“As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. And Peter remembered and said to him, ‘Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.’” – Mark 11:20-21
This week celebrates the week that changed the world! At the beginning of the week, Jesus rode into Jerusalem in triumph, hailed as the new king of Israel. By the end of the week, Jesus would be crucified, dead, and buried. Then came that glorious Sunday morning when the resurrected Jesus left the grave behind, victorious over sin and death!
On Tuesday morning, the disciples marveled at the fig tree Jesus had cursed the day before. In one short day, it had withered to its roots. Many today wonder why Jesus did this. They ask what had that poor fig tree done? The answer is that it had the misfortune of representing all that was wrong with the religious leadership of Israel!
The fig tree itself was a symbol of Israel. This particular fig tree had been leafy and green, looking great from a distance. Up close, though, it wasn’t fruitful. This is how the religious leadership was at that time. They looked GREAT from a distance. Very holy, very righteous, very faithful. They had rules upon rules upon rules for being holy on the outside. Inside they were rotten. Spiritually dead. Full of hypocrisy, pride, greed, and condemnation toward others. They were making everyone in their care farther from God rather than closer. All leaf, no fruit. Like the fig tree.
What Jesus did to the fig tree represents what God was doing to the religious leaders of the day. Rejecting their appearance of holy fruitfulness and condemning their continued lack of actual fruitfulness. The cursing of the fig tree was a symbol of the condemnation of the religious leadership. What happened to that tree was what was happening in the temple as Jesus debated and condemned the leaders throughout that week.
As we consider the fig tree today, we should honestly reflect on ourselves. In what aspects of our lives do we look leafy and fruitful on the outside while falling short of Jesus’ commands and expectations inside? How are we like those Pharisees Christ condemned when He cursed that fig tree? #FollowJesus