Luke 13:6-9 Thanksgiving sermon
Things to be thankful for in a fruitless year
Luke 13:6-9 6 He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. 7 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.
I read an article about a 2000-year-old olive tree in Israel. It is one of several very old olive trees in that vicinity. How do they know it’s 2000 years old? They measure the trunk. It took 20 adults and children holding hands, to encircle this particular tree. The tree is in an olive grove just above the village of Deir Hanna in the north of Israel, west of the sea of Galilee.
The trunk has spread outward, and has become more twisted and gnarled with time. In some places the tree even splits into two trunks. And amazingly these trees are still producing olives. They have lived through multiple changes in owners; the Romans, Crusaders, and the Ottomans into the modern world.
And I got to thinking about this tree when I was preparing the message for today out of Luke 13. I was thinking about the history of this tree. Think about it, for 2000 years, someone has taken care of this tree, and these trees. Someone has watered them, pruned them, and protected them from destruction, fire, animals, and disease, war.
Someone decided that they needed to continue living and producing fruit.
And as I said, that tree reminds me of the verses we just read.
We just read a parable where a takes note of an unproductive tree in his vineyard. And he says to his gardener, vinedresser, “For three years this tree has produced no fruit. Why are we wasting time, water, and fertilizer on it. Cut it down.” But the vinedresser replies, “Give me one more year of special care for this tree. I’ll see if that will get some fruit from it.”
With that olive tree in Israel, there had to be years like that, where someone said, “there is no fruit, let’s cut it down.” And someone else would also have had to reply, “No, let me tend it this year, and if it bears fruit, well, if not, then we can cut it down.” For 2000 years in good and bad seasons, someone decided to let that tree continue growing.
And that led me to think of our church and our Christian lives, and, especially for today, things to be thankful for.
We go through seasons of our lives when it seems particularly hard to be thankful, don’t we? This last year or so has been a tough one for many people. With the virus, and the virus mandates, many businesses, individuals, and churches have been hit hard.
As we gather this morning, we have _____people here. It’s great to see this number. But how many of you remember when this sanctuary was full to capacity? I do. That’s when my family first came.
But here we are today, ___people.
Covid did some of that. Attendance down, no hugging, no meals, no services for a while.
Some churches have looked around their facilities, and said, “We’re in a long fruitless season, why should we keep going? Let’s shut it down.”
And that dark cloud can also come in our personal lives. We are aging, becoming more frail. The goals we set out to accomplish may have gone unfinished. In my own personal life, I remember the flower of my spiritual youth; the optimism of surrendering to ministry. I told Candy Baker, here at this very church “I am going to be the next Billy Graham.”
Today, I’m 56, and going through what feels like a fruitless year.
How many of you remember the optimism of youth and look around today with “just a little” despair?
We can feel like we’re looking at this tree in Luke 13:6-9. “For 3 years now, I’ve found no fruit on this tree, it’s time to cut it down.”
Your life may feel like that right now, your church may feel like that right now. So, I want to share with you today from this Scripture; “Things to be thankful for in a fruitless year.”
Prayer
4 points; As a tree, you were planted in a, and can be thankful for a
cherished location, prior production, current grace, prospective fruitfulness
But before we get into the points, let’s look at the background.
I. Background
Jesus told this parable 2000 years ago. About the time that olive tree was planted. The parable is about a fig tree in a vineyard. Look again at the verses;
6 He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. 7 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?
So, to what was Jesus referring when He told this parable?
The fig tree in Luke 13 was symbolic of Israel. How do I know that the fig tree is Israel; 3 reasons.
1. Israel was often symbolized by a vineyard or tree in the Old Testament.
Joel 1:7 7 He hath laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree: he hath made it clean bare, and cast it away; the branches thereof are made white.
Isaiah 5: Now will I sing to my wellbeloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard. My wellbeloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill:
2 And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein: and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes.
3 And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard.
Hosea 9:10 10 I found Israel like grapes in the wilderness; I saw your fathers as the firstripe in the fig tree at her first time: but they went to Baalpeor, and separated themselves unto that shame; and their abominations were according as they loved.
