Fig Trees, Foam Rubber and Forgiveness
“When
you pray, if you remember anyone who has wronged you, forgive him so that God
above can also forgive you. Mark 11:25
Imagine
your life is a garden. You’ve planted rows of corn, green beans, tomatoes and
other vegetables. You prepared the earth, broke up the clods, added the right
fertilizer and placed the seeds in the proper lines. You look forward to a
harvest to put on your table in the Fall.
But
suppose that is all you did. In my world, that is exactly how gardening should
be done. Plant the seeds, come back in a few weeks, put the produce in a basket
and enjoy the benefits of your labor. Isn’t that how God does it? I have yet to
see Him out and about in the forests making sure the evergreens are sprouting
just right.
You
see, I think that is part of why Jesus is so upset about a fig tree earlier in
this story. Jesus and his disciples were on their way to Jerusalem and spotted
a fig tree in full leaf, indicating it should also have fruit. Jesus was
hungry, but there was no fruit on the tree. In fact Mark tells us that “fig
season had not yet come.” Jesus pronounces a curse on the tree saying, “No one
will eat fruit from your branches again.”
I know,
that sounds harsh! So, hang with me here. Outwardly the tree showed every
evidence that it was producing fruit. Yet, there was not a single sweet fig on
the entire tree! Imagine the disappointment.
I can.
Years ago I was a youth pastor in southern Oklahoma. The church had a reception
to welcome us our first Sunday. So, we all gathered in the basement with
everyone congregated around a table with silverware, plates, napkins and a
beautifully decorated sheet cake. One of the board members gave me the
ceremonial knife and asked me to cut the cake.
Starting
in the middle, I ran the serrated edges down through the frosting and into the
cake. Unfortunately, the dense cake resisted my efforts. As I sawed
unsuccessfully the cake merely compressed under the blade. I wondered if it was
angel food cake…the most difficult to cut in the world.
I
continued trying to divide the cake with the knife, all the while pretending
that nothing was wrong. I mean, someone had taken the time to bake it, there
was no way I was going to insult them with a squirming look on my face trying
to get through the first cut. So, as unobtrusively as I could, I continued to
stab the resistant cake.
I started to notice the
looks on the people’s faces. Were they laughing at me? What? Here I am, trying
to be diplomatic about somebody’s shoddy cake baking and all I get is derision?
What have I gotten myself into with this crowd? (Ok, you just caught two
seconds of my inner monologue.)
That’s when the looks
broke out into full-on giggles and hoots. The board member took the knife from
me, scraped away a square of icing from the cake and showed me the problem. It
wasn’t a faulty baker. The cake was a sheet of foam rubber! I laughed with everyone
else. Who doesn’t like a prank at their own expense?
At that point I was
ready for the “real” cake. Only problem, there wasn’t one. That was it,
cake-cutting was over. I mean, this is the South, people. This is hospitality
country…and there wasn’t a “real” cake?
I think I understand
what Jesus must have been thinking when there wasn’t any “real” fruit on that
fig tree.
The disciples notice
later that the fig tree has withered to the roots and are amazed. Jesus tells
them to trust God, and if they do, they can tell any mountain to throw itself
into the sea, and, splash, that mountain takes a dive. “Whatever you pray for
or ask from God, believe that you’ll receive it and you will,” he says.
Jesus then offers the most important "mountain" many of us need to pray away. He tells us to forgive others immediately when we pray. Withered trees. Swan diving
mountains. Foam rubber cakes. Forgiving people who have wronged us. I think I
see the connection.
Remember our garden? In
the real world it needs to be tended, doesn’t it? A good gardener checks the
plot regularly. Weeds must be removed, pests eliminated. Trees need to be
pruned. An untended garden, no matter how well planted, will quickly be overrun
with undesirable vegetation and will produce little to no fruit.
And so, we must tend our
inner garden. We must remove the grudges that grow like weeds and prevent the
fruit of God’s grace from coming to full maturity. We must actively forgive
the wrongs done against us as a way to remove the pesky pests of
jealousy, bitterness and a host of other fruit-killers.
When you pray, the first
order of business is forgiveness. Not your own, by the way. No, Jesus tells us
forgiving others comes before asking for our own forgiveness. Isn’t that how it
should be? I need the grace of God. I crave it. I cannot live without it. I am
a parched man needing the cold springs of grace to quench my thirst.
How, then, knowing how
needy I am, can I refuse the same refreshment that God in Christ has offered
me? Let’s tend our gardens. Today, as you pray, imagine your heart as a garden,
and ask the Holy Spirit to help you do a bit of weeding. Forgive. Today. Your
own spiritual wellness depends on it.
help you do a bit of
weeding. Forgive. Today. Your own spiritual wellness depends on it.
