Luke 13:6-9
Living on borrowed time
Another year of Grace
Parable of the Barren Fig Tree
6 Then Jesus told this story: “A man planted a fig tree in his garden and came again and again to see if there was any fruit on it, but he was always disappointed. 7 Finally, he said to his gardener, ‘I’ve waited three years, and there hasn’t been a single fig! Cut it down. It’s just taking up space in the garden.’
8 “The gardener answered, ‘Sir, give it one more chance. Leave it another year, and I’ll give it special attention and plenty of fertilizer. 9 If we get figs next year, fine. If not, then you can cut it down.’”
? Now, in today's verses, Jesus is basically reminding us that we are on borrowed time.
? We need to repent now. We've been extended a season of grace to become fruitful, so we've got to be fruitful.
? No more playing around with religion. No more hypocrisy. No more religious talk without spiritual commitment and spiritual living. It's put up or shut up time. It's time to be fruitful.
Time
In Jesus' day, this was a parable about the Jewish nation but it also contains some important lessons for us.
- The Biblical issue of fruit bearing and the principles put forth in this parable also apply to the church. They concern you and me.
Another Year of Grace
Another year has almost gone and we are on the brink of another!
What kind of a year has 2023 been for you?
Where would you place it on a scale of 1 – 10?
? Maybe you would give 2023 an 8 or 9 out of 10 – in other words, it was a really good year.
?
It was a good year because you had success in your business,
? a good year at work or at school, good family relationships,
new friendships?
? 2023 was a year that included a lot of exciting things, new challenges, tasks completed, a great holiday.
? Or maybe you rate this past year 8 out of ten compared to the previous year 2020 which was a horrible year
? How about your relationship with God? Did that flourish and grow during 2023 or did it just hover in much the same place as it did the previous year or perhaps even went backwards as you prayed less, heard less from God through his Word, worshipped less.
As we stand on the threshold of another year, Jesus tells us a parable. It’s brief but the point is clear.
- Let's examine this parable more closely
"Listen," Jesus says. "A man has a fig tree and plants it in his vineyard. (Apparently it was common for fruit trees to be planted among the vines). Three years later he’s making his way up and down his vineyard, he is looking forward to the taste of a ripe fig but he sees that the fig tree still doesn’t have any fruit. He calls to his gardener, ‘Hey! Get over here. Why is this tree still here? It’s taking up soil and moisture and space. Cut it down, right now.’
Jesus got it right.
? Why should that tree remain standing?
? Why should it keep taking up space, using up the goodness of the soil if it’s serving no purpose?
? What’s the point of having a tree that should bear fruit but does nothing?
Jesus’ words, "Cut it down, right now, and stick a match to it" cuts deeply. The owner has a right to be disappointed and angry at that useless tree.
- Cutting down the fig tree was a drastic action, but it was well within the rights of the owner. It was his vineyard. It was his tree. He could do with it as he pleased.
- Suppose you decided to paint your house a certain color and someone came to you and objected, telling you he liked another color better and that you'd better paint it his color. You would probably tell him to take hike. Why? Because it's your house, not his. The right of ownership carries the right of determination.
- Likewise, since God owns the world and everything in it and He also owns each one of us, it is simply not right for us to object to His dealings with us or claim that He has "no right" to do this or expect that in our lives.
It’s no wonder he wants it destroyed. But as we listen to Jesus story we know Jesus isn’t just talking about a fig tree. He’s talking about you and me.
Jesus’ parable is frightening but also comforting. Examine the parable and learn the lessons from the barren fig tree.
Examine the parable and learn the lessons from the barren fig tree.
Lessons from the Barren Fig Tree
Lesson #1: The Master expects fruit.
Finally, we recall John 15:8. “My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.”
The fig tree in this parable had leaves. A fig tree cannot survive without leaves. But it had no fruit after three years
I. The Desire of our Savior - He desire fruits. God desire fruitfulness.
A. Jesus was hungry and he came to the tree in search of fruits.
B. the tree had been created, planted to bear fruits.
a. To make an impact in this world for His glory.
b. To walk up rightly in the land of the living.