Jesus’ ministry in Israel would last 3 years, just like the 3 years of the fruitless tree. For the most part, the Jews had rejected, and would reject and crucify Him. So, this is God the Father saying to God the Son; Jesus, “For 3 years, you’ve ministered in this nation. It has rejected You. It’s time to cut it down.” But Jesus reply is, “Let’s give it a little more time to nurture it, and then if it continues to be fruitless, we can cut it down.”
The tree is Israel. How do I know?
2. Jesus used the same analogy for Israel in the New Testament.
Well, not only is Israel often portrayed symbolically as a tree or vineyard in the Old Testament, Jesus also portrays them that way in parable in the New Testament. And in the conversation just before this parable, He is speaking very pointedly to the Jewish people before Him about repenting and getting right with God.
Jesus has just responded to a conversation about some people who were suddenly killed. There were some Galileans who had been killed by the sword. There were also 18 who had a tower fall on them. Both groups had people die by some catastrophe. And, by their way of thinking, these people who died must have been sinful people if they died in these ways. So, He asked the question,
Luke 13:1-5 There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.
2 And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things?
3 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.
4 Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.
Then Jesus tells this parable of the fruitless tree. He is speaking to the unrepentant hearts of the people, the Jewish people, the nation of Israel in front of Him.
The third reason that I know He is speaking of Israel is because this prophetic word about Israel came true.
Israel is the tree, for 3 years of Jesus’ ministry, most of the Jewish people rejected Him as their Messiah. He is the man in the parable who cares for the vineyard. God the Father says, there’s been no fruit for 3 years, cut it down. Jesus’ reply is, “Let’s leave it alone for another time. I’ll take extra care for it. I will rise from the grave after my crucifixion. I will send my apostles to it. They will preach and do miracles as I have. Let’s see if the nation turns to me.
But the third reason I know Israel is the tree, for the most part, the nation still rejected Christ, and the apostles He sent. And after 37 years of patience, we know that Israel was cut down, in 70 AD. The powers of the Roman empire tired of their rebelliousness, so they sent in their armies, and destroyed the city of Jerusalem, killed thousands, and sent much of the remaining population into exile around the empire.
So that’s the background to this passage. But how do we apply that to ourselves today. This week is Thanksgiving. And even if you are in a year that feels fruitless, even if our church feels like it is in a fruitless year, we need to do what Paul said to do in 1st Thessalonians 5; “In everything give thanks.”
But what about our fruitless years? For what can we be thankful in a fruitless year?
II. Be thankful for where you are planted. cherished location
6 He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard;
Stop there.
This fig tree in the parable was planted in a vineyard. It wasn’t planted in a dessert, or a swamp. It was planted in a vineyard. A vineyard is a place, a field especially designed for growing produce plants. It is a place that people construct to grow grapes, or other produce. It is contained and protected. This tree was planted in a place, of care.
That reminds me of another parable Jesus told comparing Israel to a vineyard. In that parable Jesus describes the care taken to build a vineyard. You don’t just buy some field and start throwing seeds around. The parable describes the owner, building a wall to keep out pests and thieves, digging a winepress, built a tower to watch for enemies, and to watch over all the vineyard, hiring workers to dig, water, fertilize and prune the plants.
The vineyard is a place of special care for the fig tree.
Well, what does that mean to me?
We may feel like we are in a fruitless year, or years, but we can be thankful that we are still in a place of care. Think about where God has placed you. He brought you to this church. He planted you in this country. You are in the Midwest. And many, if not most of you, can be thankful that you had some nurturing throughout your life. If you are a Christian, you are being cared for by God.
