Want What You Claim To Have?
When people see you, OUTSIDE OF CHURCH, do they see something different? Do they know you’re not of this world? Do they see fruits of the spirit? Or when they see you, do they see what the Gentiles saw at the temples outer court? Do people look at us and think, “If this is Christianity, i don’t want it. If this is what Jesus looks like, i cannot believe.”
When our kids see us at home alone, do they see a reflection of Jesus? Or do they see manmade religion? Worship on the outside, and wickedness inwardly? A form of godliness at church and around others, but bitterness, resentment, anger and frustration when we’re out of the spotlight? - I’m preaching to myself here too.
5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.
Paul is warning Timothy of people who would profess Christianity with their mouths, but act and live as unbelievers. Having this “form of godliness” means they have this outward display of religion, but there is no power behind their religion, evidenced by their unchanged lives. They present themselves as godly, but it’s all for show. See, true religion, true relationship with God, comes with POWER. Power over sin, grace for forgiveness and grace to change.
These people have a form, or the appearance of this true religion, but they deny the power true godliness offers, because they cling to playing church instead of actually being the church. They present a form of piety, but prefer to live in darkness, rather than repent and be truly changed.
See the fig tree has great symbolic value for the modern church today.
Leaves are a profession of faith, The figs are evidence of your conversion.
If there are leaves, there should be figs. If there is faith, there will be fruit.
When leaves are found with no fruit, it is that person boasting something they do not bear. Here comes that picture of Matthew 7, where the people say Lord, Lord, and Jesus says depart from Me, I NEVER KNEW YOU! Not i do not know you, i never knew you. It was never real. It was never intimate. It was never genuine. You were never truly saved. This parable proves my point.
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, ‘Look, for three years now 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, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure.
9 Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’ ”
What is this parable saying? Is it saying it’s possible to truly be a Christian, to cease bearing fruit as a Christian and then be cut down? Let’s look at this in context. See, Jesus is preaching about the need for REPENTANCE as He introduces the teaching in this parable.
1 There were some present at that very time who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.
2 And he answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way?
3 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.
4 Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem?
5 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”
Jesus is talking about the need for repentance. The need to turn to God. Fig trees in the old testament were often used symbolically for the Nation of Israel. Not always, but often. Jesus was showing them that just being a Jew, just claiming to be God’s people wasn’t enough. You must bear fruit if you’re really a child of God. Notice that the vinedresser in the parable is patient. Not willing to give up on the barren fig tree yet. Willing to give special time and care, for just one more year, that the tree may bear fruit.
Jesus is patient. He is willing that none shall perish, but that all would have eternal life. But there is a time where He can be patient no more. Judgement will come, and those who have not repented will be cut down.
So think about this. How does He decide if the Fig Tree will be cut down? If it bears fruit, or remains barren. In context, Jesus is talking about repentance. How do we know if someone has truly repented? If they bear fruit, or if they are barren! If there is no fruit, there’s a good chance that conversion has never taken place..
Fruit does not give you salvation, rather salvation gives you fruit!
Is there fruit of conversion in our lives? We are not saved by works, but we see here as all of these verses tie together around the fig tree, that fruitlessness is a sign of rootlessness, meaning your root is not in Christ.
5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.
7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.
People get confused about John 15 because earlier in this passage Jesus says any branch in me that does not bear fruit, He takes away, and those that do bear fruit, He prunes that they may bear more fruit. Well here we see that Jesus shows you which branches are thrown away, it’s the ones who do not abide in Him. And that word “IN” in the greek, that is translated “any branch IN ME that does not bear fruit He takes away” well that greek word can also be translated AMONG. So see it clearly, there are branches among Christ, who are not truly IN HIM! If they were IN HIM they would bear fruit. Just like there may be branches in the forest all around a tree, near the tree, but they are not all connected to the tree, so they do not bear the fruit of the tree. Read verse 8 again..
FRUIT PROVES YOU ARE DISCIPLES! The Jewish nation had the temple, had the law and the sacrifices, but had no FRUIT that they were of God! That is why Jesus cursed the fig tree, and that is why we must do some hard evaluation. Some serious reflection. What does the fruit of my life, say about my heart? Keeping in mind, fruit does not earn you salvation. In fact, it’s just the opposite. You could bear no fruit without Christ, for apart from Him you can do NOTHING! Fruit simply proves you are connected to Him.
As i prepare to bring this to a close; i want us to see connection between John 15 and our passage in Matthew 21. Jesus shows us that we cannot bear fruit apart from Him; which is why we see Him cursing the fig tree. Which we just explained in detail.
But it also connects to the prayer aspect of the lesson Jesus wants to teach. Let me show you.
20 When the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, “How did the fig tree wither at once?”
21 And Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen.
22 And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”
Is Jesus saying here that we can physically speak to mountains and it will be moved? Well, God is all powerful, almighty. If there was a real need for a mountain to be moved, i certainly believe a prayer could result in such, but Jesus is more speaking metaphorically here.
They couldn’t believe that with just a word, the fig tree withered from the root up. (Mark shows this happening with a night in between, Matthew forgoes the details and runs the story together)
Jesus was showing them that what is impossible for man, is possible with God.
Do you see it? It’s impossible for us to bear fruit, as the barren fig tree, unless we are connected to Christ.
When Jesus told the disciples how hard it is for a rich man to enter the Kingdom, they asked, “Well who can be saved?” Jesus said with man this is impossible; but with God all things are possible. See, Jesus said, if you abide in me, and my words remain in you, ask what you wish and it will be done for you. If we truly have God’s word in us, we will ask in faith for things that align with God’s will. Look at 1 John.
14 And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.
15 And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.
Let’s couple this with James.
3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.
The Fruit of a Converted Person is evidenced in their prayer
Psalms confers with this statement
4 Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.
If you are truly delighting yourself in God’s word, and in intimacy with Him, you will be asking for things in accord with His will. Has anyone here ever felt like they had unanswered prayers? Probably because we weren’t asking according to His will.
Jesus was not teaching a “Name it Claim it” theology. He didn’t give us a blank check with this mountain moving prayer. Or else we’d all be billionaires in here, amen! Jesus was showing that the impossible becomes possible when we pray to our Father in faith. When we pray according to His will. Things that we would not be able to accomplish, or endure, will become feasible because of our relationship with Him.
Let me end with this..
9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
In context, Paul is talking about suffering. Where Christ tells him that His grace is sufficient, and His power is made perfect in weakness.
We are weak in the flesh. Powerless to save ourselves, unable to bear fruit in keeping with repentance, unable to pray according to His will. We as humans all suffer the inability to be righteous on our own… BUT GOD!
I want to be clear, there’s a difference between not bearing fruit because you truly haven’t been born again, and a believer struggling with sin. Romans 7 and Galatians 5 makes it clear that a born again believer can and will struggle in the flesh.. but 1 John makes it clear this will not be the lifestyle of the believer. So do some reflecting. Is there true fruit of salvation in your life? If not, repent, believe and be born again. If there is fruit of salvation in your life, but you find yourself struggling in a certain area, repent, believe that His grace is sufficient for you, read Romans 6 and believe you are dead to sin.
Fruit proves that we are disciples, and when we pray to our Father, the impossible becomes possible. But it comes down to FAITH!
22 And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”
We cannot receive what we pray for without faith.
We cannot bear fruit without faith.
We cannot be saved without faith.
Go no further in unbelief. Have faith.