II. The deception of the Tree. The appearances of fruitfulness to the Savior.
A. From far this tree looked like it had some fruits on it. It had all the signs of fruitfulness.
a. It had the height.
b. it was green
b. It had severl branches.
c. And as the text says, it was filled with leaves - no doubt it was green and looked rosy.
B. like many Christians who look like they are truly living for God.
a. They wear the right clothing.
b. They quote Scriptures.
b. know when to says amen.
c. They are churchy
d. They are at church religiously every Sunday.
But a close look at their live will reveal something else.
III. The disappointment of the Savior.
A. As Jesus journey closer to this tree he finds out that this tree was not what it appear to be - it look fruitful but in reality was not.
C. May I suggest that the savior is disappointed with many so called believers today - who profess faith in him but live unfruitful lives.
1. They are not serving in his kingdom or his church.
2. They are not sharing the gospel with others.
3. They are not living godly lives, but sinful lives and bringing a reproach upon his bride. Their lives are not reflecting the virtues of Jesus Christ. (Humility, compassion, selfless, etc.)
4. They are not displaying the fruit of the Spirit - love, joy, peace etc.
IV. The reaction of the Savior.
A. In the incident with this tree he curse the tree, he brought judgment upon the tree.
a. The tree withered and died - somebody say poor tree - but this tree was not fulfilling any creative purpose, it had failed as a fruit tree.
B. for the believer God will discipline - God discipline those whom he loves. He will discipline to bring you to a place of fruitfulness.
a. The discipline of The Lord can be painful. But God desire you to be fruitful.
b. God will prone the tree, which can be a painful process.
C. A parent discipline his child so that he can be the best he can be - God wants you to be all he called you to be - he will deal with our unfruitfulness.
? We want to be Christ’s disciples and we want to glorify the Father.
? We can only accomplish this through bearing fruit. God does not want barren trees, He wants fruitful ones.
The Privileged Position
? Verse 6 says, "a fig tree which had been planted in his vineyard."
? - This fig tree enjoyed certain advantages not possessed by all fig trees. Many fig trees grew along the roadsides. They were, in essence, wild. No one fertilized them. No one cared for them. They had to survive in rocky, shallow soil with sparse nutrients.
? - But this fig tree was different. It was purposely planted in a vineyard. It enjoyed better soil. The vineyard keeper watched over it and took care of it. He fertilized it and perhaps even watered it during the hottest months of the year.
? - . God had put His chosen people in a favored position. He had lavished special care on them. He had taken special pains with them. He sent prophets to put in regular fertilizations of His word.
? - Doesn't it seem rather obvious that He would expect a return on His investment? Yet for all these advantages, the chosen people turned away from Him. Ultimately, when He did not find fruit, their favored status was removed.
? - But what about us? Hasn't God lavished even more favor upon His church today - we have the Word of God in abundance - radio, television, print, cassette, CD, computer. It's all around us.
? - We have indeed been planted in a privileged place! Yet have we produced appropriate fruit?
? - Doesn't it follow that when the Owner of the vineyard invests so much in us, that there should be much fruit?
. Lesson #2: The Master is patient with us.
Our Master is patient.
? There are two sides of this:
a) a frightening side and
b) a comforting one.
The comforting side of this patience is the knowledge that God is not looking for the opportunity to simply wipe us off the face of the earth.
He is patient with us as II Peter 3:9, 15 explain.
9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
? God recognizes fruit-bearing is a growth process.
? He does not expect an immediate hundredfold harvest from new Christians.
? He does not want any to perish, therefore He waits patiently.
The frightening aspect addresses the complacency that some have.
How many times have Christians justified ungodly behavior by saying, “I have been doing this for a long time and God has not zapped me yet.”
Some believe that because God has not brought down immediate judgment, their actions must be alright.
Remember that God is patient.
He rarely brings down immediate judgment. Rather, He waits and gives time for repentance.
If your actions violate God’s word, do not view God’s lack of judgment as approval, rather view it as patience giving you time to repent.
Lesson #3: A time is coming when the Master’s patience will run out.
A. As patient as the Master is, His patience will run out. He will come back searching for fruit for years. He will allow the keeper of the vineyard to persuade him on to another year. But eventually, the unfruitful tree will be cut down. He does not want it using up the ground.