For I, the LORD your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, “Fear not, I am the one who helps you.” Isaiah 41:13
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. Isaiah 43.2
He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young. Isaiah 40:11
cherished location
We can be thankful for a cherished location
III. Thankful for the fruitfulness of the past. Fruitful years. prior production, prior productivity
6 He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. 7 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?
In the parable, the man sought fruit from this tree. He has been seeking fruit from it for 3 years. But for 3 years he has found no fruit. Now that implies a back story. What is the back story. For 3 years, he finds no fruit on it, but what about before those 3 years? Had this tree ever produced fruit?
Well, we can’t know the mind of the Lord. But since this tree symbolizes Israel, I think there would have been years that the tree produced fruit. Israel had a long history before Jesus. They were really solidified as a nation when God sent Moses to lead them out of Egypt. And though there were many disobedient years, there were also good years, where the nation served God, built His temple, and obeyed His commands. So, this tree had seen some fruitful years.
And here, it is as though Jesus says to the Father, “Give a little grace.” “They are not fruitful now, but they have been in the past.”
Well, what does that mean to me? How can I be thankful for prior productivity in a fruitless year?
I want you to think back. Often when we go through down times, painful years, it’s easy to dwell on my failures. I can think all day about all the things I’ve done wrong. I can think about my parenting mistakes, bad decisions, bad relationships. And let’s be honest, maybe there is more of that in our lives than we care to admit. But, instead of doing that, in the spirit of “Giving thanks in everything,” think about those fruitful times. There has been good. We’ve been cared for by God, and we have had some fruit. Many of you can think of that fruit in a family relationship. Others can think of our church, and how God has worked here at Parkview. We’ve had a day here. There have been people who have come through these doors and were nurtured in the faith.
Sure, we can think of people who have left the faith, we can think of things that have gone wrong, but that is not our thought for today. Today let us be thankful for what has gone right.
cherished location, prior production, current grace
IV. Thankful for grace/opportunity. Current grace
7 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:
As the owner of the vineyard, and the vinedresser looked at this tree, they could have looked at it from a profit/loss perspective. They easily could have said, “We could bring in a brand-new tree for less expense than what it’s going to cost us to revive the fruitfulness of this tree.” Our odds are better for producing fruit, if we start a new plant, rather than work on the old tree.
And, in terms of Israel, God could have said the same.
Israel rejected the Lord for 3 years after seeing more miracles than the history of the world has seen. They crucified the Lord. The Lord was raised from the dead. And then the apostles ministered in and out of Israel for 37 more years with more of the miraculous. If God had approached Israel from a strict profit/loss perspective, He would have said, “Cut it down” shortly after the crucifixion.
But God looked at Israel, His fig tree, and they were given more grace.
And during those dry years of your life, you can be thankful for your being planted and cared for by God, and you can be thankful that God’s grace continues in the present.
To be frank, there are years of my life where I’ve felt like God could have said, “Cut it down” and it would have been justified.
A moment ago, I told you that I wanted you to think about the fruit in your life. To be thankful for the fruit, even if it seems to be little. But now I want you to think about your mistakes. You say, preacher, how is thinking about my mistakes going to help me be thankful. Because, as you think about the worst times in your life, the times that you blew it, it makes you think, “God could have easily said then, cut it down.” He could have said, “Why am I wasting resources on this loser?” And you know what, from a practical standpoint, God’s resources may have been more efficiently used by investing in a new life, not my tired old one. But that’s not our call to make, and that’s not how God works, and it makes me so thankful today, that today, “He giveth more grace.”
Aren’t you glad that God doesn’t choose who to give grace based on our output?
Proverbs 3:34 Surely he scorneth the scorners: but he giveth grace unto the lowly.
James 4:6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.
So, I can think about where I was planted and be thankful. I can think about God’s care for me and be thankful. I can even think about my life messes and be thankful that God keeps giving more grace.
What else can I be thankful for in a fruitless year?
V. Thankful for hope/focus, prospective fruitfulness
7 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:
Think about this, when the vinedresser said to the owner, “Give me another year to care for this tree,” if the vinedresser, and the owner knew absolutely, without any doubt that the tree was hopeless, would they have spent the time and money to make it fruitful again?
