Context
Fresh off the heady moment of glory, when Jesus rode in on the donkey with the adoring crowds shouting "hosanna," he headed into the Temple area and found things were not as they should be. There were merchants turning the the worship of the Lord into a money-making opportunity, bilking the people of God for personal profit. Jesus was not going to put up with this and he drove these men out in the most forceful way.
It was quite a beginning to "Passion Week." Jesus did not play to the crowds or seek to build on his popularity, but he sought to glorify God and call the nation to obedience to him.
It was quite a beginning to "Passion Week." Jesus did not play to the crowds or seek to build on his popularity, but he sought to glorify God and call the nation to obedience to him.
Devotional - The Offense of Fruitlessness
It was an odd moment for our Savior. He was walking with his disciples from Bethany the morning after his Triumphal Entry and he was hungry. He spied a fig tree along the way but it had nothing but leaves - no figs, no food. Jesus "cursed" the tree (no, he used no foul language - he just spoke a word of judgment against it). "May it never bear fruit again." (Mark 11:14).
Why did Jesus curse the fig tree? We know he was not petulant - he did not pout or lose his cool. There was a message behind this activity. And it seems to me the message is pretty clear.
A lack of fruit is an offense to the Redeemer.
Jesus Christ bought us with a price, his own body sacrificed for our sins. According to 1 Corinthians 6, we are obligated, having been redeemed by his blood, to honor him with our bodies, our very lives. We are redeemed to serve Christ, to make a difference in this world in his name.
We are planted to bear fruit. And fruitlessness is an offense to our Savior. He is not going to curse us as he did the tree, but we can rest assured that when our lives are not invested in eternal things, when we are not answering the call he has on us, when we are not reproducing our faith, it is offensive to Christ.
Jesus, my Savior, may I never offend you by failing to bear fruit.
Think and Pray
If Jesus was inspecting the fruit of your life, what would he say?
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