Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. 21 And Peter, remembering, said to Him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree which You cursed has withered away.” 22 So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God. 23 “For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. 24 “Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive [them], and you will have [them]. 25 “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. 26 “But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.”

– Mark 11:20-26 (NKJV)

The disciples had marveled at how quickly Jesus spoke and the results showed up on the tree. Jesus took the time at this moment to teach the disciples about faith. He used a common phrase among the people of the day about “Moving mountains.” Perhaps it was a common phrase because Herod had taken down one small mountain bucket by bucket to build up a man made mountain and palace known as Herodium. The implication was that if one man can have such a vision and drive to carry out by human labor what seemed impossible, how much more should we have faith in God who will certainly carry out his will.

Then Jesus moves the disciples to the topic or prayer, reminding them that their dependence isn’t in their ability to speak it and believe it, but in the God whom they speak too. So when we pray according to God’s will they receive what they ask (there really is no other genuine way to pray). The real test then comes at the end of this section when Jesus reminds the disciples that forgiveness is one of those seemingly impossible things that God can work in your heart to do.

So when you pray and you have unforgiveness in your heart, one of the first things you need to do is ask the Lord to give you forgiveness for those who have wronged you. That payer with faith will be answered.

Father, We love you and want to grow in knowledge of you and your word. Search our hearts. If there is any unforgiveness in us we ask that you bring it to the surface and give us the grace to forgive those who have hurt us. If we have needlessly caused offense, we ask that you would call whatever arguments or situations to mind and those offended so we might seek to be reconciled to our brothers and sisters. We ask for your grace to work in our hearts and lives. Give us discernment as we apply your word to our lives. In Jesus Name, Amen.

So they came to Jerusalem. Then Jesus went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves. 16 And He would not allow anyone to carry wares through the temple. 17 Then He taught, saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it a ‘den of thieves.’ ” 18 And the scribes and chief priests heard it and sought how they might destroy Him; for they feared Him, because all the people were astonished at His teaching. 19 When evening had come, He went out of the city.

– Mark 11:15-19 (NKJV)

The temple was a place of worship. It had places for different people to go. The place referred to here was probably the outer court also known as the court of the gentiles. It was a place where those folks who were not born Jewish could come pray and worship God. The problem was that there was no longer room for people to come and pray because it was filled with smelly animals for sacrifice and the people selling them were selling them at marked up prices (like buying a coke at a theme park).

What the people were doing was wrong, but it wasn’t just wrong, it was communicating the wrong message to everyone. It was saying that God doesn’t have room for people who weren’t ethnically Jewish. That was bad for little Jewish boys and girls to grow up believing and it was bad for people of other nationalities who were coming to faith in God and wanted to worship him. Then it was also wrong to take advantage of people. You shouldn’t do that anywhere, but you especially shouldn’t extort people in a place that was built for prayer and worship to the one true God (as if he didn’t know).

So Jesus has a righteous zeal here. We’ve been watching Jesus take up for the poor and oppressed and now we see him come toe to toe with the leaders who should have been looking for the people but have instead been oppressing them. Their reaction is cowardly. They can’t address Jesus from the scripture because they know they are wrong and so privately they seek to kill Jesus.

This passage teaches us a few things. One we should not extort others, especially in the worship of God. Two, we should be careful of the image we present to others by our actions and their implications of what we believe about God. Three, we need to examine our hearts to see if we are submitting ourselves to be used by God for His will or if we are attempting to use God to carry out our own corrupt will.

Father, We love you and want to grow in knowledge of you and your word. We are grateful that Jesus cleansed the temple and set the record straight on the purpose of the temple and the activities that should go on in a house of worship. We pray that our lives would be clean of double or perverse motives. Let us love one another and not take advantage of others. Let us be diligent to take the gospel to all nations. Give us discernment as we apply your word to our lives. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Now the next day, when they had come out from Bethany, He was hungry. 13 And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it. When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. 14 In response Jesus said to it, “Let no one eat fruit from you ever again.” And His disciples heard [it].

– Mark 11:12-14 (NKJV)

There is a difference between growth and fruit. This tree was growing and it had all the signs of life, but it was fruitless. The key to understanding this passage is in the “leaves.” Usually the fruit and the leaves grow together on a fig tree. So to see a tree with leaves, even if it is a little early is to see a tree that is advertising fruit. However something is wrong with this fig tree, it advertises that it is healthy and growing and even a month ahead of schedule, but it really isn’t all that it seems to be, because it doesn’t have any fruit. So Jesus curses the tree to be… fruitless.

So what can we take away from that? In our culture we like to tell everyone about how “busy” we are. We might be tempted to think that our “busyness” makes it look like we are doing something or we are important, but there is a difference between being busy and being productive. Busy just means activity, productive means that activity is leading so sort of results. The type of results we want to get from spiritual activity is that our character would be shaped more into the image of Christ and that our lives would exhibit the fruit of the Spirit.

There are some individuals I have noticed that are good about being busy. You can see it in their calendar, they’ve got lots of stuff to do and most of it looks good. So from the outside looking in you could say that they are full of life and maybe even they are growing… but are they producing fruit?

Today my take away was to reexamine my life and my activities as it concerns my spiritual growth. I don’t want to just be busy, I want to be productive. I don’t want to be entertained by the word of God, I want to be changed by the word of God.

