Wednesday, March 14, 2007
The Fig Tree Dilema
The part in Mark where Jesus cursed the fig tree I had never understood until Dr. Foster elaborated on why Jesus despised the tree. You see if a fig tree has leaves it must bear fruit because that the way God made it. Before knowing this I thought Jesus could have cursed all of the fig trees in the area cause non of them would bear fruit if it was not the season for figs. However now I realise that if any leaves are on the tree, it must have some fruit, it just may not ripe. Maybe Jesus planned to eat the unripe fruit. Who knows ? We do know that Jesus said to the tree "may no one ever eat fruit from you again." Now I realise his frustration because off in the distance when he was approaching tree he thought beauty, it has leaves on it, so I can eat from it. Only to realise when he got closer that the tree was deceiving and he could not eat from it.
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To take that logic further, consider why Jesus did it...it was to teach the disciples. It was more than simply angrily cursing a broken tree; it was about foreshadowing a spiritual event, and teaching the disciples about faith. Mark, recorded it with an emphasis on foreshadowing. We read it, and lack understanding as to why the fig tree should have been bearing fruit.
This is one of my favorite passages in Mark, because when we went over it in New Testament, I learned about the Markan Sandwich. (I like it so much, I'm actually doing my paper over it!) It is so amazing how this story alludes to the deadness of the temple. It looks like exciting faith is happening, it has all the signs of being alive, but no fruit to show for it...so, like the fig tree, it is cursed.
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