Mark 11:12-14 English Standard Version Jesus Curses the Fig Tree 12 On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. 13 And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. 14 And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it. On Monday of Passion Week, Jesus is walking by a fig tree that appeared like it would have fruit on it, though Mark tells us it was not the season for figs. Still, it appeared as if it should have fruit on it because it was full of leaves. It had the appearance of being alive and fruitful, but upon closer inspection, it had no fruit to show.
This will take some explanation since most of us are not familiar with fig trees. The fruit of the fig tree starts to form before the leaves come out. While it takes a long time for the fruit to ripen and be ready to harvest, it would be expected that is you saw leaves on a fig tree that there would be some fruit on there, even if it was not ripe fruit that would taste great--it would do if you were really hungry, like Jesus was here. While Mark is correct that it was not the time to expect the figs to be ready to harvest, the tree had every appearance from a distance of having fruit. As we said earlier though, upon closer inspection, there was no fruit to show. So, is this passage simply about a fig tree, or is there something more going on here? I think there's much more going on here as we'll see from the reaction of the disciples in a couple more passages (if you want to read ahead and see that, look at verses 20-26, but don't miss what happens in-between. Here's a little summary of events. 1) On Monday, Jesus is walking from Bethany to Jerusalem, sees the fig tree, reaches out to get some fruit, finds the tree empty and curses it. Matthew tells us the cursing and the withering happened all at once, but Mark tells us that the disciples didn't notice the withered fig tree until the next day. 2) When reaching Jerusalem, Jesus enters the Temple and cleanses it--this is a different event than what is recorded for us in the book of John at the beginning of Jesus' ministry. This is the second time He has done this. Apparently, the religious leaders didn't listen to Him the first time after He cleansed the Temple, and in less than three years, it's right back to the way things were in the beginning of His ministry. 3) The next day (Tuesday), the disciples notice the withered fig tree--withered from the roots up--and they ask Jesus about it. It would be unusual for such a large tree to die so quickly. Just the day before it was full of leaves and looked to be alive, but now it is obviously dead. This teaching to the disciples also has a lot to do with the crowds that appeared to be welcoming Jesus as Messiah on Palm Sunday just a day before this passage. Were they really ready to accept Him or did they look like something that they were not? It appears that the condition of the Temple told the real heart of the people (at least the religious leaders the represented and led the nation). The nation as a whole should have been ready for Messiah to come because the Law and the Prophets and the Writings (the Old Testament Scriptures) had all been pointing to this. However, when the time came, the faith of most was not genuine and Jesus was not fooled because He could see through the external show they were putting on and see the true condition of their hearts. He addresses this issue in other passages by comparing them to a cup that's clean only on the outside but still filthy on the inside or a whitewashed tomb that is full of all kinds of unclean things including dead men's bones (anyone who touched a dead body would become ceremonially unclean and Jesus is saying that is kind of uncleanliness that they are carrying around inside of them). If only their actions and their hearts were in alignment, and they were really ready for Jesus to come and be king in their hearts. They wanted a political solution to a spiritual problem. This is not to say that God rejected all of Israel, but that Israel as a nation had rejected their Messiah. God would still use the Jewish people to start the early Church and take the gospel to the whole world (see the book of Acts), but as a whole, the Jews have rejected the gospel and still do (that will change in the future as one of the signs of the end times is that Israel will realize that Jesus was their Messiah and will once again say "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD" and welcome Him as their king). This lesson to Jesus' disciples warns us about those who have an appearance or form of godliness, but their "fruit" shows they do not belong to Jesus (see 2 Timothy 3:1-9 which tells us such men are to be avoided). James the half-brother of Jesus tells us in his epistle that faith without works (or a tree without fruit in this case) is dead and good for nothing. Jesus says much the same thing in Matthew 7. So, we need to be careful that not all that call themselves Christians are for real--ultimately, it will be the job of Jesus to sort them out in the coming judgment, but it appears that He wants us to be discerning here and now. In this case, the religion that Israel was portraying to those around them was fake as they did not recognize the one who was the fulfillment of the priesthood, the sacrifices, the Law and the