Lessons from the Fig Tree

In this final sermon on Miracles in the book of Mark, we will explore a unique miracle in Mark 11:12-23. On His short trek to Jerusalem from Bethany, Jesus in his hunger sought fruit on a fig tree, but found none. In response, he curses the tree, which withers and dies. This miracle is an outlier among Jesus' works because instead of being restorative (e.g. giving sight to the blind, cleansing a leper, etc.), this miracle is destructive in nature. Rather than an example of the Christ being "hangry", this miracle serves as a parable of judgement against Israel and her fruitlessness. This judgement on Israel is then enacted in the cleansing of the temple before Christ encourages his disciples towards faith in Him in contrast with the faithlessness of Israel. In this text, we see that apart from reliance on Christ, we can do nothing. We also see that our Savior is both kind and severe (Romans 11:22). Jesus righteously condemns fruitlessness, but gives His kingdom to little children such as us who should receive it with awed gratefulness to the Lord.