Four Trees of Easter
John 12:12-19
. TREES PLAY A MAJOR ROLE IN THE SCRIPTURE.
MANY SIGNIFICANT EVENTS TOOK PLACE UNDER TREES.
1. Sin originated from eating fruit from the Forbidden Tree.
2. The first clothes were leaves from a fig tree.
3. Gen. 18. Under a grove of oak trees God told Abraham he would be given a son.
4. I Kings 19. Elijah sat under a juniper tree when he was emotionally drained to the point of experiencing depression.
5. Numbers 17:8 Aaron’s rod, which was made from an almond tree budded, leafed out, and produced almonds overnight.
6.Many other trees are mentioned throughout the Bible: Ash, Bay, Box, Elm, Fir, Pomegranate, Mulberry, Oak, Olive, Palm, Pine, Popular, Sycamore, The Tree of Life,etc.
Isaiah 55. "All the trees of the field will clap their hands." Speaks of a time when the Lord will reign on
the earth.
IN THE LIFE OF JESUS THERE ARE FOUR SIGNIFICANT EVENTS THE LAST WEEK OF JESUS’ LIFE HERE ON EARTH THAT INVOLVED TREES. As I studied these events, I believe that you could also make an analogy of these events being like four stages in a person’s spiritual development.
1. The first event is Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem and involved palm trees.
(Matthew 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:29-44;
John 12:12-19)
On Palm Sunday—Jesus made His public entry as Messiah into Jerusalem.. Throngs accompanied Him, going before and after; these, spreading their garments, and strewing branches in the way, hailed Him with hosannas as the Son of David, the King of Israel, who came in the name of the Lord.
Jesus’ opponents understood the strong messianic implications of the manner of His entry into Jerusalem. The riding upon the colt, the garments and palm branches in the road, and the shouts of the multitude—all pointed to Jesus as the Messiah. When He was urged to quiet the people, Jesus replied, “If these become silent, the stones will cry out!” (Luke 19:40 NASB).
On the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles the Hebrews were commanded to take branches of palms, with other trees, and rejoice before God Lev 23:40;
Later it was connected with the idea of triumph and victory. Simon Maccabeus entered Jerusalem after its capture, “with thanksgiving, and branches of palm trees, and with harps, and cymbals, and with viols, and hymns, and songs: because there was destroyed a great enemy out of Israel” (1 Macc 13:51
The multitude welcomed Jesus into the city with cries of HOSANNA from Psalm 118:25-26. “Hosanna” is a Hebrew word that is best translated as a prayer: “Save now,” or “Save, we beseech Thee.” When the people carrying palm branches met Jesus and hailed Him as the One who comes in the name of the Lord, they included in their acclamation a plea for salvation.
A. So the Palm spoke of Celebration and Salvation
B. This first event of Jesus’ last week on earth seems to be like a person’s initial response to the gospel. The cries of Hosanna are like the cries of a sinner for salvation and then after the initial experience, there will logically follow a time of worship and praise. I would liken this to a baby being born into the world. I Peter2: 2as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow. The first stage in a person’s spiritual growth is worshipping and growing in their knowledge of who they are in Christ and developing a deeper understanding of who God is. A baby is totally dependent upon its parents to get all of its needs met. One of the primary lessons a Christian needs to learn is his total dependence upon the Lord. Jesus said, “Without me, you can do nothing. Many times we think we can do things on our own and we continually fail miserably.
Many people never learn to surrender completely and let the Lord live His life through them, or else they are too frightened to let go of control or are too proud. Dying to self should be one of our first lessons in our Christian life following the example set by Jesus on Palm Sunday of humility and servanthood.
Jesus quotes His own example to enforce His teaching; stimulating His disciples to seek distinction in a path of lowly love by demonstrating to them that the Son of man has come not to be ministered unto, but to minister,
The new feature in the lesson Jesus gives His disciples at this season is the contrast between His kingdom and the kingdoms of earth in respect to the mode of acquiring greatness.. “You know,” He said, “that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them. But it shall not be so among you.” The idea is this: earthly kingdoms are ruled by a class of persons who possess hereditary rank—the aristocracy, nobles, or princes. The governing class are those whose birthright it is to rule, and whose boast it is never to have been in a servile position, but always to have been served. In Jesus’ kingdom, on the other hand, a man becomes a great one, and a ruler, by being first the servant of those over whom he is to bear rule. In other kingdoms, they rule whose privilege it is to be ministered unto; in the divine kingdom, they rule who account it a privilege to minister.
