Tues.’s Devo - Fruit

Read: Mark 11; John 12
Jesus came to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount of Olives. Bethphage means fig house and Bethany means date house. Figs, dates and olives are all fruits that are harvested in the fall. The last three feasts: feast of trumpets, yom kipper, and feast of tabernacles are the feasts that celebrate the harvest of these feasts. Jesus came across a fig tree that was not bearing figs because it was not its season. He cursed it because it had leaves but no fruit. This fig tree represented Israel. In this town of Bethany the people had seen Lazareth rise from the dead and yet they didn’t recognize this was the day of their visitation from the Lord. They missed their season. God’s seasons don’t always coincide with our timetables just as the fig tree didn’t bear fruit yet. The Jews missed their visitation so they were cursed from the roots. We need to be careful that we don’t miss ours. Jesus is coming back to harvest the fruit of the earth. Fruit is not the same as gifts. Gifts are given freely for God’s purposes but fruit is something we purposely yield ourselves to produce. Fruit comes from pruning, cultivating, dying and coming back to life. Jesus hints of the difference between the two in his next speech. He explains that the gift of faith can move mountains but if you don’t have the fruit of forgiveness and love you won’t be forgiven and moving a mountain will be for naught.
In John 12, Mary knew the time of her visitation. She had saved this expensive ointment for this day and knew when to use it. No wonder it made Judas Iscariot so mad. The people who went to praise Jesus as he was coming into town knew their appointment. It was the organized religious group that were suppose to know the time that didn’t. Jesus knew his time also and it was time for the seed to be put into the ground so it would bear much fruit.
Lord, help us to know the times we are in and recognize what you are doing. We want to bear fruit for your harvest.