Where's the Fruit?

Luke: 13:6-8

Although this parable is extremely short and really does not even have a name in scripture, it is one of my favorites. This parable truly changed my life about 10 years ago. Let's break it down to see what Jesus is teaching...

The "man" who owns the vineyard is God. According to theologians, the "fig tree" can be the nation of Israel or can refer to an individual soul. And the "man who took care of the vineyard" could refer to the Holy Spirit. So, the man is walking through his garden and he comes upon a tree that has no fruit. This is not the first time he has checked to see if this tree was bearing fruit. He has actually been checking on it regularly for an ample period of time and it still has no fruit. He decides to get the tree out of the way. It is taking up space. But, the gardener intervenes and pleads for the tree. He asks the owner to give him "one more year" to dig around it and fertilize it. Basically he is saying, "just give me one more year to do everything I know to do to get this tree to bear fruit!" But in the end he even says that if it does not bear fruit after that, cut it down.

God is constantly walking through his "garden". If we are in Christ, he is checking our lives for "fruit". If we are not producing fruit for an ample period of time, based on this parable I truly believe that the Holy Spirit pleads for us, asking God for more time. But, when that time is up if we are still not producing fruit, "cut it down" can be interpreted one of two ways.

The first way could be that we would have rendered ourselves ineffective. Have you ever felt God leading you in a certain direction, but you refused? After a while, possibly a long while, that leading may go away. God found someone else to do what he was leading us to do. Some pastors refer to this as being "put up on a shelf" by God.

The second way "cut it down" could be interpreted is not very uplifting, but none the less true. If the Christian is not producing fruit after God has done everything He will do to lead His child to live for Him, this person could be literally "cut down", meaning death. I know this is not very uplifting, but I do believe scripture teaches us this. We have also all heard stories about once Godly people who fell into some type of sinful lifestyle and refused to repent that suddenly died. I truly believe that God will not be mocked. We have a job to do. If we refuse to do it, we are taking up "soil".

When I first read this passage and heard a message on it, I literally ran to the altar. I do not want to die not living for Christ nor do I want to be "put up on a shelf" to live the remainder of my natural life ineffective for Christ. I know that you do not want that either. God is serious about this fruit thing. Let's be about His business today and "bear much fruit" for Him.