(Mark 11:12-14 ESV)
It makes no sense to me.
So I went to do some research on figs.
Figs bear fruit dependent upon where they live, some do two fruitings, others are year round, and yet others do a crop in the spring or the fall. The more tropical the region the more fruit the tree will bear.
They produce both male and female flowers.
They produce figs before they produce leaves.
They are dependent on a tiny wasp called the fig wasp in order to produce figs. They are in fact mutually dependent upon each other.
And then I learned this: even if it is not the season for the figs to be produced, fig trees produce knobs that are eaten by people.
This tree simply was not doing even its most basic job. Not producing knobs that people can eat. No knobs = no fruit later.
When the fig leaves appear about the end of March, they are accompanied by a crop of small knobs, called taqsh by the Arabs, a sort of fore-runner of the real figs. These taqsh are eaten by peasants and others when hungry. They drop off before the real fig is formed. But if the leaves appear unaccompanied by taqsh, there will be no figs that year. (source)
This fig tree was showing how unproductive it would be. Not even doing the basic thing that fig trees are supposed to do. And by doing so, it showed it wouldn't be working properly later either. No knobs = no fruit later.
So how does that apply to people?
Jesus wants us to imitate him right?
To live a life of service just like he did.
It's not hard to be of service is it? To give of yourself a bit for others...opening doors, being pleasant, smiling, mailing a letter, it's not hard to be of some use for God...regardless of your physical abilities. Just to be living the life that God calls us to. Would be a good thing yes?
Let us do then what we are called to do shall we not?
It would be a sign that we were doing that which God calls us to.