Ironically, though the triumphal entry was a public acceptance of Jesus being the Messiah and presented a direct challenge to His enemies, it must have been a disappointment to many of His followers. Christ did not enter Jerusalem upon a war horse of conquest but upon a colt representing humility. As a result, the religious leaders demanded His crucifixion, while the multitudes ultimately turned away with indifference. The teaching of humility and servanthood is never well received.
How long have you known the Lord? Have you grown past the point of wanting to be taken care of spiritually, like a baby, just coming to church, filling a pew and never reaching out to serve others. Are you, like Paul talked about, still feeding on milk only when you should be eating meat?
This leads us to the second event of the week recorded for us which took place on Monday after Palm Sunday.
II. This event involved a Fig Tree
In Palestine and other warm climates the fig yields two crops each year—an earlier one, ripe about June, growing from the “old wood,” i.e. from the midsummer sprouts of the previous year, and a second, more important one, ripe about August, which grows upon the “new wood,” i.e. upon the spring shoots .These first figs grow to about the size of a cherry and then the greatest number of them fall to the ground. These are what is referred to as the untimely figs. But with the best variety of fig trees, these early figs remain on the tree and are prized for their sweet flavor (Micah 7:1).
In this miracle, Jesus knew that every fig tree that was going to bear fruit at all would have these early figs even though it wasn’t the time of the main harvest.
This acted parable must be compared with Luke 13:6, 9; to understand that now the time of judgment was surely coming, the fate of the fruitless Jewish nation was being forcibly foretold.
This Monday morning found Jesus and His disciples again on their way to Jerusalem. Possibly the early hours had been spent by Jesus in solitary prayer, and, as they went, it is recorded that “he hungered.” A fig tree from which, from its foliage, fruit might have been expected, stood invitingly by the wayside, but when Jesus approached it, it was found to have nothing but leaves—a striking symbol of the outwardly religious, but spiritually barren Jewish community. And Jesus used it in pronouncing on the Jews the word of doom, “No man eat fruit from thee henceforward for ever” (Mark). Next morning (Tuesday), as the disciples passed, the tree was found withered from the roots. Jesus used the surprise of the disciples as the occasion of a lesson on the importance of faith, and admonition to prayer.
So, A. There was a Curse placed on the tree because of sterility. There was no Fruit.
B. I can see in this event the second stage of spiritual development in a person’s life. This is what John terms little children, or the childhood stage in 1 John 2:13 which is spent in going to school and learning. This would be the time in a person’s spiritual life when they are growing in the knowledge of the Lord and allowing Him to control them and develop the fruit of the Spirit in their lives.
Are you growing in the Lord to the point that people are beginning to see His personality traits in you? Are you exemplifying love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control?
Jesus told the disciples that the barrenness of the fig tree symbolized the barrenness of the Jews in producing fruit. It serves also as a warning to us if we have been a Christian for many years and yet do not show the evidence of the Spirit’s fruit in our lives. If we are not allowing God’s Spirit to develop his personality traits in our lives, but becoming more selfish and unloving, and barren of the Holy Spirit’s fruit; Jesus could have the same thing to say about us He said about the Jews.
Romans 8:28,29 tells us that whatever circumstances come into our lives are allowed and used by God to conform us to the image of Jesus Christ as we yield ourselves to Him and learn from our situations.
JOHN R. W. STOTT SAID: The Christian should resemble a fruit tree, not a Christmas tree! For the gaudy decorations of a Christmas tree are only tied on, whereas fruit grows on a fruit tree.
III. The third reference to a tree was when Jesus went to the Garden of Gethsemane the night before his crucifixion. He faced a major crisis in His life, and knelt under the Olive trees to fight His spiritual battle of His will versus the Father’s will. The battle Adam had lost in his own Garden of Eden.
He entered the Garden called Gethsemanae.
a. The word means "Oil press".
Olive trees lined the way. I have been to the garden and seen the olive trees, some possibly 2000 years old and could have been there when Jesus was agonizing in prayer.
b. Here the Lord was to experience being crushed and broken in yielding Himself to do the will of the Father as olives are crushed and broken in making the olive oil.
1. He finds Himself all alone. Even the disciples He asked to pray with Him fall asleep.
When Jesus began His ministry crowds followed Him for what they could get from him and out of curiosity. As He began to talk about commitment, however, they abandoned Him.
When they hurt He was there for them. When He hurt He was all alone.
He knows that even the Father will have to turn His back on Him soon because God would have to treat Jesus as if He had committed all our sins. But as He prayed through, he won the battle so that we might be saved.
