"Where's the fruit?"

I was reading in Mark 11-12 today for my quiet time, and I came across this and it really caused me to stop and think.

"And on the morrow, when they were come from Bethany, he was hungry: And seeing a fig tree afar off having leaves, he came, if haply he might find any thing thereon: and when he came to it, he found nothing but leaves; for the time of figs was not yet. And Jesus answered and said unto it, No man eat fruit of thee hereafter for ever. And his disciples heard it.

 And they come to Jerusalem: and Jesus went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves; And would not suffer that any man should carry any vessel through the temple. And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.

 And the scribes and chief priests heard it, and sought how they might destroy him: for they feared him, because all the people was astonished at his doctrine." (Mark 11:12-18, KJV)

Now, most of us are pretty familiar with the cleansing of the temple, but not so much with the first section. This part with the fig tree is, for the most part, overlooked. However, there is a message within that passage that is important to note. Let me explain.

Typically, fig trees produce fruit around the same time as it does its leaves, so a fig tree with leaves should have fruit. However, this one did not. It showed signs of fruit but there was none. How often is our "American Christianity" like this tree? We show signs of fruit, we may even talk about the fruit, and discuss how to produce it in our lives, but we don't actually have it. You have faith, but not works (James 2:17) We look healthy and fruitful but are, in reality, empty. We are hypocrites if we live like this. Jesus reaction to the fig tree shows His anger toward hypocrisy. He wants to see fruit in our lives ( the fruit of the Spirit, and doing what He calls us to do), and is very upset when we look like we are fruitful when in fact we not.

Now, this particular passage leads up to the next, with Jesus clearing the temple. The temple was supposed to be a sacred, set apart place, holy, and a place of worship. On the outside, it appeared to be so, but of course, as we know, it was filled with sin and disregard for holiness. When Jesus cleared the temple, it was because of the lack of fruit and the disregard of God's holiness, and the holiness of His temple. How about you or me? Are we fruitful? It grieves my LORD to have me not be fruitful and yet look so. May it never be in my life, or in yours. We are His temples. If there is any unclean thing, and that which in not fruit, it needs to be cleansed.

Now I realize that this is almost going into two separate points, but they are also connected. We need to be fruitful, and cleanse anything that is not from ourselves. We are His temple, so we must be holy, and bear fruit.  He cleansed the Temple because there was no fruit; instead there was things that were wrong.

Here is what I am driving towards. We need to be Holy, and set apart, but we also need to have fruit. May we not be lacking in either! If there is anything, any sin or impure thing in our lives, we need to drive it out! We need Jesus to pick up a whip and drive it out of our lives. On the same note, we need to bear fruit, to live out our faith. May we bear fruit for our King, and lack not. May we not be giving the appearance of fruit, but not having it, being a hypocrite, talking the talk but not walking the walk.

So consider this a call, first of all to be Holy, and to cleanse your temple of any sin, and secondly, bear fruit. Don't be hypocrite. Don't be found lacking in fruit, or your temple unclean when Christ returns.

For His Glory!