Prophets. That religious system would soon "die" (the Temple would be destroyed in 70 AD and won't be rebuilt until the end times--I believe it be rebuilt in conjunction with Israel returning to their Messiah and expecting His return as their king). Jesus is able to take something dead like that fig tree and bring it back to life and that is what we see happen in the end times. Life and fruitfulness will be given to the nation of Israel as Jewish evangelists will make the gospel known to the whole world. We'll come back and talk about this some more after the cleansing of the Temple and the disciples recognizing what has happened. Jesus will teach the disciples a lesson about faith, but we see these passages about the fig tree surrounded by challenges from the religious leaders--those who should have been most ready for Jesus and yet were the least "fruitful" when He inspected them (at the same time He's inspecting them, they are trying to inspect Him to try to find any blemish, yet they can find none because He is the spotless Lamb of God that will take away the sin of the world). Mark 11:1-11 English Standard Version The Triumphal Entry 11 Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples 2 and said to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it. 3 If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it and will send it back here immediately.’” 4 And they went away and found a colt tied at a door outside in the street, and they untied it. 5 And some of those standing there said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” 6 And they told them what Jesus had said, and they let them go. 7 And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. 8 And many spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. 9 And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! 10 Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!” 11 And he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple. And when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve. We are now a week away from the day we know as Easter. This is the beginning of what many of us call Holy Week--the week starting with Palm Sunday. That's what we'll talk about today--The Triumphal Entry. Jesus would ride down the Mount of Olives into Jerusalem on a donkey--a sign that He was the king that was going to make peace, not war. The people welcomed Him realizing that He was fulfilling the Messianic prophecies and they shouted and sang parts of Psalm 118 to Him (see verses 25 and 26). The moment was bittersweet for Jesus as He knew they were welcoming Him now, but in a few short days, they would reject Him, which was also prophesied.
So, the entire way down the Mount of Olives as He was riding into Jerusalem, He was weeping for them, longing for them to gather to Him like how chicks gather to their mother to take shelter and find comfort under her wings. The people realized Jesus as the Son of David and looked for Him to take the throne in Jerusalem, but that's not what He came to do--at least, not this time around. He will return one day, riding on white horse and will take this same path down the Mount of Olives, but that day He will come to make war and defeat all the enemies of the LORD and the LORD's people. Then, after all His enemies have been defeated, He will be given the throne of His father David to reign from Jerusalem for 1,000 years. The passage only mentions in passing that Jesus then went to the Temple and "looked around at everything." He did a great deal more than look around as we know this is when He cleansed the Temple for a second time. Then, after this He returned to Bethany where He was likely staying with Lazarus, Mary and Martha. Mark didn't record the resurrection of Lazarus for us, but that happened probably the day before this, and likely explains the large crowd that was celebrating and worshipping Jesus. He had just shown that He had power over death like no one else, to the Jews it was beyond hope of resurrection if someone had been dead for three days as their body would have started to decay, but Jesus called Lazarus out of the tomb after waiting more than three days on purpose. There would be an even greater resurrection than this that would happen in about a week's time on Resurrection Sunday, but we have much that will happen before that day. Mark 10:46-52 English Standard Version Jesus Heals Blind Bartimaeus 46 And they came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. 47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48 And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.” 50 And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. 51 And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” 52 And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way. It's unusual to know the name of this blind man, but this is probably an extra detail added by Peter and Mark so that others could go ask this man about what happened. Given his name, his father's name and that he was from the town of Jericho, that was as good as giving people his street address. Add to that the details of the story and everyone in town would know exactly who you were talking about and take you right to him so that you could confirm the details yourself with his firsthand account. At least, I believe that was the author's intent here.
