Sunday's Message: The Parables of Jesus - The Fig Tree (Mark 13:28-31)

In the months of September, October and November, we'll discuss the following parables found in the Gospel of Mark:

• September 22 - New Wine and Old Clothes (Mark 2:21-22)
• September 29 - A Strong Man (Mark 3:23-27)
• October 6 - The Sower (Mark 4:1-20)
• October 13 - Lamps and Baskets (Mark 4:21-25)
• October 20 - A Growing Seed (Mark 4:26-29)
• October 27 - The Mustard Seed (Mark 4:30-32)
• November 3 - Clean and Unclean (Mark 7:14-23)
• November 10 - The Wicked Tenants (Mark 12:1-11)
• November 17 - The Fig Tree (Mark 13:28-31)

During the service on Sunday, November 17, we used Mark 13:28-31 to better understand the parable of the fig tree. Below is the text and a recording of the sermon. You can stream the service by going to the Sligo Presbyterian Church YouTube Channel on Sundays at 10:00 a.m. (EDT).  You can hear a podcast of the service at the Sligo Presbyterian Church YouTube Channel or the Sligo Presbyterian Spotify Page. 

Well, here we are, about a week and half away from Thanksgiving. And then, about a month later, we’re at Christmas. And around the Rudiger house, well, things are looking pretty good right now, even though Maggie told us that, because her boyfriend’s family will be celebrating Thanksgiving on Thursday and Friday and maybe Saturday (he has a pretty big family), we’ll be eating on Wednesday. But things are still looking good. For example, I’ve already bought our turkey. And since some of the noodles were used to make the soup for the bazaar, it’s now in the church freezer. Still, I don’t want to get cocky. I mean, after the 28th, all kinds of decorations will need to be unpacked, hauled up and set out, to say nothing of all the gifts that need to be bought, wrapped and delivered. Let’s just say, before you know it, time will soon be getting a little short.

And I’ll tell you, that’s what we’re going to be talking about during the last message in this series we started way back in September. I mean, over the past eight weeks, we’ve been looking at some of the parables found in the Gospel of Mark. And during that time, we’ve actually considered a lot of stuff we’re called to feel and to think and to do. I mean, we’ve discussed how we should be open to the new while also giving value to what’s old. And we’ve talked about how we need to work for our unity while also trusting in God’s power. And then we went through four parables related to how we should be out in the world scattering the word. And then we considered the meaning of clean and unclean as well as the consequences of taking the blessings we’ve been given for granted. Now, these are things we’ve already covered. 

And I’ll tell you, I think what we’re looking at this morning is actually the perfect way to end this series, and I’ll tell you why. You see, even though we’ve covered a bunch of material, I think it’s really easy for us to look at it all sort of like a whole lot of folks view Christmas, even in the middle of November. I mean, they say, “Sure it’s coming. And sure we have a lot to do. But there’s still time. There’s still time to put out the decorations, and there’s still time to pass out the presents. Good night nurse, we’ve got almost a month and a half for crying out loud.” It’s kind of like T.S. Eliot wrote in his poem The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock:

There will be time, there will be time 

To prepare a face to meet the faces that you meet;

There will be time to murder and create,

And time for all the works and days of hands 

That lift and drop a question on your plate;

Time for you and time for me,

And time yet for a hundred indecisions,

And for a hundred visions and revisions,

Before the taking of a toast and tea. 

[T.S. Eliot, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock]

You see, whether we’re talking about getting ready for Christmas or making a decision or doing what God has called us to do, it’s really easy to assume there will always be time, until, that is, there isn’t. 

And I’ll tell you, that’s what we’re going to talk about this morning. You see, we’re going to look at the parable of the fig tree, a story that I think has a lot to do with time. And as we’ve done eight times before, we’re going to answer three questions. What did Jesus actually say? And what does it mean? And then, what are we going to do about it? And hopefully, by the time we’re done, we will have worked a little urgency into the lives we’re living and the faith we’re reflecting.

