Parables Of Jesus Christ

The Parable of the Barren Fig Tree

Luke 13:6-9
The Parable of the Barren Fig Tree
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. 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?' And he answered him, 'Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure. Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.'"
Today is the parable of the barren fig tree. When i started looking at this i thought oh easy one lol. Of course it takes more than a quick read to understand the full meaning of jesus parable. Firstly have to think who was this been spoken too. And yeah guess who the "baddies" those pharisee again, but is as relevant to each one of us as it was to the religious leaders of jesus's time. First reading i thought it was about people like myself. Been close to god and drifted away and given a second chance to have even a stronger relationship with god. But it is so much more, though i acknowledge that although i drifted from god, he never gave up on me, he never left me and i didnt really have a proper relationship with the lord in the first place. I wasnt born again. I didnt really understand what that truely meant until i experienced it. So had to look at it again in depth and this is my understanding of it. "Unless you repent, you will likewise perish." To reiterate this moral, Jesus tells the story of the fig tree, the vineyard owner, and the vinedresset who took care of the vineyard. The vinedresser who cares for the trees, watering and fertilizing them bringing them to their fruitfulness, is Jesus. Does he not feeds his people and gives them living water. The tree itself has two symbolic meanings: the nation of Israel and the individual. As we see the parable unfold we learn of the vineyards owners disappointment in the tree's fruitlessness.
But why three years? The significance of the three years is because of the timescale that john the baptist and jesus had been preaching throughout israel.
As we know the fruits of repentance were'nt happening. Even though John the Baptist warned the people about the Messiah coming and told them to bring forth fruits fit for repentance because the axe was already laid at the root of the tree. Instead of opening their eyes the jews were offended. They didnt need to repent and because their messiah demanded repentance they rejected him. Did they not have the revelation of God, the prophets, the Scriptures, the covenants, and the adoption .They thought they had it all, but they were already apostate. They had departed from the true faith and the true and living God and created a system of works-righteousness and self- righteousness and that was an abomination to God. He, as the vineyard owner, was perfectly justified in tearing down the tree that had no fruit. The Lord's axe was already poised over the root of the tree and was ready to cut it down.We see the vine keeper pleading here for a little more time. There were a few months before the crucifixion, miracles to come, Lazarus still hadnt been raised from the dead, which would astound many and believed caused many Jews to repent. Even though individuals certainly did believe, israel as a nation didnt.The compassionate vinekeeper gives more time to water and fertilize the fruitless tree, and the gracious Lord of the vineyard responds in patience.The hard but fair lesson for the individual is that borrowed time is not permanent. God's patience has a limit. In the parable, the vineyard owner grants another year of life to the tree. Doesnt God in His mercy grants us another day, another hour, another breath? Jesus stands at the door of every persons heart knocking and seeking to gain entrance requiring repentance from sin. If there is no fruit, no repentance, His patience will come to an end, and the fruitless, unrepentant individual will be cut down. We all live on borrowed time; judgement is near. The prophet Isaiah warned us, " Seek the Lord while he may be found;call upon him while he is near;let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon"
Isaiah 55:6-7
So in a way it was relevant to me as i said in the begining of the post. I did get a "second chance" jesus was knocking and knocking time was running out for me to repent. Dont let it run out for you!!