Bartimaeus was a blind better who was sitting by the roadside. He heard that Jesus was coming to town, and he cried out in a loud voice, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me." There is much said in Bartimaeus's words. First, he calls Him Jesus which means "Savior." He then calls Him "Son of David," a Messianic title for the one that would be the heir to David whose kingdom would be an everlasting kingdom. Lastly, he says, "Have mercy on me" (it will become more clear what kind of mercy he was asking for shortly). The crowd tried to ignore him, but he cried out louder and louder until he could not be ignored. Finally, Jesus stopped and said, "Call him" (Jesus made blind Bartimaeus come to Him; He did not go to the blind man). The people told Bartimaeus, "Take heart; get up; He is calling you!" Bartimaeus then threw off his cloak so that it would not encumber him, and he sprang up and ran to Jesus as fast as he could. For the sake of the crowd, Jesus asks Bartimaeus, "What is it you want me to do for you?" Jesus wanted Bartimaeus to put his faith into words so that everyone would hear what he believed Jesus could do for him. Bartimaeus then calls Him, "Rabbi" or "Teacher," meaning that Bartimaeus considered himself a disciple and wanted to learn from Jesus, and then said, "I want to receive my sight." This was no ordinary request--only the Messiah was supposed to be able to give sight to the blind, according to the Old Testament prophecies. Jesus granted Bartimaeus's request, and he immediately received his sight. Bartimaeus immediately began to follow Jesus (that's probably how Peter knew his name). Matthew tells us there were two blind men there, but we don't know the name of the other, while Luke gives much the same details as Mark. John tells of another healing of a blind man in much greater detail (see John 9). That healing was one of the events that made the Pharisees want to kill Jesus. That one shows us that Jesus can heal not only physical blindness, but spiritual blindness, and that the Pharisees, though they could see with their physical eyes, were spiritually blind where this man who was born blind could see clearly who Jesus was. Mark 10:35-45 English Standard Version The Request of James and John 35 And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” 36 And he said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?” 37 And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” 38 Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” 39 And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized, 40 but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.” 41 And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant at James and John. 42 And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 43 But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Jesus has just tried to teach His disciples a lesson that whoever wants to be the greatest must be like a little child, and then He told them how He was going to Jerusalem to suffer and die at the hands of the Jews and the Gentiles, but He would rise again on the third day.
It seems obvious the disciples weren't understanding what Jesus was trying to teach them because once again they start arguing about who would be the greatest in the coming kingdom--specifically who would sit at the right hand of Jesus and who would sit at His left hand when He was on the throne. James and John were brothers, and their mother got involved in making this request on behalf of her sons (though this text makes it clear that James and John also were involved in the request asking Jesus to do for them whatever they asked). James and John were two of the three disciples that were closest to Jesus--the other being Simon Peter. Jesus replies to James and John asking (I think rhetorically, but they answered anyways) if they were ready to drink from the cup that Jesus is about to drink from and be baptized with the baptism He was about to be baptized. I don't think they were supposed to answer--they were supposed to realize the answer was, "No," but they replied anyways with, "We are able." Jesus then tells that that they will indeed drink the same cup and be baptized with the same baptism (both of them would suffer like He suffered. We know from the book of Acts that James was the first of the apostles to die and we think John was the last of the original Twelve to die, so he had to see all his friends die before him). However, Jesus does not promise them a seat at His right hand or left hand because He cannot give those positions to anyone--those positions have been prepared ahead of time for those that will be seated there (Jesus doesn't exactly say "No" to them either so there's still a chance that they may be the ones that these seats have been prepared for but if we go with the teaching of Jesus, it might be someone that we least expect who humbled themselves greatly who is highly exalted in the kingdom). As expected, all the other disciples were indignant when they heard the request made by James and John (most likely because they were revealing what was in their own hearts that they thought they deserved to sit in one of these seats of chief importance). Hadn't any of them been listening? It would seem the lesson on "the last being first and the first being last" would need to be repeated for them again. Jesus tells them to not act like the rulers of the Gentiles that lord their power and position over everyone by making sure everyone knows how important they are--they demand to always sit in the