But to get there, we’ve really got to answer the question, what did Jesus say? And as it’s been with a lot of his other stories, to get his point, I think it’s really important to understand the context, both before and after. For example, before he told this brief parable about a fig tree, Jesus was with his disciples in the Temple, there in Jerusalem. And since this was all happening right before his arrest and crucifixion, he was sort of preparing them not only for his going away but also for his coming back. And so, with this in mind, right before telling our story, Jesus said this about his return:

In those days, right after this time of suffering,

“The sun will become dark,

and the moon

    will no longer shine.

The stars will fall,

and the powers in the sky 

    will be shaken.”

Then the Son of Man will be seen coming in the clouds with great power and glory. He will send his angels to gather his chosen ones from all over the earth. [Mark 13:24-27, CEV]

Now, this was something he wanted his disciples to know.

And I’ll tell you, after sharing this, Jesus changed gears just a little bit by shifting the focus from the not yet to the right now. In other words, he pointed his followers toward the implications of what he’d just said by telling this very brief parable about a fig tree:

Learn a lesson from a fig tree. When its branches sprout and start putting out leaves, you know summer is near. So when you see all these things happening, you will know that the time has almost come. [Mark 13:28-29, CEV]

And then, to make sure they knew he was talking about them, Jesus continued:

You can be sure that some of the people of this generation will still be alive when all this happens. The sky and the earth will not last forever, but my words will. [Mark 13:30-31, CEV]

Now that’s what he said, but he wasn’t finished. You see, to tie up what he wanted them to know about the future, after the story and explanation, Jesus offered this little appendix:

No one knows the day or the time. The angels in heaven don’t know, and the Son himself doesn’t know. Only the Father knows. So watch out and be ready! You don’t know when the time will come. [Mark 13:32-33, CEV]

Now, that’s literally what Jesus said, the answer to our first question.

And so, what does it mean? I mean, what was Jesus getting at when he offered his disciples a little story right between some stuff about what’s going to happen in the future and how they should be ready in the present? In other words, what lesson did he want disciples then and now to take from the parable of the fig tree? Now, that’s the question.

And in my opinion, it points toward two undeniable and unavoidable truths. For example, I think it reminds us that the end, our end is near. I mean, whether we like it or not, the branches are sprouting and putting out leaves. It’s nearly summer. And the fields have been sown and the wheat is actually heading. In other words, the big day is almost here. And even though, in the passage we’re looking at, the day has everything to do with Christ’s return, when you think about it, it’s every bit as dramatic and probably more pertinent when we relate it to our departure. Put as bluntly as I can, we are going to die. That’s also an undeniable, unavoidable fact of life. But you know, in practical terms, it really doesn’t matter whether it’s Jesus coming back to us or us going up to him, the reality is that, as the sign says, the end is near.

And I’ll tell you, because of that, this little story reminds us that we really need to do something with the time we now have. You see, like it or not, our time here is limited. And even though we’d like to assume there will always be more, that just isn’t true. We’re not eternal; therefore, we have a beginning and an end. And speaking just for myself, my end is a heck of a lot closer than my beginning. And you know, for that reason, we’re just being foolish, if we decide to wait, to leave for tomorrow what we know we should be doing today and to assume that somehow, some way, if we put it off long enough, the knot will simply untie itself. No, just saying it sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it? I mean, since the branches are budding and putting forth leaves; it’s almost summer for crying out loud; therefore, now is the time to take action, isn’t it. Now is the time to become everything God has created us to be. And now is the time to do those things that God has equipped and empowered us to do. You see, because the end is near, now is the time to act. And for me, that’s what I believe the parable means, the answer to our second question.

Which leaves us with question number three, doesn’t it: what are we going to do about it? In other words, what are we going to do now that the fig tree is budding and leafing out, and summer is nearly here? And what are we going to do, now that we know that our end is nearer today than it was yesterday and because of that, we better get going? My gosh, what are we going to do knowing what we know? Now, as I’ve said before, this is a “rubber hitting the road” kind of question, isn’t it? And even though I think we can probably answer it in several different ways, let me suggest briefly three things we might want to consider.

