Matthew 21:18-27

“...but when he came to [the fig tree], [Jesus] found nothing except leaves...” Matt 21:19b CEB 

I am classically terrible at keeping plants alive. They require water, sunlight, appropriate room temperature, and, well, attention, and quite frankly, I often forget that I have said plants. 

And while today’s Scripture isn’t about Jesus forgetting the fig tree, it is about what happens when we don’t pay attention. Jesus was an artist at crafting the right object lesson for the people he was teaching, and even though most pastors prefer to shy away from this passage, it is anything but forgettable.  

Jesus approaches this fig tree and notices there’s nothing more than leaves on it. Now, at this point in the season, there should have at least been the start of figs preparing for the season ahead, buds awaiting the coming season. But none were to be found. This plant, though appearing healthy from a distance, had no possibility of producing fruit once the season of providing fruit to those in need actually arrived. 

Though harsh, Jesus is reminding us here that we are to have more to the branches of our spiritual lives than just the leaves you can see from a distance. Our life of faith and following Jesus isn’t about what people can see but about what we are doing to change the lives of those around us.  

Are our lives dense with the foliage of busyness and external fluff, or are we producing fruit made from the depths of authentic discipleship? In other words, are we following Jesus in name only or do our actions look like that of a follower of Jesus? 

In the end, this really is about keeping plants alive – our spiritual journey and life of faith is that plant. We have to water our faith, feed and nurture our souls, and pay attention to the life of discipleship Jesus has called us to. Once we’ve studied the Scripture and offered our prayers, we must then ask: where is our God leading us to action today? Only then will our plant blossom and grow with the kind of fruit Jesus calls us to cultivate.  - Allison