#47 The Barren Fig Tree
Series: Mark
Chuck Sligh
July 25, 2021
NOTE: A PowerPoint presentation are available for this sermon by request at chuckcsligh@gmail.com. Please mention the title of the sermon and the Bible text to help me find the sermon in my archives.
TEXT: Please turn in your Bibles to Mark 11:12.
INTRODUCTION
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that many things in the New Testament are vastly different than in the Old Testament. The Old Testament moral prohibitions (adultery, lying, stealing, murder, covetousness, profaning God’s name, etc.) are wrong in both testaments, and the basic themes of the Old Testament (our sin, our need for forgiveness, God’s holiness, God’s call to His people to love Him, etc.) are carried over into the New Testament.
But how we approach God, and the nature of worship are different. Why don’t we worship in the Temple? Why don’t we have in our church an Altar, a Laver, a Table of Showbread, a Lampstand, an Altar of Incense, or an Ark of the Covenant, or a Mercy Seat? Why do we not have to come and sacrifice animals to atone for our sin? Why are we not bound to the Old Testament ceremonial and dietary laws?
Although why these things changed is explained in many New Testament scriptures, in today’s text Jesus gives the FIRST INKLING of the end of the Old Testament system by two simple acts: the cursing of a fig tree, and the judgment of the Temple in Jerusalem. They point to a big change in God’s way of dealing with people. Let’s examine these two incidences today and try to uncover their significance.
Now the first thing you’ll notice is that we face Mark’s unique sandwich structure again. We’ve talked about this distinctive feature in Mark’s gospel on several occasions before. Mark often starts a story (the bottom slice of the sandwich), then switches to another story (the middle part) and then concludes the original story (the top slice). Usually, the two stories are non-related but in today’s sandwich, the middle is important in understanding the meaning of the top and bottom slices.
So let’s look at this sandwich construction in today’s text:
In verses 12-14, the bottom bread slice is the story of Jesus cursing of a fig tree.
In verses 15-18, Jesus cleanses the Temple (the middle story).
In verses 19-22, Mark returns to the fig tree, now withered from its roots.
I. FIRST, NOTICE WITH ME A CURIOUS CURSE IN VERSES 12-14 – “And on the morrow, when they were come from Bethany, he was hungry: 13 And seeing a fig tree afar off having leaves, he came, if haply [or perhaps] he might find any thing on it: and when he came to it, he found nothing but leaves; for the time of figs was not yet. 14 And Jesus answered and said unto it, ‘May no man eat fruit of thee hereafter forever. And his disciples heard it.’”
Coming from nearby Bethany on His way to Jerusalem, Jesus spied a fig tree, and being hungry, stopped to get a bite to eat. At first reading, verse 13 is confusing to our modern Western urban ears: Mark says Jesus went to eat, but it was not the season for figs. Why would Jesus go to find fruit from a fig tree if it was not the season for figs?
A person in that region of the world would not be confused at all. After the fall fig harvest, the branches of fig trees sprout buds that remain undeveloped throughout the winter. In the Spring, around mid-March to mid-April the tree produces leaves, and the little buds develop into small, green, rounded sprouts called paggims which eventually fully develop into figs that are harvested in the Fall. Paggims are called “baby figs” in English. These paggims could themselves be eaten and were often eaten by the poor.
This story takes place right before the Passover, placing it in the middle April, just the right season for paggims. So when Jesus saw this fig tree with leaves at a distance, He should have been able to get a satisfying bite of paggims to eat. But when He arrived, the tree was barren; it had no paggims at all. This meant it was not going to bear fruit at all since the paggims were basically little, undeveloped figs, so…no paggims now, no figs later.
As we’ll see, within 24 hours the fig tree would completely die after Jesus cursed it, so this was a miracle—the only destructive miracle of Jesus in the Gospels.
To some people, Jesus’ actions here seem out of character for Him. Why would He doom a tree just because it didn’t have paggims on it? I mean, the tree never did anything to anybody, right? Was Jesus being petty and vindictive?
This story, for some odd reason, has vexed a lot of people down through the years. Famous atheists have roundly condemned it and even some Christian commentators seem to be confounded by it.
But it’s really not a problem at all.
First, let’s not have a pity party for a tree with no feelings, okay? – That’s absurd.
Second, though Jesus did no other destructive miracles, God destroyed the old world before creating the one we are in; He destroyed armies when he saw fit, and He warns of everlasting destruction to all who refuse to repent and be saved.
Third, God is sovereign, and the creator of all living things, and if God the Son wishes to destroy a fig tree, He has the divine prerogative to do so.
Even so, these misunderstandings completely miss the point. In reality, this strange miracle had nothing to do with Jesus wanting a tasty snack. He came to the tree and cursed it for a reason: it was a dramatic sign from God. But we’ll have to wait until we put the top piece of bread on the sandwich to see what it signaled.
