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This is important to understand, but to only understand the story in this way is to miss the most
important point.
The fig tree is our soul, and there is no time when our soul is not required to bear fruit. Let us not
Á-°make excuse with excuses in sinsÁ-?, and placate ourselves with the knowledge of our infirmities and
believe that somehow this excuses us from bearing fruit. The Lord emphatically rebukes this idea by
exhorting us to have faith in God, and not look at things with carnal eyes. A mountain cannot be
moved, and a fig tree cannot bear fruit in the winter, but with God's help, we not only can bear fruit at
all times, and move a mountain, but we must!
Our Lord's teachings were oil and wine, soothing, comforting, and also frightening and harsh. (Cf.
Luke 10:25-37) All at once, His promise that we can move a mountain with faith, and bear fruit even in
the winter of our soul is both oil and wine. We should tremble when we look upon our tree, which has
all that is needed to bear fruit, and yet the branches are so empty; the Lord will not tolerate such a state
of affairs, and He will not countenance any of our feeble excuses! How can we fulfill such an arduous
task? With faith, and with God, if we try.
In another place, the Lord promises us that He does not require perfection from us all at once, by telling
the parable of the fig tree:
Á-°Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on
this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground? {8} And he answering
said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it: {9} And if it
bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down.Á-? (Luke 13:7-9)
We have a short time while in this life to produce fruit; only the Lord knows how long. Inexorably
,there will come the day when the Lord, hungry to partake of our fruit, will come to our tree Á-? if we
have faith in God, and struggle, it will not be barren!
tree means the synagogue of the Jews, which has only leaves, that is, the visible letter of the law, but not the fruit of the
Spirit. But also every man who gives himself over to the sweetness of the present life is likened to a fig tree, who has no
spiritual fruit to give to Jesus who is hungry for such fruit, but only leaves, that is, temporal appearances which fall away
and are gone. This man, then, hears himself cursed. For Christ says, Go, ye accursed, into the fire. But he is also dried
up; for as he roasts in the flame, his tongue is parched and withered like that of the rich man of the parable, who in his
life had ignored Lazarus." Blessed Theophylact, Commentary on Matthew)
Daily readings and reflections, available at http://www/orthodox.net/scripture
These reflections and others are also posted on the blog: http://stnicholasdallas.blogspot.com/
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