Jesus used the fruiting cycle of a fig tree to illustrate the certainty of His prediction of the Temple’s destruction (it happened in AD70) and His Second Coming (Matthew 24:3). Fig trees, like all other plants, have a recognisable cycle of growth which produce the next generation. Each fruit, although we like to eat the fleshy parts, is really the container of the seeds which will eventually grow into new plants. In an agricultural community, getting the timing right makes the difference between a commercial profit and a loss. So, growers became expert in predicting the maturing stages of the figs and therefore the time when they could be harvested and taken to market.

The fig tree, in Old Testament prophecies, was well known to represent Israel (Hosea 9:10; Habakkuk 3:17). So, Jesus knew that this story was getting His hearers' attention. He was saying that the time had come for Israel: the destructive vortex of her history was very near. The union of God with His people, and the judgement of all who turn their backs on Him, were imminent. Indeed, Jesus was among them; although He taught and loved them, they ignored Him, and all the prophecies that He was fulfilling, and would fulfil at the end of time.

It will still be that way when Jesus returns (Matthew 24:40-41). The extent to which people can ignore the obvious is staggering. But the fact they ignore the signs of His Second Coming does not make His advent less likely or untrue. Every Word that God speaks will be fulfilled, however much we may ignore them.

Although more than one third of the world claim to worship Jesus Christ as God and Saviour, I wonder how many are looking forward to His return (Philippians 3:20). Are they eagerly anticipating the fulfilment of their relationship with Him, or are they content with their worldly successes and religious experiences? And what about many people who do not know Christ: what will happen to them when He returns? Jesus answers those questions during the rest of Matthew chapter 24 and chapter 25. The key is that neither ignorance nor arrogance are any excuse, because Jesus has already told us to be ready for Him. That should put fresh urgency into our witness - to make our lifestyle a living advertisement for walking with Jesus, and our words echoing those of the One whose 'words never pass away', urging people to trust Jesus.