II. SECOND, IN VERSES 15-18 WE SEE A FIERCE AND RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT.
We see Jesus’ ACTIONS in verses 15-16 – “And they came to Jerusalem: and Jesus went into the temple and began to cast out those who sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them who sold doves; 16 And would not suffer (or allow) that any man should carry any vessel (literally merchandise) through the temple.”
Last week we saw that Jesus made His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem, and verse 11 says He went straight to the Temple grounds and looked around. He didn’t like what He saw! What He saw was religiously authorized greed and exploitation in the name of religion and the profaning of God’s intended use of the Temple.
People travelled from all over Palestine and even further for the annual Passover. Unless they lived nearby, it wasn’t possible to bring their own animals to sacrifice, and if they did, there was always the chance that the temple inspectors would find a flaw in their sacrificial animal. So over time, three markets for sacrificial animals had grown up on the way from the Mount of Olives to the Temple. Not only did they sell animals for the sacrifices, but they also exchanged coins from Gentile lands for Jewish coins at a profit. This was necessary because all Jews had to pay an annual Temple tax, but Gentile coins were refused in the Temple because of images on them, which were considered idolatrous by the religious leaders.
But these markets had always been OUTSIDE the Temple until Annas, who, during the time of Christ had had control over the priesthood for half a century, hatched a plan to horn in on the profits from the animal markets and the money exchanges. He set up their own market in the Temple area titself o be a “one-stop-shop” to sell animals for sacrifice, as well as to exchange people’s money…at a premium. This was outrageously crass and corrupt and sacrilegious.
To worsen matters, the gates of the Temple were opened, and merchants were using the Gentiles Courtyard as a shortcut, making the temple a bustling place of shops and concessions instead of a place of quiet and worship.
These things deeply disturbed Jesus, so He threw out those who sold and bought in the Temple, overturned the moneychangers’ tables and stopped the flow of merchants through the Temple grounds.
We see Jesus’ EXPLANATION for His actions in verses 17-18 – “And he taught, saying unto them, ‘Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.’ 18 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 by his doctrine. 19 And when evening had come, he went out of the city.”
The Court of the Gentiles was the only place Gentiles could worship God. It was meant to be a place of prayer, and to be a light to Gentiles of God’s holiness and mercy as God’s people performed their sacrifices to God. But it had turned into a stock market of animal dealers and money changers. Worship was replaced by greed; holiness was tarnished by corruption.
Jesus’ actions and His subsequent explanation so threatened the corrupt order of things that the scribes and chief priests immediately sought for a way to kill Him. The reason is that they feared Him because of His effect on the people. Annas’ changes had been hugely controversial when they were first introduced. Then, as now, the average person had little say in what happened in the upper echelons of leadership. But knowing there was nothing they could do about it, they had no choice but to just put up with these practices.
Imagine how heartening it must have been to many people to hear Jesus’ words: “Here’s someone who’s ‘telling it like it is’; who’s ‘speaking truth to power’; who’s ‘saying what needed to be said.’” People were “astonished” by Jesus standing up for what was right. The word Mark chose means “astounded, struck out of their senses, overwhelmed” or as we would say today, “it blew their minds.”
Hence, Jesus was an especially grave danger to the corrupt leaders in Jerusalem… which made Him a marked man, for they would find any way possible to destroy this man who dared to expose their corruption and deprive them of their gold mine.
III. IN VERSES 19-22 JESUS GIVES A FORSHADOWING OF A BIG CHANGE. –
Mark finishes his sandwich now in these verses by returning to the fig tree introduced in verses 12-14. Let’s read verses 19-22 – “And when evening had come, he went out of the city. 20 And in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. 21 And Peter, calling to remembrance, saith unto him, ‘Master, behold, the fig tree which thou cursed is withered away.’”
Verse 19 says Jesus went out of the city. It’s notable that each day so far upon His arrival in Jerusalem, Jesus goes into the city in the day and then leaves the city before nightfall. This time, His leaving is especially auspicious. This is the last time He will ever step foot in the Temple. He would not return again…for its purpose would soon be ended. Soon God would no longer meet with humanity in stone buildings but would make every believer in Him a Temple of the Holy Spirit.
The next day, as they were returning to Jerusalem, Peter sees the tree Jesus had cursed the day before, which now has completely withered from its very roots, emphasizing the totality of its destruction. One day it was a fig tree in full foliage—though it was fruitless; the next day it had completely dried up and withered. A tree does not die in a day…unless God kills it, and this shocked Peter.
