This post is the first in a series about “The Fig Tree”.

The fig tree is one of the few trees mentioned in the Bible by name. As I began to search for different references to it I found myself face to face with many of the truths of God’s Kingdom which are relevant today. In this study we will skip around the Bible quite a bit, and see just a little of what God might be saying to us personally and to His church today.

Feel free to comment below with your own thoughts about each verse and how you will be acting on each thought. Also, if you haven’t yet signed up to receive the notifications of new studies, you can do that today (the form is at the bottom of the page).

The Fig Tree – Day 1

The fig tree is one of the few trees mentioned in the Bible by name. As I began to search for different references to it I found myself face to face with many of the truths of The Kingdom of God which are relevant today.

John 1:47-50

Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and remarked, “Here is a true Israelite who is sincere.”
Nathanael asked Jesus, “How do you know anything about me?”
Jesus answered him, “I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.”
Nathanael said to Jesus, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the king of Israel!”
Jesus replied, “You believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.”

The Thought

This is the verse which began my interest in the fig tree. I asked myself why did Jesus name the tree? There were other ways Jesus could have let Nathanael know that He had the ability to see things with His spiritual eyes. But for some reason Jesus specified the fig tree, so I began to look for Bible verses that talk about trees and specifically the fig tree.

We will see as we continue our study that the fig tree represented wealth, and it was the place where the ancient Israelites often sat to study the scriptures. But here it is the foreknowledge that Jesus has which we must take note of.

Jesus’s spiritual eyes were always open. He could see into people’s lives, knew their history, and their character. We see a similar revelation a few chapters later in John’s gospel with the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4:17-18).

He is still the same today. Jesus knows you, all that you have so far experienced, your sorrows, your joys, your worries. And He is calling you to trust Him because He has a great future planned for you.

Action

Praise Him because He knows you better than you know yourself. Praise Him that He loves you, forgives you and He died because of His love for you, in spite of all He knows about you.

Pray that you will be strengthened in your relationship with Him as you go through this study.