The Commands of Christ - Matthew 21:18-19

"Now in the morning, as He returned to the city, He was hungry. And seeing a fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves, and said to it, "Let no fruit grow on you ever again." Immediately the fig tree withered away." -Matthew 21:18-19


To whom is this command spoken?


Spoken to a fig tree

What is the command?


Let no fruit grow on you ever again.

What truths do we learn here?


Jesus is Lord of all Creation. He commands what He wills, and it comes to pass. In the New Testament, we find Christ commanded the wind, waves, and also this tree. He told Peter where to fish on a number of occasions, even though Peter was an experienced fisherman. And Peter always caught fish where Jesus told him to fish. Think about this for a moment: Mankind is the only part of creation that says 'no' to God. Everything else is obedient immediately. We can take a lesson or two in obedience from nature.

My dad always said, "Delayed obedience is disobedience." All too often, I'll obey on my time schedule, or when I feel like obeying. That is disobedience. How many times do we treat God like that? How many times do we ignore promptings of the Holy Spirit to witness and be obedient to our Gospel mandate? God desires our obedience not our delayed obedience. Your spiritual life can be measured by your obedience. So let me ask you, "How is your spiritual life?" How is your obedience?

This tree was obedient to Christ. Are you?

I just thought of something else. We are here on the earth to bear much fruit--fruit that is pleasing to God--fruit sown in righteousness. John 15:2 says, "Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit." While I don't believe this means you can lose your salvation, I do believe that it means you can miss out on bearing fruit that is pleasing to God. Take every opportunity to bear fruit for the glory of God!