Notes
The next morning as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. He noticed a fig tree in full leaf a little way off, so he went over to see if he could find any figs. But there were only leaves because it was too early in the season for fruit. Then Jesus said to the tree, “May no one ever eat your fruit again!” And the disciples heard him say it… That evening Jesus and the disciples left the city.
The next morning as they passed by the fig tree he had cursed, the disciples noticed it had withered from the roots up. Peter remembered what Jesus had said to the tree on the previous day and exclaimed, “Look, Rabbi! The fig tree you cursed has withered and died!”
Mark 11:12-14, 19-21
The fig tree represents something that looks like it plays the part on the outside, but on the inside isn’t producing what it should. Jesus took the opportunity to teach what He had come to Earth to do.
Then Jesus said to the disciples, “Have faith in God. I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart. I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours. But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too.”
Mark 11:22-26
He used the fig tree to talk about the Kingdom life that He came to give us; a Kingdom life is one that bears fruit. It’s not just about religious performance; without life transformation, religious activity is as useful as a fig tree that doesn’t produce any figs. But Jesus came to plant a new kind of tree: a tree that makes a difference, that produces good fruit for the Kingdom of God.
If our lives are like trees, how do we produce Kingdom fruit?
1) Faith
Faith is the source of our fruit. Our new life in Jesus, our tree, begins with faith. And faith not in ourselves or what we can do, but in what God, the Creator, has done, is doing, and will do. Trust that God is able. Trust that He can move mountains. Trust that He is enough.
2) Prayer
When they arrived back in Jerusalem, Jesus entered the Temple and began to drive out the people buying and selling animals for sacrifices. He knocked over the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those selling doves, and he stopped everyone from using the Temple as a marketplace. He said to them, “The Scriptures declare, ‘My Temple will be called a house of prayer for all nations,’ but you have turned it into a den of thieves.”
Mark 11:15-17
Prayer multiples our fruit. In the verses above, the people had lost sight of their purpose. They were selling sacrificial animals for exorbitant amounts of money. But Jesus came so that all people, of every nation, can find salvation. We are to be a Church who prays, who gives generously to the world, and who spreads the Good News so that the world can be nourished.
3) Forgiveness
Forgiveness is evidence of our fruit. Through Jesus’ sacrifice, we can find forgiveness for the sins we have committed. When we understand what that means for us, we develop a heart of gratitude toward God for what He has done. Being able to forgive others for what they’ve done against us keeps bitterness and anger from overcoming us, and it is a display of the forgiveness we’ve received from God for ourselves.
Group Questions
- What was the purpose of the fig tree in Mark 11?
- What is Kingdom fruit?
- Why is it important to pray?
- Have you been harboring any unforgiveness in your life? How can you work toward forgiving those who have wronged you?
Prayer
Thank you for taking our old, dead lives and giving us new lives to live through you. Work in us so that you can work through us, so that our lives produce good, Kingdom fruit.