You see, first, I think we can decide to look, and I’m talking about looking for opportunities to do the things we’ve been called to do, you know, like scattering seeds in a field and like being salt and light in a bland and dark world and like showing the owner of the vineyard how much we appreciate the opportunity we’ve been given. You see, it’s taking the time and making the effort to look and to listen, to think and to feel, so that we have a sense of how God actually wants us to show our love for both him and for one another. Now that’s something we can do, because if we don’t, well, the consequences may not be what we want. I mean, remember how, before he gave the parable of the fig tree, Jesus talked about the return of the Son of Man? Well, according to the Evangelist Matthew, this return will result in some judgement, in other words, some future consequences grounded in what we choose to see and what we choose to ignore right now. You see, after talking about the blessings that will go to the nations on his right, the sheep, just listen to what Jesus said to the goats: 

Then the king will say to those on his left, “Get away from me! You are under God’s curse. Go into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels! I was hungry, but you did not give me anything to eat, and I was thirsty, but you did not give me anything to drink. I was a stranger, but you did not welcome me, and I was naked, but you did not give me any clothes to wear. I was sick and in jail, but you did not take care of me.”

Then the people will ask, “Lord, when did we fail to help you when you were hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in jail?”

The king will say to them, “Whenever you failed to help any of my people, no matter how unimportant they seemed, you failed to do it for me.” [Matthew 25:41-45, CEV]

You see, in light of this story, first, right now, we can decide to look.

And then, second, we can decide to act. In other words, we can decide to roll up our sleeves and get to work. You see, we can decide that we’re not going to put off showing love to others. We’re not going to put off feeding the hungry and giving drink to the thirsty. We’re not going to put off welcoming the stranger and clothing the naked. We’re not going to put off caring for the sick and comforting the prisoner. Instead, as best we can, using the gifts and talents we’ve been given, man, we’re going to show that mercy and compassion and grace which God wants us to show, right here and now. Of course, based on where we are and what we see, there’s a lot of different things we can do. But for me, it all comes down to doing the very best we can with what we have, believing that God has put us on this hill and God has placed us in this field and God has entrusted us with this vineyard for a reason. And even if we’re not always sure about why, we can be confident that it always involves reflecting the light and scattering the seeds and seeing the opportunity we have as precious. Put another way, it’s showing the world that, because we’re heavenly minded, we are going to strive for an earthly good. And I’ll tell you, in that way, we’re really following the command offered by James in his letter:

My friends, what good is it to say you have faith, when you don’t do anything to show you really do have faith? Can this kind of faith save you? If you know someone who doesn’t have any clothes or food, you shouldn’t just say, “I hope all goes well for you. I hope you will be warm and have plenty to eat.” What good is it to say this, unless you do something to help? Faith that doesn’t lead us to do good deeds is all alone and dead! [James 2:14-17, CEV]

You see, in light of this story, second, right now, we can decide to act.

And finally, we can also decide to trust, to trust that God is with us and that won’t change regardless of whether we succeed or fail. You see, it’s really easy to become discouraged. And even when we know that our end may be near and that our time is limited, disappointments can sure drain our energy and enthusiasm. In fact, I think we can become so drained and so discouraged and so disappointed that we just want to throw up our hands and give up. But I’ll tell you, it’s at those moments that I believe we need to be very intentional in our faith, trusting that God will not let us down and that the time will come when his will is going to be done on earth just like it is in heaven. As a matter of fact, I think it’s like following the advice Paul had for the Galatians:

You cannot fool God, so don’t make a fool of yourself! You will harvest what you plant. If you follow your selfish desires, you will harvest destruction, but if you follow the Spirit, you will harvest eternal life. Don’t get tired of helping others. You will be rewarded when the time is right, if you don’t give up. We should help people whenever we can, especially if they are followers of the Lord. [Galatians 6:7-10, CEV]

You see, in light of this story, right now, we can decide to trust. And that’s the third thing we can do.

And that brings to a close our look at the parable offered by Jesus in the Gospel of Mark. But before we leave them behind and start something new that will be in keeping with the reason for the coming season, let’s pause for just a second and remember that, regardless of what we’ve been told to feel or to think or to do, our end is certainly coming and our lives are limited; therefore, now is the time to act. And for that reason, I believe it’s important, right here and now, to decide that we’re going to look and we’re going to act and we’re going to trust even if what we end up seeing is huge and what we end up doing is difficult. And I’ll tell you, that’s why I believe the perfect story to finish up this series is the simple yet profound parable of the fig tree.