Matthew 21:18-22,
'...and said to it, "Let no fruit grow on you ever again." Immediately the fig tree withered away.'

I think that this passage has made a deep impression on the minds of Christians.
In the Bible, the fig appears more than 40 times.
※On Keihoku Kyoko's homepage, there is also an article about the fig. Click here.

The fig is also familiar to the children who come to Sunday school.
That's right! It is the tree which Zacchaeus climbed. However that tree was actually a sycamore tree, which is shorter than a fig, whose branches spread widely and is easy to climb.

In our church, there is a brother who is good at tree-climbing.
Yes! It is amazing. You would never say he is over 40 years old.

☆Now, Today's biblical essence of Ms. Bibli Cal.
Why did Jesus destroy the fig tree?
There are various opinions about this passage.

Open the Bible!! The key is in verse 19.
The Lord Jesus, who was approaching the fig tree...

It is written that "He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves."
At the time, the Lord Jesus thought that there was "fruit" on the tree.
This is also called a "green fig" tree. (Revelation 6:13, Song of Solomon 2:13)
A fig is usually evergreen and bears fruit twice a year.
In early spring, in March, the fig tree has small fruits at the tips of its twigs.
Unripe fruits may be gathered and eaten or even be taken to market.
The foliar buds which come out next are the harbinger of summer.
(This is mentioned also in the scripture about the prophesy of end-times in Matthew 24:32.)
In Palestine, the fruit becomes red in summer.
On good trees, green fruits continue to grow and come to maturity in June.

In other words, I, Ms. Bibli Cal,think that in this scripture, which describes events during the Feast of the Passover, there should have been "green fruit" on the tree.
Yes! According to this theory, the early fruit should have been on the tree.
(Here, I am thinking of the theory based on the Book of Matthew only, not on Mark.)

Therefore, it is the leafy fig on which there seems to bear fruits.
This means that Lord Jesus said, "wither" to the tree which gave a false appearance of bearing fruit.
This is today's message.

How terrifying the unfruitful Christian life is!

Please read and study Nazareth's "The Christian Life Which Blossoms And Bears Fruit."
.
Nazareth says, "We, Christians, shall have a fruitful life."

☆In the Bible, when people relax under their grape vines and fig trees, it represents peace and prosperity. (Micah 4:4, Zechariah 3:10)
In the Bible, a bad harvest of figs and grapes means trouble and hardship.

The other day, I read Jeremiah Chapter 24 in my devotional time with the Lord.
Here, two kinds of figs appear.
You have read it before, haven't you? If not, let us read it together.

Here we find the expression, "figs that are first ripe."
The same expression has appeared in Isaiah 28:4, Hosea 9:10, and Micah 7:1.

It means the figs that ripen the earliest, those which are gathered before the general fig crops are taken to market.
It seems that there are only a few of these early-ripening figs. They smell sweet and taste good.
According to one of the prophesies of Jeremiah (Chapter 24),
he refers to a good fig as the ones who follow God and
a bad fig as the ones who do not follow God.

The Lord Jesus' metaphor about the fig is a prophetic message accompanying a symbolic action, delivered toward priests and scribes.

Today I have opened the Bible here and there, as in a Bible reading,
but let us listen to the word of the Lord quietly, on a long autumn night.

Do you hear the word?
Or do you listen to the word?

※Let us become sweet-smelling figs that are first ripe.

In the Old Testament there is the Second Book of Kings.
Did you know that fig cakes appear here?

The prophet Isaiah brought a lump of dried figs and laid it on the boil of king Hezekiah and he recovered.

A cake of figs...
I, Ms. Bible Cal, looked into this.
I studied a little...And what an amazing Wonderland I found!!
The power in the foods which are mentioned in the Bible.

I won't write about it today, but have a look at my "Gospel Feast." Click here.
The food which God prepares for us is wonderful.
One's "character" changes depending on what one eats or what one has eaten.

You, a sweet young girl who will soon be married!
Be sure to ask the man who is to become your husband...
What he has eaten since he was a child...
In this way you will get to know a little about him. (Some people study this very subject and there are books about it.)
And by seeing his study, you can get a clearer idea about him.
What book and whose book is he reading?
You should ask him.
Even if he is a Christian, by asking him about the books he read previously, in his non-Christian days, you will win the victory, by knowing the spirit behind him in times of quarrel.

I've gone off the track. I will get back to the point.

I wrote about this passage today because there are surprisingly many people who are thinking why Jesus had to destroy the fig tree (and yet do not dare to ask).
Did you understand the essential meaning of this biblical passage?

If you have understood, say "Amen."

"Amen!," "Hallelujah! Thank you Lord."