“The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them. But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were indignant.
“Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him.
“Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read, ‘From the lips of children and infants you, Lord, have called forth your praise’? And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany, where he spent the night.
Jesus Curses a Fig Tree
Early in the morning, as Jesus was on his way back to the city, he was hungry. Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” Immediately the tree withered.
When the disciples saw this, they were amazed. “How did the fig tree wither so quickly?” they asked.
Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”
Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures:
“The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this,and it is marvelous in our eyes’? “Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit. Anyone who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.”
When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they knew he was talking about them. They looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet.” (Matthew 21, selected verses, NIV)
Jesus befriended the sick, the prostitute, the demon possessed, the poor, the foreign women, pagans, and the children. He warned about the dangers of worrying with wearing fine clothes, or being obsessed about being highly respected (which is to be envied), and in general taking yourself—or your family— too seriously! We’ve not changed a bit in 2100 years—and perhaps we’re worse, because we masquerade as being religious when it fact we’re just as bigoted and prejudiced as the Pharisees of old.
Jesus saw the destructive power of pride and human egos, as well as the deceit of transferring your ego onto your children and then claiming that you’re only showing parental love and concern by demanding the very best for them. Listen parents: God sent His Son to not get the best, but to help the least. Why do we chafe at the notion that our children are not required to get exceptional consideration and treatment, while showing no heart or compassion for the child of color, or the orphan, the poor, the bi-polar, hyperactive, the ill-mannered?
It’s said that the most beloved saint of the middle ages, Saint Francis of Assisi, truly loved all people (as all Christians should) but that he especially loved the poor. Do you think that’s strange? We celebrate the lives of the saints, like Francis, that loved the outcast, but you show compassion to children that don’t have good manners, or have bad habits, or have not learned how to control their temper, and you’ll find yourself attacked—at least I have in my 42 years of ministry at camp. A lot of parents over the years have told me that they don’t understand why I have rude children at my camp, or kids with bad tempers, or youth with chemical imbalances. They should also ask why a Christian ministry would accept children that come from divorced parents, or abusive fathers, or neglectful mothers, or congenital abnormalities! The answer is this: To such to Jesus come to save and to such is the kingdom of God.
As a church, and for my camp, we have to remember that true religion, according James, is evidenced by taking care of widows, orphans and the poor. The fruit we bear, as followers of Jesus, is our willingness to help the least—the youngest, poorest, the most undeserving in our community! Do you??? Do we???
People flocked to Jesus precisely because He was unpretentious—He was happy to associate with the lowest class of people—and even those whose ethnicity was offensive to the ethnically privileged. This is going to annoy some people that are listening to this sermon or that will read this later, but I do believe that Jesus, were He on this earth today, would not join a country club, play golf, or join a fraternity. You can take offense at me, if you want, but Jesus could stand toe to toe with the wealthiest and most entitled people of His time—-He would even attend their parties and eat in their homes. But He called poor, common teenagers to be His disciples and He came to save those that were lost…. and knew they were lost.
The entitlement, sense of “having arrived”, or desire to be removed from the common man has always irked me with country clubs—-or almost all clubs. Some of my best friends play golf, and I know many humble men of God that play golf—so I don’t mean to disparage them! But the culture of golf is so focused upon image and being part of an elite—I never have wanted to play or learn to play. I was always afraid I might like it! I don’t want to be a part of that.
The college I attended was 50% Greek, i.e. half of the student body were members of a sorority or fraternity. Again, I never wanted to join. I have been told that a fraternity offers the best friendships money can buy—but why buy friendships and allegiance? I am still of the belief that Jesus would not be a part of any church, establishment or club that espoused snobbery or elitism.. That might sound silly, but my point is that His ministry was marked by going to where the people were that were in need of a savior. Today, I suppose he would go the bars, the flea markets, the baseball games, and maybe a yard sale or two. He associated with the common man and challenges of the poor more than with kings and princes.
I’ve been in camping for a long time now, and I have noticed four kinds of camps: Those that cater to the elite—the white, country club type of kids. Those that focus on the under-privileged. The kids of color that are poor or that lack stable families. The third camp are the YMCA kind of camps that attract middle class kids, but offerer special weeks for the lower class kids, and finally there are camps that look beyond race, gender, ethnicity, finances and language. Which kind of camp do you think represents the Kingdom of God? And then for a moment think about churches. There’s probably no institution still so segregated and focused upon status in a community as the churches in America—-and it’s a shame. This church is comprised of members that accept and embrace all that enter to worship, but it could change if we’re not careful about bearing the fruit He’s commissioned us to bear.
No child wants to be born poor, or addicted to the drugs their mother used will pregnant, or unwanted by the mother and father, or with any sort of emotional, physical or cognitive challenge! But it happens—but not because the child deserved it or asked for it, but because we live in a broken world—a world full of imperfections and marred images of the boys and girls God originally intended. But each time I show love to child that’s not accustomed to being loved and noticed, especially those that are unlovely and hard to love, I am whispering to them what they need to hear again and again and again: “God loves you that He sent His only Son to died for you!”
Every time you show compassion to the most disgusting beggar or bedraggled child, Jesus said you were showing love and compassion to Him!!!
The religious leaders at Jesus’ time weren’t just annoyed, they were jealous. The people loved Jesus because He showed the same love to rich young ruler as He did to the woman that was about to be stoned for adultery. Do you? Do we as a nation? Do we treat the poor as impartially as the powerful and wealthy?
Are you bearing fruit, as a Christian? That’s why you’re here, you know. It’s not to be some special piece of art in a museum, you were redeemed and left on this earth after your salvation to bear fruit. Now, I am no farmer—and if you saw all my dead apple trees you would agree. But here’s what I have learned from observation. All my demands to my trees make to make juicy apples, and all my threats of cutting them down if they don’t, does nothing to produce healthy fruit. I’ve planted all kinds of vines and plants and trees, most don’t do so well. Why? Because they’re not in the right soil, the right sunlight, properly watered or protected from these pesky deer! They will not produce fruit if the environment is not right. I got it! I now understand.
But the same is true for you and me. If we’re not properly connected to the vine, the tree and the soil, we will not produce fruit. If we are properly fixed upon and grown into Jesus Christ—and we’re being properly fertilized by reading His Word and worshipping with others, we cannot help but produce fruit—-it comes naturally! But be sober about Christ’s warning: If you don’t bear fruit, expect your life to be miserable and dead. Life, joy, enthusiasm for tomorrow will be cut away. You will become quite useless to yourself and to others. It does not mean that you’re still not going to heaven, but it means you’ve chosen a miserable way to spend your time here on earth till you’re called to glory.
But if we are properly grafted into the body of Christ, one fruit that is most evident is the sweet humility of Jesus and the disregard for revenge and getting even. Albert Schweitzer was a renown theologian, organist, musicologist, writer, humanitarian, philosopher, and physician. He once came to the USA and throngs of reporters were waiting for him as he got off the train. So they waited at the first class gate, but he was not there, so they went to the second class gate, and he was not there either. Finally, at the the third class gate they found him. And when they asked him why he traveled in the third class railway car, he responded, “Because there was no fourth class car.”. When he won the Nobel prize and was reportedly disgusted to have been required to travel first class to receive the award. The man was humble—-oh to have more men and women so connected to Jesus Christ. Of that you and I would bear fruit that is pleasing to Him every single day of our lives….
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