Covenanter Witness Vol. 55 - Rparchives.org

ground?"ECHOES NUMBERBIBLE LESSONS FOR THE WEEK OF NOVEMBER 13, 1955wtnessVOLUME LV, NO. 17TOPEKA, KANSAS, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 26, 1955The barren fig tree is a picture ofThe Sin of UselessnessT. Myron Webb*Condensed from "Herald ofHisComing"He spake also this parable ; A certain man had afig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came andsought fruit thereon, and found none. Then said heunto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these threeyears I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and findnone: cut it down; why cumbereth it the(Luke 13:6-7).One of the greatest tragedies of the averageChristian life is that it is useless both to God and toman. This is a lesson which we are slow to grasp butone which we need to learn.The Church of the living God is filled with "barren fig trees." They do not commit open and viciousacts of wrong; socially and morally their lives maybe unimpeachable, thev do not indulge in social sinssuch as beset many. The great tragedy with them isthat their lives are barren. While they do nothingwrong, they do nothing good. While they do nothingto hinder God's work, they do nothing to help it. Ithas been said that there are two ways of stoppingthe clock: you can smash it, or you can let it rundown. By the same token there are two ways to killGod's work. One is to oppose it ; the other is to neglect it.Christians, for the most part need to learn thefollowing lesson :We are saved to serve (II Cor. 5:18).We are not here to lean but to lift (Gal. 6:10).We are not here to absorb but to give forth- -(Luke 6:38).We are not here to be ministered unto but tominister (Mark 10:43-45).We are not here to be served but to serve others(John 21:15-17).We are not here to hinder but to help (Mark14:6).We are not here to be a burden to others butto bear the burdens of others (Gal. 6:2).We are not here to stand on the sidelines andcriticize the players but to get into the game andhelp win the victory (Mark 16:15).God's plan for His people is that they should befruitful. The fig tree had been planted in the vineyard for a purpose to bring forth fruit. The Christian who is not used of God to bring forth otherChristians stands in the same place as the barrenfig tree. God expects us to win others to Christthrough any and every means we possess.We are to be His witnesses (Acts 1:8).We are to be prayer warriors (Eph. 6:18).We are to support God's work financially (ICor. 9:7-14).We are to be aggressive and not on the defensive (Phil. 3:12-14).The barren fig tree utterly failed in the purposefor which it was planted. Has it ever occured to youthat you are failing in the purpose for which youwere planted ? When the owner of the vineyard cameand looked for fruit, he found none. How is it withyou? Does our Lord and Master find any fruit inyour life ?The fruitless Christian demands more attention than the one who is fruitful. He wants more(Continued on page 282)