Adrian Rogers. "The Victory was won in Gethsemanae even though the price was paid
on Calvary. Before the nails went into His hands they went into His heart."
A. So this third event under the Olive trees involved a crisis resulting in surrender.
When circumstances come into our lives that present a crisis, do we let those circumstances produce surrender and yielding ourselves to God’s will, as Jesus did, or do we let those circumstances make us bitter and resentful?
B. This third incident involving trees represents to me the developmental stage John calls Young Men.
I John 2:13 I write unto you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one
v. 14 I have written unto you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one
We as Christians have particular duties; but there are precepts and obedience common to all, such as mutual love, and contempt of the world. But especially young men in Christ Jesus, though they have arrived at strength of spirit and sound sense, and have successfully resisted first trials and temptations, breaking off bad habits and connections , we all have to go through a period of brokenness before we can move into a deeper relationship with and understanding of Christ.
Paul said it was his desire to enter into the fellowship of the sufferings of Christ.
Peter in the second chapter of his first book reminds us of the things Jesus suffered without retaliation, leaving us an example.
Jesus wrestled in Spiritual Warfare to pray through and win the battle of death to self there in the garden. As we have grown and matured in the Lord, we will experience more and more intense spiritual warfare in our own lives. If we are not as wise as serpents and gentle as doves, we will be deceived and defeated. We must stay on our knees and live in total dependance on the Lord to win the battle and move to the next level of spiritual development.
IV.That takes us to the final incident involving a tree.
That took place on Friday and the tree was the Old Rugged Crucifixion Tree.
Phil 2:8 tells us that Jesus was obedient unto death, even death on the cross.
GEORGE MACLEOD said, “Jesus was not crucified in a cathedral between two candles, but on a cross between two thieves; on the town garbage heap; at a crossroads so cosmopolitan that they had to write his title in Hebrew and Latin and in Greek; at the kind of place where cynics talk smut, and thieves curse, and soldiers gamble. Because that is where he died. And that is what he died about . . . that is where churchmen should be and what churchmen should be about.”
DAVID WATSON SAID, “The cross is a picture of violence, yet the key to peace, a picture of suffering, yet the key to healing, a picture of death, yet the key to life.”
Though our atonement was accomplished on the cross, the New Testament makes clear that Christ’s death is the climax of His perfect obedience. He “became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Phil. 2:8). “Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which He suffered” (Heb. 5:8). Romans 5:12-19 contrasts Christ’s obedience with Adam’s disobedience. His sinless obedience qualified Him to be the perfect Sacrifice for sin (Heb. 6:8-10).
Furthermore, He was God, but He emptied Himself of the omnipotence and the omniscience and the omnipresence of His pre-incarnate state, and was a genuine man obedient to God in all His life. He always maintained that attitude toward God which we ought to maintain
. We ought to have the mind which was in Christ. He humbled Himself and became obedient. He was obedient through life and obedient unto death.
“Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
So this final tree, the Crucifixion Tree represented the culmination of Jesus’ work here on earth and
A. the Cross was a result of complete surrender to God’s will resulting in His Sacrifice. That kind of surrender in our lives will involve a cross as well.
Matt 16:24Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. 25For whosoever would save his life shall lose it: and whosoever shall lose his life for my sake shall find it.
It means being willing to lay down our life in obedience just as Jesus did.
B. This to me represents the mature man in Christ, as John talks about in 1 John 2:13,14. He calls them Fathers. A father is a man who is reproducing himself in offspring that look like him. As we reach maturity in Christ Jesus, we should be witnessing and seeing offspring produced that look like Jesus, because that is who we look like in our maturity.
Oneness with Christ means to be identified with Christ, identified with him in crucifixion. But we must go on to be identified with him in resurrection as well, for beyond the cross is resurrection and the manifestation of his presence. in our lives day to day in everything that we do.
Four Trees of Easter
I. Palm Tree (John 12:12-19)
A. Celebration because of Salvation
B. Spiritual Newborn Babies (1 Peter 2:2)
- Spiritual total dependence
II. Fig Tree (Mark 11:12-25)
A. Curse because of Sterility
B. Spiritual Little Children (1 John 2:13)
- Spiritual fruit
III. Olive Tree (Mark 14: 32-41)
A. Crisis resulting in Surrender
B. Spiritual Young Men (1 John 2:13)
- Spiritual Warfare
IV. Crucifixion Tree (John 19:1-42)
A. Cross resulting in Sacrifice
B. Spiritual Fathers (1 John 2:13,14)
- Spiritual Reproduction
