Luke 13:1-9
A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. And he said to the vinedresser, “Lo, these three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. Cut it down; why should it use up the ground?” And he answered him, “Let it alone, sir, this year also, till I dig about it and put on manure. And if it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.” (Luke 13:6-9)
This is one of the many parables or stories in the Bible. Parables are stories that use every day things and events to teach a lesson. Jesus often told parables to help the disciples and crowds understand what he was talking about. But usually these stories, although they had a moral, were not easy to understand. The parable of the barren fig tree is one of those stories.
We hear that a man planted a fig tree in his vineyards.
Why would someone plant a fig tree in among grape vines? Fig trees belong in orchards with other fig trees, where they can pollinate each other and produce figs. And any farmer who knows anything knows it takes at least three years for a fig tree to produce figs. Seems pretty crazy.
Then the fig tree didn’t produce fruit for three years. He was really unhappy that this tree was taking up space and using water and fertilizer and STILL had not produced a single fig. He was really angry. So he told the gardener to cut the tree down – just get it out of there – get it out of his sight!
Now, the gardener, who was obviously much smarter than the owner, knew about the life of a fig tree and that it couldn’t possibly produce fruit in only 3 years. So he begged the owner to let him continue to fertilize the tree for another year. Then, if the tree still did not produce, he would cut it down.
Jesus told this parable to a group of people who probably did not get it. This is not about the poor fig tree, but about what God expects of His followers.
First of all, the owner is really God. He feeds and nourishes us and expects that we become fruitful, good faithful members of His Kingdom. He provides us with everything we need. But you notice that the fig tree was planted in with grape vines. We are ‘planted’ among those not like us to allow us to flourish and prosper as an example of God’s love.
And God expects us in time to grow and bear ‘fruit’, to be good active members of the community and of His Kingdom. We need to cultivate our relationship with God – let him water, and feed prune us until we bear that fruit. We need to read the Bible, say our prayers and listen to those who can teach us about God’s love.
We need to pay attention to our fruit as it begins to grow– those good figs that make us a good Christian and a good person. . . and those ‘rotten’ figs that we need to change. We all have traits that are good and we need to remember those and count them daily. We need to give thanks for them and live, using them as a yardstick for our daily lives. Those rotten figs which are not good (like always being negative or angry or vengeful) should also be counted. And we need to try and decrease those rotten figs so that each time we
count them, they are less.
We also need to measure how many good figs we have. Too many of us run around, being ‘busy’. But that is like running in circles with one foot nailed to the floor. I know sometimes I find my self so ‘busy’ but realize that I have not accomplished a single thing. All I have done is run around frantically, like a chicken with its head cut off. I have not gotten a single thing accomplished. This is wasted effort! We need to make our busyness productive – to create good figs, not rotten figs or even emptiness.
We need to learn from those who are really fruitful, who produce good figs with everything they do. We all know people we seem to be doing everything right and make the world a better place. We need to study them and see how they are bettering the Kingdom of God. Hang around them, ask questions, learn from them.
We need to become active. . . not sit around waiting for the good figs to suddenly appear. Get out on the streets, spread God’s love, help others who need it. No one ever produced anything good from sitting on our duff and waiting for something to miraculously drop in their lap. Generally, all we get is a bigger lap. Each and every one of us can do something in the community to make it a better place. Get up and get moving. . . but bear good fruit when we do it, not just active for the sake of looking busy.
And as the gardener told the owner, use your manure. We all know that things grow better when they are fed with nutrients. We all have manure in our lives, things that stinkor seem useless. But that stinky stuff can often make us a better more fruitful person. Think about it this way:
God gave us this manure, these hardships, so that our roots can be fertilized, enriched and encouraged to grow – so that we can grow more figs. It doesn’t happen overnight, but it does happen. But we have to use that manure, not to create more garbage, but to feed us and make us grow stronger. It doesn’t happen overnight, but as we grow stronger the amount of manure grows less. . . and doesn’t stink as much.
One of my favorite illustrations is a little boy in a stable digging through horse manure like crazy. When asked what he was doing, he said “I know there’s a pony under here somewhere”. So we need to keep shoveling until we find our pony.
And, MOST OF ALL, we must always remember, even when we aren’t fruitful or still have rotten figs or run around just to look busy, God does not ‘cut us down’. He is like the gardener, who knew what the fig tree needed. He doesn’t give up on us, no matter how much rotten figs we may have. He continues to feed and nourish us until we do bear good fruit. His love is eternal; all we have to do is stay close to Him and let him nourish us.
Let us pray:
Dear Lord, we often let the bad fruit overtake us and forget that you are there to feed and nourish us so that we can become good fruit. Guide us and remind us that we are yours and your love is eternal. Help us to replace all that is not pleasing to you with good fruit.
Amen.
Delivered at In The Garden, Trinity Episcopal Church On Capitol Square, Columbus, OH
3 March 2013
