Then Jesus told this story: "A man planted a fig tree in his garden and came again and again to see if there was any fruit on it, but he was always disappointed. Finally, he said to his gardener, 'I've waited three years, and there hasn't been a single fig! Cut it down. It's just taking up space in the garden.' "The gardener answered, 'Sir, give it one more chance. Leave it another year, and I'll give it special attention and plenty of fertilizer. If we get figs next year, fine. If not, then you can cut it down.'" – Luke 13:6-9
Meditate
on the wisdom of care and feeding…and the sweetness of figs.
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| Figs growing on my tree! |
My
sweet husband gave me a fig tree several years ago for my birthday! Almost
immediately we were blessed with a few ripe figs—small, but very tasty! I am
thrilled since I love figs! My Grand kiddos have been equally excited about
picking and eating them! I can imagine how disappointed this man was at not
having any figs on the tree when he was hungry for figs…and the tree was
barren. Three years seems like a long time to wait for figs…or any fruit. I
experienced a few years of no fruit after I planted my fig tree in the ground.
I waited…no growth. I thought I’d killed that precious fig tree, but I babied
it for several years—some fertilizer and lots of water. The result…several
stalks grew from that one spindly tree and we finally had LOTS of fruit. This
year I had probably over forty figs!
This
narrative that Jesus told isn’t really about figs…but the fig tree represents
the nation of Israel and the story is about being spiritually fruitful. Jesus
spoke right before this about repenting. He wanted the Jews to be obedient.
Repent or perish (Luke 13:5). He was giving them another chance. According to
the Biblical commentator Matthew Henry, this fig tree is grown in a garden
well-tended by the gardener. The church of God is the garden and we are the fig
trees planted in that garden. God expects us to produce fruit—giving Him glory
and honor. For three years the owner, God, came and found no fruit. That is
very sad. No fruit—no honoring God. Are we like that? God wanted the tree cut
down, but the gardener, Jesus, wanted to give that fig tree another
year—another chance. That’s our Lord Jesus—the giver of another chance. Giving
us special attention so that we can use our opportunities to honor the Heavenly
Father—to produce fruit.
Are
you producing fruit? The fruit of the Spirit.
But the Holy Spirit produces this
kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these
things! Galatians
5:22-23
Let the
Holy Spirit work in your life…produce His fruit.
What
do we learn about Jesus from this scripture passage?
Prayer
– Lord, may Your Grace be evident in my life and change me—that I would honor
You in everything I think, say and do. May the Gifts of the Spirit in my life
draw others to You.
Verse
of Salvation ~ And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you
must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your
lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were
taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. Colossians 2:6-7
© 2026 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All
rights reserved.
Portions reused from July 24, 2017, Banquet With The King blog.
All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless
otherwise noted.
New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale
House Foundation.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream,
Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm.