B. If I understand the gardening practices correctly, vineyard keepers would sometimes plant fig trees in the corners of their vineyards where grapes were not growing. They would do this to keep from wasting any part of their property. However, there was a trade off. The fig tree would use some of the ground’s nutrients. As long as the fig tree bore fruit, the trade off was fine. But why would a vineyard keeper maintain a fig tree that was leaching out the ground’s nutrients from the grape vines if it would not even bear any fruit?
Our Master is patient. He will allow this for some time, but He will not allow it forever. There will come a time when He will cut down the unfruitful tree so it will no longer be a bad influence on the rest of His vineyard.
Lesson #4: The Master will help us bear fruit.
A. Not only is the Master patient with us, the Master helps us bear fruit. He has the vineyard keeper dig around us and provide fertilizer to stimulate growth. God has not just planted us here on the earth and then said, “Get to it.” He helps us.
Fruit Bearing Principle: I Cannot Do It All on My Own
Clearly in John 15 I need to have a right relationship with Jesus. Observe how many times Jesus emphasizes the importance of abiding in Him (15:2 "in Me"; 15:4 "Abide in Me"; 15:5 "He who abides in Me"). Added to this, I need to keep my abiding current (15:6). It is not enough to say that I abided in Him at one time in the past. There is no credit given in this verses for a mere past tense abiding. It is present or nothing. Other passages make it clear that faith is an essential condition for getting into Christ (Galatians 3:26-27), and continuing the follow the word of God is essential for remaining in Christ (John 15:6).
Fruit Bearing Principle: I Must Follow Scripture
Observe how Jesus inherently connects our abiding in Him, or being right with Him, with our taking His words seriously (John 15:3; 7 "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you"; "If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love" (John 15:10). Carefully note. Many people in the religious world speak of God's love as being unconditional. On the one hand, we did not need to meet any conditions for Jesus to die for us, yet from the last verse noted, there is a conditional side of God's love. We only remain right with Him as long as we obey Him.
Someone noted that the we can look really good from a distance if we are nothing but all leaves. We might look fruitful, but it is all leaves. "Hey, I got leaves, I look together, I look spiritual, I look good". In addition, an abundance of leaves can easily hide the fact that I am unfruitful.
Pruning is Uncomfortable
Someone noted that in pruning you must be willing to temporarily sacrifice appearance or looks for growth and future fruitfulness and attractiveness. Plants and trees that are really pruned do not look pretty at this stage. In like manner, in accepting the pruning we must be willing to be uncomfortable. Or, in other words. The plant or tree will die, become diseased or never really produce if we are intent upon keeping it pretty (comfortable) all the time. Another way of saying this is that true spiritual growth only happens when we are willing to shake things up in our lives and
I. LET’S NOTICE THE PURPOSE OF THE FIG TREE
(Luke 13:6-7)
A. It Was Designed For Fruitfulness
1. This Was The Reason The Owner Planted It In The Vineyard
2. This Was The Reason The Owner Paid It A Visit
B. It Was Displaying Failure
1. The Tree Had Been Repeatedly Barren
2. The Tree Had Been Revealed As A Burden
II. LET’S NOTICE THE PLEA FOR THE FIG TREE
(Luke 13:8)
A. The Vinedresser Had A Time In Mind
(Luke 13:8) And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it:
1. He Asked For A Year Of Renewed Mercy
2. He Asked For A Year Of Remembered Mercy
B. The Vinedresser Had A Task In Mind
(Luke 13:8) And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it:
1. He Wanted To Freshen The Soil – To Dig About It
2. He Wanted To Fertilize The Soil – To Dung It
Digging around a tree and putting manure around it to fertilize it were common procedures, but fig trees usually did not need manure; (so through this we see that) the worker does all he can to try to save the tree.
III. LET’S NOTICE THE PROSPECTS FOR THE FIG TREE
(Luke 13:9)
A. He Mentioned A Favorable Possibility
(Luke 13:9) And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down.
1. The Bearing Indicates Life
2. The Bearing Indicates Longing
Conclusion
We are led to ask ourselves, "Am I bearing fruit?
