How
long does it take for a tree to wither? Before I moved to Florida, I would have
thought that it could take weeks or months. But now that I am here, I notice
that some of my shrubs wither on a hot afternoon. The leaves all go limp, and
hang downward. They usually perk back up when they get some cool in the evening
and the dew in the morning, or if they are lucky I will put the hose on them
for a minute or two to give them a drink.
Jesus
has left Jerusalem which is packed with pilgrims preparing for Passover. All
the available beds are taken, and Jesus and His disciples have chosen to stay
outside the city limits, about two miles away. So they travel there in the
evening.
The
next morning they take the same route back into Jerusalem. Along the way they
pass the fig tree Jesus cursed the day before. It didn’t have any fruit. And
Jesus uses the occasion to teach an object lesson about the spiritual state of
Jerusalem and the Jewish leadership. They were devoid of spiritual fruit.
As
I have read this account in the past I always had the picture of a tree dried
up with brown crinkly leaves. But now that I have experienced what withered trees
look like, I have a different picture of this tree. The day before the leaves
were perky, ready to do their job. I imagine the leaves withered, hanging limp,
screaming for some moisture. Jerusalem wasn’t dead yet, it needed a new source
of water. The old way of doing business wasn’t cutting it. Jesus was offering
to change all that. And He did.
One
of the important lessons we need to learn in life is to recognize when something
is withered spiritually. We need to see it in ourselves and in others. We need
to see it in organizations and movements.
If
there is not fruit, or fruit that remains and fulfills its intended function,
then perhaps withering has started. When we look at church history, when
withering starts, God raises up a fresh movement. It can sometimes take a
generation to recognize that death has set in, but once withering starts,
unless there is a fresh source of moisture, death will follow.
We
can see it happening is several denominations today. They have abandoned the
source of spiritual strength, the Scriptures. They have become a source of
truth for themselves, accepting and rejecting what they want to believe, what
is politically palatable and comfortable for everyone. They have eliminated the
offense of the Cross.
And
the Cross is the source of new water, new life. Without the Cross, we have a naïve
man dying believing a lie, and His disciples continuing that lie, foisting this
hoax on countless millions who followed. We really are to be pitied if Christ
didn’t die and rise again.