This is my favorite of all the Holy Week scripture readings.
I can;t always relate to Jesus’ words and actions. Lord knows that I am far from a miracle worker. I don’t always think, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” But walking into a sanctuary and immediately wanting to knock everything over…That I can identify with. And while I would love to spend my devotional time talking about Thieves in the Temple, I think that’s low hanging fruit.
But I do want to talk about fruit, however. The cursing of the fig tree bothers me. The Bible says Jesus was hungry (another aspect of Jesus which I can easily relate to), and so he looks to this fig tree for fruit, and finding none, he cursed the tree to never bear fruit again. This seems harsh to me. First, it wasn’t even fig season. Why is Jesus looking for fruit where there wouldn’t normally be fruit? A preacher might tell you that Jesus was foreshadowing the scripture be ready in and out of season. That’s a fair assessment. I think there is more here. I think this is Jesus demonstrating his full humanity. As humans sometimes our physical needs outweigh our other sensibilities.
Remember those Snickers commercials, “You’re not you, when you’re hungry?” This picture of Jesus is an early version of that. When you’re hungry, sick, tired, heart-broken depressed, angry, anxious, too hot, too cold,etc., you don’t necessarily have your wits about you. We often make rash decisions when we are in less than ideal conditions. See Philippians 3:19.
Jesus, who had already turned water to wine, who had already healed people and raised them from the dead doesn’t use his miracle working power to manifest bread for himself. Instead, he curses the thing that he felt should have brought him food.
Today, I ask myself, what things in my life have I cursed, not necessarily because they were fruitless, but because I was demanding fruit in the wrong season? What things or people have I condemned for not helping me, when I clearly could have helped myself? In what ways have I caused destruction, when I simply could have said nothing?
Today, I’m praying for forgiveness. Lord, knows I need it. But I’m also praying that the Lord does not find me to be fruitless when the time comes.
The Gospel According to Gabrielle 