The Barren Fig Tree
Applying the Kingdom • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
0 ratings
· 1 viewNotes
Transcript
Reading:
“And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right? As you go with your accuser before the magistrate, make an effort to settle with him on the way, lest he drag you to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer put you in prison. I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the very last penny.”
Introduction:
Today we are going to dig into Luke 13 verses 6-9; which is the parable of the barren fig tree.
At the beginning of Luke 13 Jesus addresses a question:
There were some present at that very time who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.
The question is posed about an atrocity which the Romans perpetrated.
A group of Galilean pilgrims were slaughtered near the temple and their blood was mixed with their sacrifices.
Possibly the passover sacrifices where hundreds of animals were sacrificed.
The slaughter of groups of people wasn’t something they hadn’t encountered before.
Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men.
Herod murdered the innocent children of Bethlehem to stop this prophecy of a new king being born!
Josephus records that many Jews were murdered at the building of an aqueduct in Jerusalem (Josephus, Jewish War 2.175-77)
There was a massacre of Samaritans by Roman cavalry as they celebrated sacred vessels buried by Moses at Mount Gerizim.
(Josephus, Antiquities 18.85-87)
Josephus recorded in His antiquities that three thousand Jews were killed by Herod Archelaus (Son of Herod the Great) at Passover in 4 BC.
(All of this information I read in Grant Osborne’s commentary on Luke)
The event of the Galileans being killed was one of many.
Those posing the question seems like they wanted to hear what is the proper divine judgment on Rome?
Think about it this way:
In South Africa there was one who marched into a church and began killing people as they prayed.
How would those who survived feel after the dust settled?
The sacred place was attacked and peoples religious passions would be off the charts.
The Jews allowed the Galileans blood to be mixed with the temple sacrifices.
That would be a direct disobedience to God’s law as how sacrifices are to be carried out.
In this culture the typical mindset towards those who had “bad” happen to them is to conclude it was God’s judgment for their sins.
They believed in evil spiritual forces; but assumed that tragedy on a person was of their own doing and they deserved it.
So they ask the question:
What does Jesus think?
Was Rome right in what they did?
Was this judgment for sin?
To which Jesus poses a question:
And he answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way?
Jesus asks them: Who’s guilt is it?
Just so they didn’t get the wrong idea Jesus provides the answer.
No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.
I’m not sure about you; but that wouldn’t be how I would answer that.
(?) Why would Jesus answer like that?
Jesus was and is the only person who could not be sidetracked into useless conversations and arguments.
He always stays on task to reach the souls of all listening.
He keeps people’s
He hits the reality button for them to realize something true and permanent.
Everyone is going to die, everyone will experience death (with exception of those who will be raptured from Earth into Heaven, and Elijah 2 Kings 2)
And we are re-told this truth in Hebrews.
And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,
Yet in the truth of our frailty Jesus gives hope by extending mercy and grace.
No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.
“Unless you repent you will likewise perish”
Does this mean they wouldn’t die?
No Jesus is teaching an eternal truth; where your soul goes after your body quits.
They don’t have to suffer a second death.
Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.
We don’t have to fear the death of our bodies here, instead we should fear the eternal death.
Our lives here only last maybe a little over a hundred years.
Eternity is forever!!!
How can we get a ticket into eternity with Jesus and avoid eternal separation and torture?
Repent!
Repentance is defined as:
Sorrow for any thing done or said; the pain or grief which a person experiences in consequence of the injury or inconvenience produced by his own conduct. - Noah Webster 1828
In theology, the pain, regret or affliction which a person feels on account of his past conduct, because it exposes him to punishment. This sorrow proceeding merely from the fear of punishment, is called legal repentance as being excited by the terrors of legal penalties, and it may exist without an amendment of life. - Noah Webster 1828
Real penitence; sorrow or deep contrition for sin, as an offense and dishonor to God, a violation of his holy law, and the basest ingratitude towards a Being of infinite benevolence. This is called evangelical repentance and is accompanied and followed by amendment of life. - Noah Webster 1828
This part of the definition really hits the foundation stone found in the beatitudes.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
The kingdom of heaven cannot be received until one recognizes their poverty in the spiritual realm.
Nothing of worth or of value.
That is where we find the Lord and His saving grace: At the admitting of our need for Him!
Repentance is a change of mind, or a conversion from sin to God. - Noah Webster 1828
How is it that one could repent?
What is it that could open their eyes to the need?
One: The Holy Spirit removing the blinders to see how bad we really are.
Two: The Spirit’s conviction (Hitting us in the feelings).
Did you know that Shame is a really good teacher.
As it is, I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. For you felt a godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us.
Jesus begins chapter 13 with a teaching of repentance through judgment on others.
From there He enters what God is offering: Mercy!
We get verses 6-9.
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.
Transition:
I have never been to Napa valley California or any other wine orchard; but I’ve seen pictures.