What’s the explanation of this strange miracle of destruction? The key is to understand the Old Testament symbolism that pervades the gospels and that Jesus drew heavily from. The prophets often used the fig tree as a symbol of Israel’s condition before God. [ E.g., Jer. 8:13; 29:17; Hos. 9:10, 16; Joel 1:7; Micah 7:1–6.]
So destruction of the fig tree was a symbol of God’s judgment on Israel. [E.g., Hos. 2:12; Isa. 34:4; cf. Lk. 13:6–9.]
When you look at this symbolism in today’s text and His Temple cleansing in the middle of the sandwich, the meaning is clear: The fig tree symbolizes Israel’s spiritual barrenness in Jesus’ day and the tree’s destruction symbolizes the inevitable destruction that awaited Jerusalem, including the Temple and all its corruption and spiritual decay. Israel had all the outward show of religious devotion, but it was fruitless.
In chapter 13, we will see a chilling prophecy by Jesus that “there shall not be left one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down.” (Mark 13:2) This prophecy was fulfilled in 70 AD when Titus defeated the Zealots who had fought off several Roman sieges. Eventually the Roman army of 30,000 soldiers breached Jerusalem’s walls, and leveled the city so that literally not one stone was left in its place. Before the Romans were finished in all of Palestine, they slaughtered almost 1 million people and took 95,000 captives as slaves.
So, the destruction of the fig tree was a judgment parable, but it was also an inauguration of sorts of a new era. Soon Jesus would die on the cross for our sins, rise again and ascend into heaven. There would no longer be any need for a physical Temple where generations of people would slaughter millions of doves, sheep and cattle as an atonement for sin. Once-and-for-all, Jesus paid the penalty for all sin in His own body, and no one would now be kept from entering the presence of God in the Holy of Holies. As Paul said in Ephesians 2:13, “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”
CONCLUSION
I see a couple of important truths we should ponder from this text in God’s Word:
First, the text teaches that there are two sides to Jesus, and we need to recognize that. People have a tendency to think of Jesus as only meek and mild and loving and tender. He is all those things; ALL the three Persons of the Trinity are all those things.
But God ALSO hates sin, and He promises judgment for those who practice sin. Look at Jesus’ actions here in the Temple in verses 15-16. Verse 15 informs us He threw out those who sold and bought in the Temple and turned over the tables and seats of the moneychangers and animal sellers. ONE man brings the whole concession business to a screeching halt! I don’t know if you’ve ever witnessed someone turn tables and chairs over, but it’s an extremely violent act! It must have caused chaos and confusion!
And verse 16 says Jesus stopped the use of the Temple gate as a secular shortcut.
What do these actions tell us about Jesus, and the nature of God?—They teach us that God hates and will judge sin. Sin is the antithesis of God and God utterly hates sin because of His perfect holiness. Because of sin, God cannot excuse sin of any kind or in any way. For this reason, the Bible repeatedly teaches that God will judge sinners who do not repent and come to Jesus in faith for the forgiveness of their sin.
That’s where the flip side of His nature comes in, praise God! Yes, God hates sin, but in His love, He provided a way for us to be accepted by God again by providing God the Son to come to earth, live as a man, perfectly obey God’s law, and die for our sin in our place. That’s what the cross is all about! Jesus is your substitute who died for your sin in your place.
Oh, come to Jesus to escape His harsh judgment. He will save you and give you eternal life if you will trust in Him.
My second takeaway of this text is to recognize how important our corporate worship is.
The Temple had been perverted from a house of prayer for the Gentiles into a den of thieves! This violated God’s intent for the court of Gentiles to be a place to find and worship the true God, but it also distorted true worship by God’s chosen people, the Jews. Jews weren’t worshipping from their heart, but out of duty and the ceremony of it all.
God wants our worship to be a true expression of our HEARTS. When we SING, we must sing the lyrics of the songs as homilies of praise and thanksgiving to our Creator and Father that flows sincerely from our own hearts. When we HEAR GOD’S WORD READ, we should be alert to its meaning and relevance to our lives and listen to every word and syllable. When we PRAY, our minds must not wander to thoughts about the weather or what’s for lunch, but we must listen intently and say “Amen” and “Yes Lord” and “Praise God” in our hearts, or even with our lips, if we mean it. And when we hear the PREACHING, there must be a desire to listen carefully to what God teaches and to be willing to conform our will to God’s will in our lives.
Here’s what R. Kent Hugues expresses the aspiration of a church that does these things: “When a seeking heart enters our churches, our homes, our lives, our Court of the Gentiles, may what we do say that God is alive—that God is holy—that God is loving. May our worship and service say to others that we love him with all our hearts.”
That is my prayer for you and me. May we worship God when we come together in such a way that we reveal these truths to the lost and wayward. May it be salt and light that draws people to our Lord and Savior.