Most of us are not arborists. We can tell if a tree is still producing leaves, but if it is not producing fruit, most of us don’t know why, or how to change that. But, most of us are smart enough to recognize a dead, dead tree. It’s dead. It’s not even growing leaves anymore. It looks like a slight breeze could knock it over. There’s dry rot throughout it. We know that it is now only good for firewood.
So, if this tree in the parable, were absolutely dead, beyond hope of ever producing fruit again, neither the owner or the vinedresser would have bothered with it. The vinedresser would have said, “Yep, you’re right, this tree is gone, I’ll have it cut down by the end of the day.”
But they didn’t, because there was hope. There was life in the tree.
The same could be said of Israel. If God the Father looked at the nation of Israel in 33 A.D. and saw no hope of any of the Jewish people putting their faith in Christ, He would have said, “Cut it down,” we’ll start fresh with the Gentiles. But He didn’t. He gave them 37 more years. In 70 AD, Israel was destroyed. But here’s the beauty of hope. Even though Israel was destroyed. God is not done extending grace to the Jewish people. Paul spoke of a future hope for Israel.
Romans 11: I say then, Hath God cast away his people? God forbid.
5 Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace.
11 I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy.
17 And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert grafted in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree;
19 Thou wilt say then, The branches were broken off, that I might be grafted in.
23 And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be grafted in: for God is able to graft them in again.
24 For if thou wert cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and wert grafted contrary to nature into a good olive tree: how much more shall these, which be the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree?
26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:
27 For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.
Even though Israel was cut down as a nation, God still took of the remaining living branches, and grafted them into healthy trees. And, in the future, there will be a day when the Jewish people will return to the Lord through their rejected Messiah.
What does all that have to do with me? What can we be thankful for in a fruitless year? Hope.
If there were no hope for the tree, there would be no opportunity given.
Do you remember the 7 churches that the book of Revelation was originally written to? They each had their own set of problems. Some were healthy, some were in very bad spiritual shape. Some of them, the Lord even threatened to extinguish their fire, to put them out of existence. But even though Christ could have said of some of them, “Cut it down, why is it taking up energy, money, and space anymore,” Do you know what the Lord offered to all of those churches? Hope for the future.
Ephesus; 5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent,
Smyrna; 10 Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer:
Pergamus; 16 Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.
Thyatira; 25 But that which ye have already hold fast till I come.
Sardis; 3 Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent.
Philadelphia; 11 Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.
Laodicia; 19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
We may look at our lives right now, we may look at our church, our family, whatever, and say, “That’s a dead tree.” But the very fact that you are still here. The very fact that you are looking at the circumstances, the very fact that you are still calling on God, the very fact that there are still ___ people here today, means that this tree isn’t dead.
And we can be thankful that God always concludes even the worst of messages, with hope.
We have so much to be thankful for, individually, and as a church. Today is the day for that.
The school system in a large city had a program to help children keep up with their school work during stays in the city's hospitals. One day a teacher who was assigned to the program received a routine call asking her to visit a particular child. She took the child's name and room number and talked briefly with the child's regular class teacher. "We're studying nouns and adverbs in his class now," the regular teacher said, "and I'd be grateful if you could help him understand them so he doesn't fall too far behind."
The hospital program teacher went to see the boy that afternoon. No one had mentioned to her that the boy had been badly burned and was in great pain. Upset at the sight of the boy, she stammered as she told him, "I've been sent by your school to help you with nouns and adverbs." When she left she felt she hadn't accomplished much.
But the next day, a nurse asked her, "What did you do to that boy?" The teacher felt she must have done something wrong and began to apologize. "No, no," said the nurse. "You don't know what I mean. We've been worried about that little boy, but ever since yesterday, his whole attitude has changed. He's fighting back, responding to treatment. It's as though he's decided to live."
Two weeks later the boy explained that he had completely given up hope until the teacher arrived. Everything changed when he came to a simple realization. He expressed it this way: "They wouldn't send a teacher to work on nouns and adverbs with a dying boy, would they?"
Bits & Pieces, July 1991.