The beauty in symmetry and beauty of those straight lines across the hillside.
Kind of like corn rows; but spaced further apart for ideal soil usage.
Do you know what I have never seen in any of those pictures?
A tree in the middle of any of those rows.
Especially one which grows fruit.
We hear of:
A strange place to plant a fig tree (6)
A strange place to plant a fig tree (6)
The man plants a fig tree among the vines of his vineyard.
That fig tree would compete for nutrients to grow.
This wasn’t normal; but it is something that Jesus suggested does happen.
Who was is the illustrated man here?
It is God Almighty.
The fig tree is the Jewish church
It is planted in the vineyard refers to them being established in the land of Judea.
When you have a garden you usually like to see how it is producing.
Jesus is stating that God came seeking the fruit the church is producing.
Illustration:
A few years ago we planted some watermelons, squash, pumpkins, and cantelope.
I would go out and weed the garden in the evenings, making sure that nothing was stealing the nutrients needed for growth.
I went out one evening and I noticed the little melons beginning to grow.
That was exciting. Here I had never done a garden before and something is growing. (Awesome).
There was one thing that I didn’t take into account.
That edge on the left is a farm field, and that season he planted corn.
All of you can see how close the 2 rows on the left are to the field.
My poor little cantelopes, and squash were sprayed by the sprayer when he came by to spray the corn.
They didn’t make it.
This was the “later” picture no melons by the field.
I walked out to the garden and noticed all the leaves were beginning to shrivel and die.
I understand what it’s like to go looking for fruit that should be there; to find none. As I’m sure many of you do as well.
It is disappointing.
Connection:
Here is God almighty coming to His church that would have no reason not to produce fruit; yet there was none.
It’s a useless tree, It should be cut down and burned, that is the proper process to deal with non-bearing fruit trees.
He calls the one who was in charge of the fig tree:
The:
The Hired Caretaker (7-8)
The Hired Caretaker (7-8)
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?’
The owner has been disappointed for 3 years with this fig tree.
He makes the executive decision: cut it down!
Who might the vinedresser be?
It is suggested that the vinedresser is Jesus.
What is noteworthy is the time frame which the Almighty references:
3 years.
It is thought that Jesus earthly ministry, up until this point was 3 years.
And keeping with the parable, Jesus asked for 1 more year to help it bear fruit.
The suggested is that Jesus’ earthly ministry was 4 years.
The caretaker is told: cut the tree down!
The caretaker requests a little more time.
And he answered him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure.
What just happened?
The optimism of the caretaker is revealed.
What is it showing about a tree that has every right to be cut down and burned?
Jesus is extending Mercy!
Jesus’ work wasn’t done yet!
He would continue working the ground, and fertilizing the soil for proper opportunity for the tree to grow.
Connection:
If God came down right now, would He see fruit on the branches of the global church?
Every person has the opportunity to bear fruit for God in their daily lives.
What hinders that?
Many times being too busy for God’s work.
Satan loves for our lives to be really full so we don’t have time for “the church”.
We begin to make excuses because we feel guilty.
God comes to you in yours and mine life looking for fruit, what does He find?
Is our limbs barren?
What do we deserve?
The caretaker states what He is going to do:
I am going to dung the tree, dig around it providing an opportunity for more water and oxygen to enter the soil.
For a year!
Transition:
The caretaker offers:
The Opportunity (9)
The Opportunity (9)
Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’ ”
The caretaker wants to make sure He did everything that He could to help that fig tree.
Jesus extended mercy to all who would accept it through His blood, He did all that was possible for the tree to bear fruit.
This really shows the longsuffering of God to those He loves.
Connection:
If Jesus is the caretaker, God is the Vineyard owner, and we, the church, are the tree;
What is the fruit?
Jesus didn’t stop the thought from the earlier passages (1-5).
The main idea was that of repentance to avoid perishing.
The fruit God expects is that of repentance.
The choices that we make because of the leading of the Holy Spirit through conviction.
The fact is stated:
God will only allow a lack of fruit for so long.
The repentance produces fruit!
Just as the tree which doesn’t produce fruit is given more opportunity, many are given the same.
God doesn’t approve of what sinners are doing, It is showing that all the way until the end of a life God is merciful.
He is doing everything to make it possible.
We cannot forget that His divine judgment is coming!
God’s clock is ticking, as He watches over the vineyard and if a plant doesn’t bear fruit of repentance He will find a way for it to be productive.
Romans 11 teaches us of the branch that is grafted into the tree of Jerusalem.
That is the Gentiles who will produce fruit if the Jews won’t!
Point:
Jesus did all that was necessary for the fruit in each of our lives.
That is what we are reminded of when we take part in communion together.
We are reminded that God’s judgment is coming and through Jesus He shows mercy and longsuffering.
Making every possible way for us to have a relationship with Him.
-Pray!