The Lesson of the Fig Tree (Mark 11:19-26)

19 And when evening came they went out of the city. 20 As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. 21 And Peter remembered and said to him, "Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered." 22 And Jesus answered them, "Have faith in God… .” (Mark 11:19-22)

Disconnection from God Leads to Lifelessness

When Jesus and his disciples returned to Jerusalem and passed the same fig tree that Jesus had cursed the day before, Peter saw that it had withered from the roots. Shocked, he pointed it out to Jesus. Jesus didn't explain the cursing of the fig tree. They would understand it years later by pairing Jesus' rebuke of the temple with his rebuke of the tree. But Jesus did take an opportunity to teach his men. He said, "Have faith in God" (22). The tree was an example. It had no fruit. Now it is withered from the root. Israel had no fruit. And that's because their root had withered. They had disconnected themselves from God. They were far from him, and disconnection from God leads to lifelessness.

Healthy Root = Abundant Fruit

Remember, you are a spiritual being. Your body and mind are important and, if you are saved, they belong to Christ. But he has made you spiritually alive. You can now walk by faith. You are alive in Christ, have the Spirit living in you, and can now walk by faith with God. You can live in a vital and real relationship with God. When you do, when you are properly aligned to and with him, good fruit inevitably flows from your life. You don't have to try to produce fruit. It simply grows out of you because you've walked with God.

Reject Showy Christianity

And part of having faith in God is rejecting showy forms of Christianity. It is one thing to act as if you are in the faith, and another thing entirely to have faith in God. Trust God with your desires, rather than pursue your every impulse. Trust God with your finances, rather than hoard and endlessly fret. Trust God with your future, rather than manipulate to twist it to your liking. Trust God. But, so often, it is easier to pursue a “leafy” life without the fruit of faith. We can slip into the outward show of religiosity without the inner life of prayer, a walk of faith. So don't settle for outward religion. Yearn for more, and reject showy forms of Christianity.

Root Care

As you do, take care of your spiritual roots. As I said, proper alignment with God will lead to fruit. But, often, it is the pursuit of God that most easily falls by the wayside. Schedules are full. Screens call us. Entertainment abounds. I don't even think it's possible to get bored anymore. But all this distraction can be a weapon in our enemy's hands. He wants to keep us from prayer, from the word, from service, and from fellowship. He will do anything he can to fill up your life with decent things as long as he can keep you from the best things, the things that cultivate your spiritual roots, make you strong, and lead to fruit. So don't give in. People talk so much about "self-care" these days, it has become a punchline. But I would encourage you to develop a practice of root care. The spiritual disciplines—church engagement, Bible study, prayer, fasting, fellowship, solitude—these are all important for developing your inner person. The Spirit of Christ takes those actions and works powerfully within. Take care of your spiritual roots.

Observe the Fruitful Disciple

But Jesus didn't stop there with Peter.

23 Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be taken up and thrown into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25 And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses." 26 [ESV margin] But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father who is in heaven forgive your trespasses. Mark 11:23-26 This is a description of the most dynamic prayer life ever. It moves mountains. It has whatever it asks. It believes it has received from God. It forgives because it's forgiven. It is an amazing life of prayer. Shocking stuff. Many have misunderstood Jesus' words. One false conclusion is to think that if we just believe enough, mentally envision something we want enough, it will be ours. Jesus rejects such nonsense. The idea of speaking your dreams into existence is a joke. Another false conclusion is to think of Jesus' words as a blank check, a way to get whatever we want, a way to pursue our dreams. The reason neither of these views is correct is that it misses who Jesus is talking to—disciples whom he's just told to have faith in God. Their entire lives are about to be focused in the direction of his kingdom. And, when their hearts are pure and squarely aimed at God's glory, they could pray with absolute power. These men never understood Jesus' words as a means towards wealth, power, status, or ease, but rather as a way to have the power of God to join them on the mission of God. So when we read Jesus' description, we are merely reading his description of the fruitful disciple.

Mountain Mover

The fruitful disciple moves mountains. There is no point in casting a literal mountain into the sea. This is Jesus' way of highlighting mountain-like issues that hinder God's kingdom in our lives. Every person has come up against mountain-like sins. Every parent has encountered mountain-like obstacles. Every servant of Christ has dealt with mountain-sized limitations. And, for all of them, the fruitful disciple goes to God in confident prayer. They bring God the mountain and plead for his aid. And the cross of Christ makes them confident because if God would not withhold his Son, he will withhold no good thing from his people (Romans 8:32).

Forgiven And Forgiving

This fruitful disciple also forgives. You cannot possibly have a dynamic prayer life when bound by bitter unforgiveness. You might have to go through the exercise of forgiveness nearly every time you approach God in prayer. But do it. There is a doctrinal reason to forgive. If you are in Christ, he has forgiven you. If he has forgiven you, isn't it unfair for you to withhold forgiveness from others? But Jesus mentioned a practical reason to forgive as well. Keeping forgiveness from others, according to Jesus, keeps God's forgiveness to us. This means you will not experience the joy of grace when you refuse to extend grace to others. Bitterness will bind you up. Don't let it happen. Let's have men who desire fruitfulness and impact to come from their lives. Jesus is certainly looking for fruit. Unlike the temple leaders whom Jesus was so angry with that he overturned their tables, posture yourself for others. Self-interests and hobbies that are consuming you and taking you away from your responsibilities must go. Cut them off. Get rid of boyishness and live as a man who moves mountains for your people. Let's have women who refuse to neglect the spiritual root. Our society pays a ton of attention to what a woman is externally, but Jesus sees the hidden person of the heart (1 Peter 3:4). He doesn't want you so distracted and busy and scattered that you have no time for him. You don't need to fast for five days or have a 3-hour quiet time, but don't neglect your spiritual person. Let's be a church that refuses to embrace or congratulate churchiness. We don't need leaves without fruit. We don't want to look pretty while adding nothing to our community. Instead, let's seek God and watch him use us to produce the fruit of mountain-moving, evangelistic, faith-filled, constantly-forgiving fruit.