What Jesus' Brother Jude Wanted Us To Know | Verse 12, Part 3 | Fruitless Trees
The first hallmark of a false teacher that we read about in our last post was that they, according to Jude, are as good as waterless clouds. That is, they produce nothing that brings about true spiritual growth, though they look the part. The second disposition, or identifying factor, that is attributable to false teachers is that they are fruitless trees.
Jude says that they are “fruitless trees in late autumn, twice dead, uprooted” (vs. 12).
A tree with no fruit may simply be out of season and readying its growth, waiting to be coaxed along by warmer weather and lots of rain. A fruitless tree in late autumn, however, has no excuse. It clearly is not going to produce if it hasn’t at that point.
Today, Israel is no different in what they can expect from an autumn harvest. Listen to what one local blogger has to say about the season’s yield:
“Enormous date palms, lining the streets and highways of the country, have grown heavy with ripening dates, their fronds sagging under the weight of the bright red, golden, and tan fruit. Dates are eaten both fresh, when they are crunchy and smooth, or dried, when they are enjoyed soft, sticky, and sweet as candy.
The olive harvest is beginning, with everyone from small-time olive curers (like myself) climbing up these gorgeous, shimmering trees and shaking them till they drop their fruit.
Pomegranates are also well into their season, with the beautifully colored and decorative fruits available in grocery stores, at juice counters where they are cut with lemon, apple, or other fruits to make fresh juice, or (if you’re lucky enough to find one that hasn’t been snatched up) hanging gracefully on the boughs of their lovely, petite trees.
The sweet and sour flavors of lemons, oranges, grapefruits, and kumquats are upon us, and the transition from the last of the summer’s harvest to fall and then winter will be complete when these citrus fruits fill the bins of the shuks. We’ll also see (and smell!) the arrival of guavas in the upcoming weeks.”
I don’t know about you, but I could almost smell what she was describing and my mouth nearly watered. The autumn season in that region brings about an incredibly rich diversity of fruits. The very suggestion that autumn could be a fruitless time of year is one of sheer ridiculousness . . . unless, of course, autumn was preceded by waterless clouds.
It would not be uncommon for a farmer, upon finding a fruitless tree, to simply dig it up and burn it as it is using up valuable space. Hence, in Luke 13, Jesus uses this illustration to explain what happens to those who do not repent:
“A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. And he said to the vinedresser, ‘Look, for three years now I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground?’ And he answered him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put it on manure. Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down’” (vv. 6–9).
Similarly, Matthew makes the same point for the same reason as Jude: “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravening wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits” (7:15–20).
The picture that Jude paints, though, is even more acute. The tree that represents the false teacher is not some flourishing green tree that is barely shy of producing fruit, it is fruitless and actually dead. In his words it is “twice dead”. He isn’t content to stop there, though, as he says they are not only fruitless and wholly dead, but it is “uprooted”. It isn’t even plugged into a legitimate source of nutrition and nourishment for a fighting chance. This is the picture of a false teacher’s heart. Having no connection with God or His Word, they deliver as much as they take in—nothing.
Jude must not be ignored by modern Christians today. There is a sad lack of discernment in the church that insists there is a bit of good in every teacher who has earned his platform on social media, or wrote a best-selling book. Some go so far as to say that every faith group or world religion has something we could learn from.
The Word of God makes an open and shut case against such ignorant suppositions. We have no business searching piles of fruitless, dead and uprooted trees for something to taste. We do not want to find ourselves among those who “depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared” (1 Tim 4:1–2).
“The time is coming,” Paul writes again to Timothy, “when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths” (2 Tim 4:3–4).
Our Creator has furnished us with what will make us wise for salvation (2 Tim 3:15) and spiritual sustenance (vv. 16–17)—the written Word of God. Make use of it, friends.
“More to be desired are [God’s words] than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward” (Ps 19:10–11).
In Christ Alone,
Ben
Bibliography:
Katz, Cindy (2011). Israel’s Autumn Harvest Foods. Retrieved February 15, 2017. https://forward.com/food/145225/israels-autumn-harvest-foods/
