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Luke Chapter 13 is the focus of our attention this week and in particular, verses 1-9. Please read them every day this week and, if possible, use a different translation each day, asking God to open your eyes to fresh revelation from His Word.
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Luke 13:6-7 (NLT)
‘Then Jesus told this story: “A man planted a fig tree in his garden and came again and again to see if there was any fruit on it, but he was always disappointed. Finally, he said to his gardener, ‘I’ve waited three years, and there hasn’t been a single fig! Cut it down. It’s just taking up space in the garden.’
Over the years, I’ve been the subject of quite a few insults. I have heard many derogatory terms thrown in my direction, mostly when I was trying to play rugby. In my place of work, during my annual appraisals I’ve heard some less than flattering descriptions of the work I’m involved in.
In all honesty though, I’ve probably given more insults than I’ve received. Praise God that He’s given me the time to change and thankfully, I’m nowhere near as harsh or as unloving as I was. When I think of the types of insults I used to use, perhaps one of the worse ones could almost be said ‘half-jokingly’ – “He’s a waste of space”. I confess to have used that particular one on many occasions when I considered that the person’s behaviour or work didn’t meet my own subjective standard. It’s quite appalling to think back on how judgemental I was and how dismissive I was of most people. As I’ve said, I’m so grateful for the ‘depth of grace, the forgiveness found’. His grace truly is amazing otherwise I would be in a desperate state.
That particular insult is trying to say that the physical space the person is using up would be better served by someone else or perhaps by nothing at all. In the parable Jesus is using here, the last phrase of our verses today sounds almost like ‘A waste of space’ and the ground in which the tree is planted could be best used by another tree.
What causes the owner to speak such words? For three years, the man had been visiting this tree to check on its progress, desperately waiting for the fruit that was expected. I mentioned yesterday that the ground had been prepared and that there was good soil for the tree. The gardener had done a good job, looking after the tree making sure that it had everything it needed to produce fruit. Yet here we see that after 3 long years of patient expectation, the owner has nothing to show for his investment. You can see his frustration in his choice of words: ‘Not a single fig! Cut it down, it’s just taking up space in the garden’.
If we give some application to these verses, it’s possible to see several things that could be related to the Church. Corinthians says that God has placed the parts of the body where He wants them to be. We can therefore see that this particular fig tree could be applied to your life or mine. God has planted us in His vineyard and is looking for fruit in our lives. God forbid that despite His patience, we have nothing to show after several years. I pray that none of us will be in a position where God thinks that someone else should take our place!
There is however, another translation of ‘taking up space’. The original language could be interpreted as meaning that the ground is being ‘made barren’ by the tree. It’s an awful thought to consider that any of us could be the cause of God’s soil being made infertile. The implication is that the barrenness of the tree is having an effect on the soil itself. I’m aware of some churches that have closed their doors despite years of fruitfulness. Could it be that it is caused by one tree eventually poisoning the ground and bringing about complete barrenness? May the seriousness of that thought bring us to complete surrender to His will and strive for fruitfulness in every area of our lives.
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