I keeping sucking up the nutrients of the soil in which I’ve been planted and when am I going to show some kind of fruit to match the years I’ve been standing in God's garden and all the opportunities I’ve been given?"
Jesus takes a breath and continues. "Leave it alone for one more year", the gardener pleads, "I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. If it bears fruit next year fine! If not, then cut it down."
And with that, Jesus ends his story of the fig tree leaving his listeners to ponder the generosity, the patience, the grace of the gardener. They are struck by the words of the gardener when he says "Leave it alone". The word used by Jesus here also means "forgive". They know now that Jesus wasn’t simply telling a story about a fig tree but he was talking about God and the way he forgives us even though we don’t deserve such generosity and kindness.
You see, God has given us some wonderful soil for growth.
In Colossians chapter 2 we are told, "You have accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord. Now keep on following him. Plant your roots in Christ and let him be the foundation for your life. Be strong in your faith, just as you were taught. And be grateful" (verses 6 & 7).
As God's people we build our lives on Jesus.
? Our very existence, our day-to-day living, our every breathing moment has its source in him.
? We occupy valuable space in the garden. The soil is rich and our roots are there and the owner of the garden is looking for fruit.
? God wants to see in us the kind of fruit that he would expect to see from someone who has been made new and holy through the blood of Jesus; from someone who has been given a new life by the living Jesus.
As 2023 draws to a close he sees all too well what has happened in the past - how our relationships haven’t always been what they could have been.
"Give the tree one more year", the gardener in the vineyard said.
? The owner wanted to chop it down but the gardener isn’t going to give up.
? He’s going to dig around it, turn over the soil, add some fertiliser,
? The soil may be brown and hard-baked, but he’s going to send rain. There’s going to be a change.
? The gardener is determined and he’s going to see to it!
Listen to what Jesus tell us in John chapter 15:5,
"Those who remain in me, and I in them, will bear much fruit; for you can do nothing without me". The key is to be connected to Jesus. He is the one who can enable us to be what we ought to be. We need him to help our branches bear fruit. Without him, we will rate each year that passes below 5 on the 1 to 10 scale!
We are like the fig tree that fails to produce good fruit.
Thank God for the patience and grace of the gardener.
Jesus gives himself for us.
? He becomes the manure, the fertiliser for us as he is rejected, laughed at, crucified as a criminal.
? On the cross, nails, thorn-spikes and spear dig into him.
? He waters the ground with his own blood.
He does everything. We do nothing. We simply trust in his grace. In Christ, we are made beautiful, fruitful gardens.
He digs around so that the love of God pours out of us and begins to work in us and we become lovely people, through Jesus! With his kind of fertiliser we begin to accept others as he was able to accept others … and us.
The parable about the fig tree makes it quite clear that we have been unfruitful, unfaithful, yet in spite of our lack of fidelity, God is faithful.
Be sure of this: Jesus waits for us, spade in hand, wheelbarrow by his side, ready to bring us into 2024. That’s a promise.
Armed with that promise, we can step forward into the New Year ready to let him do the work in us that only he can do.
Thanks him for his goodness in giving you, giving us, one more year of grace!
As we conclude this lesson,
? I want you to remember that God is the judge and His patience will run out at some time. However, I do not want you to focus on that.
? I want you focus on the grace God has granted through His Son, His Spirit, His word and His people. Look for the help with which He has blessed you and lean on that help. Through God’s help you can grow in your fruit bearing, whether you are going from barren to bearing or from thirtyfold to sixty. God is helping you, lean on Him and grow.
Conclusion
We’re just a few days (now minutes) away from changing the calendar, so … this gives us a chance to reflect a little bit on the past 365 days and, hopefully, focus a lot on the next 365 days.
If we choose, we can wipe slate clean from yesterday and begin a new day. There’s nothing special about January 1, of course, but there is something special about the decision to break away from old habits and develop new ones. It can be done any day — January 1 is as good a day as any. The important thing is to devote oneself to doing better and trying harder.
It was said of Hezekiah…
(2 Chronicles 31:21) And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, and in the law, and in the commandments, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart, and prospered.
