I was reading Matthew 21 this morning and the story of Jesus cursing the fig tree really got me. It’s an amazing, yet simple example of the power of God. I don’t understand why He cursed the tree instead of giving it fruit but that’s not the point of the story. What gets me is that there’s no room for doubt in this story, especially for anyone that saw this happen. Think about it, Jesus’ other miracles of healing can be doubted by many. They can say “they weren’t really crippled, or blind, or deaf, or lame…” People can see it as a fraud, although we know it wasn’t because God still does these things today. The fig tree is different though. They heard Jesus speak and at that instant, they watched the tree completely wither up.
In the morning, as Jesus was returning to Jerusalem, he was hungry, and he noticed a fig tree beside the road. He went over to see if there were any figs, but there were only leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” And immediately the fig tree withered up. The disciples were amazed when they saw this and asked, “How did the fig tree wither so quickly?” Then Jesus told them, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and don’t doubt, you can do things like this and much more. You can even say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. You can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it.” // Matthew 21:18-22
This is a great reminder of God’s power and His love for us. Jesus tells us to pray for anything, and with faith we will receive it. God loves us and He loves to show us that.
It really is a powerful story of faith and the power that Christ gives us through faith in Him.