A Fig Tree With No Figs? It Can't Be.
"In the morning, as he was returning to the city, he became hungry. And seeing a fig tree by the wayside, he went to it and found nothing on it but only leaves. And he said to it, 'May no fruit ever come from you again!' And the fig tree withered at once."
(Matthew 21:18-19)
Jesus was so hangry he cursed a fig tree...
For not having any figs...
Even when it wasn't fig season...
Both Mark and Matthew talk about the specific Cursing of the Fig Tree in their gospels.
Yet I am particularly fond of how Matthew seems to use it as comedic relief (at least this is how I read it), placing it right after Jesus goes up to cleanse the temple and knock some sense into the Pharisees.
For anyone reading Matthew for the first time, it is very easy to sit there after reading these specific verses and be like:
"Yo what the heck is going on right now, why did He just curse this fig tree for eternity."
That's exactly what I was asking when I first read, actually.
But after reading + learning more:
Jesus cursed the fig tree because the tree looked productive from a distance, it had all the leaves, but when He came looking for fruit, there was none. A lesson to the disciples that they should authentically live out their faith, and not just appear religious, as the Pharisees were.
Regardless of what you believe, this lesson can be applied in many other areas of our lives:
Looking productive vs. being productive.
Going to the gym vs. actually getting stronger
Reading books vs. applying what you learned
Talking about your goals vs. working toward them
Or, from a business perspective:
in it to make the sale vs. in it to serve the customer
Meaning:
Is your business only optimized to look good from the outside and get people in?
Or is it also designed to serve them long after they buy?
Yes, getting people in is important, but going above and beyond for your customers well after they buy is the most underrated growth strategy out there.
Gavin
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