best seat. No, Jesus says that anyone who wants to be great in His kingdom must be a servant to all. Jesus will demonstrate this for them at Passover meal they shared together before Jesus' arrest, trial, and crucifixion. During that time, we'll see Jesus take off his robes, wrap Himself in a towel and wash the disciples' feet (including Judas who would betray Him). He will tell them that He has given them an example to follow. This is one of the greatest, most important lessons that He wanted His disciples to learn--to be selfless. So, they saw that even Jesus, the Son of Man, came not to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many. Could they really drink from that cup and be baptized with that baptism? Maybe not yet, but we'll see how they will be changed in the book of Acts when the Holy Spirit comes upon them. Mark 10:32-34 English Standard Version Jesus Foretells His Death a Third Time 32 And they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them. And they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what was to happen to him, 33 saying, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles. 34 And they will mock him and spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And after three days he will rise.” Jesus is getting closer and closer to Jerusalem where He knows he will be arrested, tried, convicted, and put to death for crimes He was not guilty of. He's trying to prepare His disciples for what is about to happen by telling them plainly along the way that all these things are going to happen and must happen. The first time He said this, Peter argued with Him. The second time He talked to them about this, they were confused, but no one dared to ask Him about it. This time there will be another poor reaction (we'll get to that tomorrow), but at least they were halfway listening to the part about Him going away soon this time.
They could not understand that the Messiah's purpose was to go through all this, and if they understood the talk of his crucifixion, they definitely did not understand the talk of His resurrection on the third day. They were kept from understanding this until after the Resurrection had taken place, but there was a group who heard it and did understand it--the Pharisees and chief priests. Though they heard and remembered His words, they did not believe them though. We'll talk more about that as the story progresses. Mark 10:17-31 English Standard Version The Rich Young Man 17 And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 18 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’” 20 And he said to him, “Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth.” 21 And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 22 Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. 23 And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” 24 And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how difficult it is to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” 26 And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, “Then who can be saved?” 27 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.” 28 Peter began to say to him, “See, we have left everything and followed you.” 29 Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, 30 who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life. 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.” We usually know this story as the story of the "Rich, Young Ruler." We get that name by putting portions of several accounts specifically Matthew 19:16-29, Luke 18:18-30, and this passage in Mark 10:17-31.
All of the accounts begin the same way--the rich, young ruler walks up to Jesus and asks Him a question, "Good teacher, what [good deed] must I do to inherit eternal life?" There is then a conversation between Jesus and the man about "goodness" being something that belongs only to God. Whether the man was applying that label to Jesus or his own actions or both, Jesus wanted to make sure the man thought about what he was saying, because the standard of goodness is God's holiness and perfection--an impossible standard for any sinful man. Jesus then starts to answer the man's question by saying, "You know the commandments," and He starts to list off commandments 6-9, but He does not list the tenth commandment (nor does he list off commandments 1-4). Commandments 1-4 and 10 happen inside the heart, so Jesus first tells the man to examine himself by his works and test to see if they really match up with God's standard of goodness. The man says that he has kept all of these commandments [perfectly] since his youth (probably since his Bar Mitzvah when he was declared an adult and had legal culpability for his obedience or disobedience). In giving such an answer, he admits that he didn't keep the Law perfectly as a child. Notice that Jesus doesn't argue with the man's answer, even though we assume the man is a poor judge of his own actions and character, but Jesus looks into the man's heart and sees that he loves, worships and covets money (for he is a rich man that wants little more than to become richer). So, Jesus tells Him that he wants eternal life, he must sell all that he has, give the money to the poor, and come and follow Jesus. Then, and only then would the man have real treasure in heaven. The man went away sad because he was very wealthy and had many possessions. This became a "teachable moment" for Jesus' disciples as Jesus took the chance to tell them how hard it is for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. This was