“Nothing But Leaves”

Recently I was studying Mark 11:13-14, and this part stood out to me:

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.

(Mark 11:13-14, emphasis added)

Why did Jesus have a disliking toward this fig tree that had “nothing but leaves”?

What’s the problem with leaves?

The Root Problem With Leaves

It’s interesting to note that the Greek root word for “leaves” in Mark 11:13 actually means “to swell up.”

This definition led me to two Bible verses as I was doing this study:

…..they speak great swelling words of vanity, …

(2 Peter 2:18, emphasis added)

…their mouth speaketh great swelling words,…..

(Jude 16, emphasis added)

What do these verses mean?

I kinda like how the NLT (New Living Translation) makes these verses clear and easy to understand:

They brag about themselves with empty, foolish boasting.

(2 Peter 2:18 NLT)

They brag loudly about themselves, and they flatter others to get what they want.

(Jude 16 NLT)

So, what’s the basic application we can get from all this?

Boasting Or Growing?

It is likely that the issue Jesus had with the “nothing but leaves” fig tree is because–symbolically speaking–it had only the “leaves” of boastful words, but there was NO FRUIT.

The leafy fig tree symbolizes those who TALK about Jesus, they SAY they follow Jesus, they may even BRAG out how much Bible knowledge they know, but there is NO ACTION corresponding to their verbal profession.

It reminds me of how one of my favorite Bible commentators, Ellen White, put it:

This fig tree flaunted its flourishing branches in the very face of justice; but when Christ came to look for fruit, He searched from the topmost twig to the lowest boughs and found nothing but leaves. It is fruit that He hungers for; fruit He must have.

(Child Guidance pg. 435)

What Jesus is looking for in each of us is the fruits of His Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) growing not only in what we may say or profess, but especially in what we do and how we live.

A Prayer

Friend, do you want your Christian profession to go from your words to your actions in your daily life?

If so, then I wanna encourage you to pray:

Amen! Maranatha!