Imagine that you are a fruit tree, a fig tree. You are designed to produce figs. But how long will a gardener leave a tree that does not fulfill its purpose before he cuts it down? Similarly, how long will God allow men and women to live unrepentantly, rejecting His authority, before He cuts them down in justice?

Jesus demonstrates that the Lord is not quick to cut down; He allows the vinedresser extra time to prepare the soil for fruit, but judgment comes for us all. Just as Jesus said in yesterday’s passage, unless you repent you will perish, the same applies here to the life which is unrepentant and does not produce fruit.

[Luke 13.6-9]

6 And he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. 7 And he said to the vinedresser, ‘Look, for three years now I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground?’ 8 And he answered him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure. 9 Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’”

[ WHAT ] is this passage saying and what is a key truth or thought that we learn?

+ Why is the man upset? What does he want to do? [v. 7]

+ What does the vinedresser ask for? What does he plan to do with the fig tree? What does he hope will happen with the fig tree? [v. 8]

+ If the fig tree still didn’t bear fruit after all this special care and nurture, what would we assume about it?

+ In this parable, who does the man who planted the fig tree represent? Who is the fig tree?

+ What do you think is required for a person to produce fruit in this story?

[ HOW ] is the Lord calling me to action/obedience?

+ Is there sin to confess or a next step to take? How has it gone since last time?

+ Have I repented of living my life my own way, submitted to the Lord, and given my time and efforts to Him?

+ Is my life marked by the fruit of the Spirit?

[ WHO ] am I walking with and praying for to discover Jesus?

+ What is my next step?

+ Who can I mentor and invest in (or in the metaphor, manure and tend the roots of their lives) to help them see their need to surrender to God and truly live?