shocking to the disciples because they always associated material possessions and wealth with God's blessing and favor, so they assumed rich people were in God's favor and would go to heaven and poor people were cursed by God and would go to hell. Now Jesus was telling them that way of thinking was wrong, and it was hard for a materialistic, rich man to come to God because such a man must give up his material possessions that have hold over him. There is nothing wrong with money or stuff itself, but the love of money and the love of stuff is the root of all kinds of evil as the Bible says. Jesus even repeated Himself, saying, "Children, how difficult it is to enter the kingdom of God!" He didn't qualify it with being rich this time--just that it is impossible for any man to be good enough to make it into the kingdom of God by his own works. The disciples then ask the right question, "Who then can be saved?" Jesus replies, "With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God." Jesus is saying it was only possible for Him, God in the Flesh, to perfectly keep the Law, and that He would do it on their behalf. There is no way they understood any of this at this point. They simply walked away with many questions about what they were doing with their life if there seemed to be no hope of earning eternal life, but Jesus would make it clear to them that eternal life is something that He could give and was not something that they would earn. Peter being who he is tries to speak to make himself and the other apostles look good by saying that they had left everything they had (their business, their friends, their families, and even their homes) to follow after Jesus. They had given nearly three years of their lives to Him at this point. Peter's implied question is that he wants to know what kind of treasure in heaven is waiting for them because they did what this rich, young ruler would not do. Jesus answered Peter that anyone who left anything behind to follow Jesus will be generously rewarded both in this life and in the life to come. In this life, God will bless us with the Church that will be a new family to us, and they will share their possessions with us, and many will open their homes to us. In the next life, we will have eternal life which we cannot put a price on. So, Jesus would teach His disciples once more that the last will be first, and the first will be last. Mark 10:13-16 English Standard Version Let the Children Come to Me 13 And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them. 14 But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. 15 Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” 16 And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them. Recently, Jesus has used a child as a visual aid in teaching His disciples. He's told them in Mark 9:33-37 that instead of arguing about who would be the greatest in the kingdom, they needed to be thinking about who receives a little child in His name. Jesus said there that whoever receives such a child receives Him, and not only Him, but also the One who sent Him.
We're not sure how much time had passed between that passage and this one, but I don't assume it was much time at all. The disciples however still saw the children as an annoyance and tried to keep them away from Jesus. Jesus corrected the disciples and told them not to hinder the little children from coming to Him, because the kingdom of heaven belongs to people like them (who had child-like faith). Jesus then repeats the truth in another way, "Whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it." Wow! Jesus is telling His disciples who have been following Him for years that they need a transformation to have the faith of a little child (that kind of faith can only be given to us by God, we can't conjure it up in ourselves), or they have no hope of ever entering the kingdom of God. Then Jesus took the little children into His arms and blessed them, laying His hands on them. This is likely one of the passages that inspired the song, "Jesus Loves the Little Children." We also love them because He loves them, and He did not refuse them when they came unto Him. We also remember His words that we too must come with faith like a child that believes that the Father can do anything that He promises and is big enough and powerful enough to take care of all of our problems and those we perceive as our enemies. He is the one who will give good gifts to us, His children, and He will always love us, but He will also discipline those whom He loves. Little children will speak their mind quite clearly and want to talk to their parents (especially their father) about anything that's bothering them. We should be that way with God too. We believe that He will accomplish all things that He has promised to us, and that He is a great and mighty warrior who can take care of all of our enemies, our healer who can make all of our physical, emotional, psychological and spiritual wounds better. He is our provider and sustainer, and the one who lavishes us with good gifts like each new day. He is full of mercy, and even though we may have trouble approaching Him when we know we've done something wrong, we know we should talk to Him about it and confess and get things right with Him because He loves us. |
Daniel WestfallI will mostly use this space for recording my "journal" from my daily devotions as I hope to encourage others to read the Bible along with me and to leave a legacy for others. Archives
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