Father, We love you and want to grow in knowledge of you and your word. Help us to be fruitful Christians. We want to see the evidence of your work in our lives. Let us not just be those who are busy but to be those who are changed by your grace so that our lives reflect you more and more each day. Give us discernment as we apply your word to our lives. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Now when they drew near Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, He sent two of His disciples; 2 and He said to them, “Go into the village opposite you; and as soon as you have entered it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has sat. Loose it and bring [it]. 3 “And if anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it,’ and immediately he will send it here.” 4 So they went their way, and found the colt tied by the door outside on the street, and they loosed it. 5 But some of those who stood there said to them, “What are you doing, loosing the colt?” 6 And they spoke to them just as Jesus had commanded. So they let them go. 7 Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their clothes on it, and He sat on it. 8 And many spread their clothes on the road, and others cut down leafy branches from the trees and spread [them] on the road.

– Mark 11:1-11 (NKJV)

Have you ever had a, “the Lord has need of it moment?”

Years ago, I was on staff at a church as an associate pastor, we were sitting in a contentious business meeting. The finances for the church weren’t where they should be. We had a building debt to pay and we had ministry to do. If we didn’t see an increase in giving we would have to cut down on ministry. It was a bleak situation to be in. The proposed solution was to ask folks to give extra this year. Whatever their annual giving was or percentage that they sought to give the church, we were asked to increase it for the coming year to help us get through a rough patch.

Our family was already giving above ten percent, (a good base line in some places). We were generous givers by the standard of percentage of income. But I thought about what an extra percent would mean to our living situation. It was approaching Christmas time and on top of the Christmas presents we were hoping to buy a new TV along with a few other things. Giving more to the church was saying “no” to the new TV and a few other things that would make our life more comfortable.

So as the conversation around us stewed in the business meeting. The Lord wrestled with my heart. Finally, I stood up and spoke my peace. I said, “I can’t speak for the rest of you, but I know as for me and my house, we will give more no matter how we all vote because there is a need and I believe in the mission and vision that God has for this church.” I knew that we’d lose out on a few creature comforts, but the reality was that all our income belonged to God already (Just like this colt really belonged to the one who designed it and brought it’s ancestors out of the clay of the earth he had just formed all those years ago).

I had another, “the Lord has need of it” moment when our church was looking for someone to host a small group in their house on Friday nights. I’m an introvert and my home is my refuge, but then I contemplated what it that God desired for us. I thought it was better to have our home filled with Christians and even a few folks who were interested in Christianity on Friday nights than it was to have time to ourselves. By “giving” the use of our house to the Lord on Friday nights, it opened of the opportunity for God to do so much more in our lives. We grew really close with some amazing families and I believe our older two children were really blessed by it.

I don’t know the backstory to everything happening in this passage, but I have learned in my own life through the experiences I’ve shared above and others that when I get a sense that, “the Lord has need of it,” I’m more blessed to put it in his hands than keep it in mine. The result of the small gesture of lending a colt to Jesus on this day had implications far greater than I’m sure the “owners” understood at the time.

Father, We love you and want to grow in knowledge of you and your word. Everything we have is yours. We recognize it as all a gift from your hands. Let us be those who are generous of spirit and trust you with the things you have entrusted to us. Let us lend to you whatever you would ask knowing that “when the Lord has need of it” that is where our resources need to go. Provide for our needs big and small. We thank you for your care for us. Give us discernment as we apply your word to our lives. In Jesus Name, Amen.

And when the ten heard [it], they began to be greatly displeased with James and John. 42 But Jesus called them to [Himself] and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 43 “Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant. 44 “And whoever of you desires to be first shall be slave of all. 45 “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”

– Mark 10:41-45 (NKJV)

When I got sick with my heart stuff there was a pastor friend of mine who came to see me in the hospital. I didn’t really expect him to come, to that moment we weren’t close. He had always stuck me as a little goofy and I’m probably more a stick in the mud than I care to admit. When he came to see me he went out of his way to serve me. He knew I couldn’t have a lot of liquid and so be brought me some suckers. When I came home, he brought a meal from my favorite restaurant to the house. Every time I turned around he was blessing me in some small way. He never took a lot of time but was there for me in ways that I needed. I don’t think it was until I experienced that level of unsolicited service that I understood what Jesus was saying in this passage.

Now when my friend speaks, I’ve learned to listen. It’s not because of all the degrees that has, or books that he has written, it’s not even due to his charming personality (which is a lot more interesting once I started paying attention). I listen because he showed me that he cared for me by serving me. In his way, my friend demonstrated the love of Christ.

This is kingdom living when we take the focus off ourselves and place it on others. It has a way of blessing others and blessing us in the process. I don’t have all the giftings or sense of need that my friend has (he has had years to hone his skills), but I have been provoked to serve others better in whatever opportunities the Lord provides. Serving God by serving others is much better than being selfish and expecting people to take care of you.

Father, We love you and want to grow in knowledge of you and your word. We are grateful for those who have been tremendous influences on our lives by their small, kind acts of service. We are grateful for the opportunities that we have to serve others with our unique talents and gifts. Let us all serve you by serving others and in doing so bring Glory, Honor, and Recognition due your name. Give us discernment as we apply your word to our lives. In Jesus Name, Amen.