Mark 11:12-26, Religion Without Fruit
Introduction:
In our last lesson from the gospel of Mark we saw Jesus make His entry into Jerusalem . We noted that the riding upon a colt and the shouting of the people were all fulfillments of prophecy concerning the Messiah. At the end of His coming into Jerusalem , Jesus returns to Bethany , which is about two miles away. This seems to be the place where Jesus is residing in the evening for the time being. We will note in the future that Jesus will return to Bethany and the following day come back into Jerusalem . Just as the first entry of Jesus into Jerusalem was done to show that He is the Messiah, this next entry that we are to read about will also show that He is the Messiah. There are two symbolic actions and one overriding theme that we are going to notice in Mark 11:12-26.
Cursing the Fig Tree (11:12 -14)
The scene
Immediately, we are presented with a very interesting scene, a scene that is problematic for many readers and scholars. Jesus and His disciples have left Bethany again and are on their way to Jerusalem . We are told something that we have not read about very often in the life of Christ. Mark records for us that Jesus is hungry. The only other time the gospels record the fact that Jesus was hungry was during His temptation in Matthew 4. This reminds each of us of Jesus’ humanity through all that is going on. We have a reminder that the things Jesus is about to endure are things that He felt as a human would. Jesus is hungry and up in the distance He sees a fig tree with leaves on it. So Jesus approaches the fig tree to see if anything is on it. When Jesus comes to the fig tree, He sees that there is no fruit on it because it is not the season for figs. Jesus says to the fig tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” Now the question is, Why did this happen? Why did Jesus curse this tree? Here are the words of a couple of scholars. T.W. Manson wrote, “It is a tale of miraculous power wasted in the service of ill-temper (for the supernatural energy employed to blast the unfortunate tree might have been more usefully expressed in forcing a crop of figs out of season); and as it stands, it is simply incredible.” William Barclay agrees with this assessment, adding, “The story does not seem worthy of Jesus. There seems to be a petulance in it.”
Is this the way to understand this text? Did Jesus simply fly off the handle because He was hungry? Did He misuse His powers by cursing this tree out of anger and frustration? Is this what we are supposed to glean from this event? To those who think such have completely missed the symbolism of what Jesus has done.
Israel, the fig tree
Throughout the Old Testament, there have been varying images that have been used to symbolize the nation of Israel . Israel has been represented as a vine in Isaiah 5 and Ezekiel 15. Israel has been portrayed as an olive tree in Judges 9 and Romans 11. The fig tree has been a very common symbol for the nation of Israel also. Consider the following passages: The imagery begins very early, such as 1 Kings 4:25, which says, “And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, each man under his vine and his fig tree, from Dan as far as Beersheba , all the days of Solomon.” Here the vine and the fig tree represent the blessings of God from being in a covenant relationship with Him. When Israel was to be judged for their sins, these images were used again regarding the nation. Jeremiah 8:13 says, “I will surely consume them, says the Lord. There shall be no grapes on the vine, nor figs on the fig tree, and the leaf shall fade; and the things I have given them shall pass away from them.” Notice also Hosea 9:10 which says, “I found Israel like grapes in the wilderness; I saw your fathers as the firstfruits on the fig tree in its first season. But they went to Baal Peor, and separated themselves to that shame; they became an abomination like the things they loved.” Again, Jeremiah 29:16-17 says, “Therefore thus says the Lord concerning the king who sits on the throne of David, concerning all the people who dwell in this city, and concerning your brethren who have not gone out with you into captivity--thus says the Lord of hosts: Behold, I will send on them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and will make them like rotten figs that cannot be eaten, they are so bad.” There are more scriptures that use this kind of language, but I hope these are sufficient to show that the fig tree represented the nation of Israel . Now it becomes clearer what Jesus is doing with this fig tree. Jesus does not curse the fig tree because He is mad that there is nothing to eat. The fig tree is a representation of Israel that is not bearing fruit. Jesus is condemning Israel by cursing this tree, as a visible sign for all the multitudes to see.
Condemnation of external hypocrisy
Jesus is condemning the external hypocrisy of the nation of Israel . Israel was to be an oasis for hungry souls seeking the Lord. However, that oasis had simply become a mirage. Just as Jesus saw the fig tree from afar, hoping for fruit for His hunger and was disappointed, so Israel offered false hope to those who were far from God and were also disappointed.
Jesus demands fruitfulness from His disciples. Israel claimed to be the people of God and yet was not bearing fruit worthy of discipleship. Therefore, Jesus condemns them for this hypocrisy. A disciple must bear fruit, and if a person is not bearing fruit, though claiming to be a follower of God, he or she is a hypocrite. Jesus made this very point directly in John 15:8, “My Father is glorified by this: that you produce much fruit and prove to be My disciples.” We fool ourselves if we think we are disciples of Christ and will inherit eternal life if we are not bearing fruit. One of the clearest ways that Jesus describes how to bear fruit is by being a light in the world and the salt of the earth. We bear fruit when we lead others to the righteousness of God. Israel was preventing people from finding God. They were a mirage of hope that disappointed. We are to be leading people to Christ, and are not to be a mirage of godliness.
Jesus demands fruitfulness in all seasons. Even though it was not the time for figs to be growing on the fig tree, Jesus was still looking for fruit. Jesus was still looking for signs that fruitfulness would come from this tree. Jesus demands fruitfulness from His disciples in every season. Paul gave such words to Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:2, “Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.” A disciple of God is to be fruitful when it is easy and when it is difficult. We are to be fruitful regardless of our situation, regardless of the challenge, and regardless of the obstacles. A true disciple bears fruit always. Those who claim to be followers and are not bearing fruit always are condemned as hypocrites.
Temple Cleansing (11:15 -19)
The scene
Jesus and His followers have now come into Jerusalem . Jesus goes into the temple complex and overturns the moneychangers’ tables. Jesus throws out those who are buying and selling and overturns the chairs of those selling doves. Further, Jesus would not allow anyone to carry a vessel through the temple complex. Again, we are not seeing Jesus flying into a selfish fit of rage. What Jesus is doing is calculated and with purpose. Remember that in John 2 Jesus had already cleansed the temple once. We see that the reforms did not last any longer than when Jesus left the city. Upon Jesus’ return to Jerusalem , He goes into the temple complex and overthrows the tables again. So what is the problem in the temple? Why did Jesus do this again? There are a couple of reasons and we will deal with the most obvious and then consider something that we may have missed.
Abominations in the Lord’s house
The most obvious reason for the cleansing of the temple was that the place of worship had been turned into a place for usury and commerce. There were a couple of different types of transactions that were taking place in the temple courts.
The first was the exchange of various national currencies for the temple coins to pay the temple tax. The Jews would not accept the money of the nations because foreign money was considered to have idolatrous images, like an image of Caesar on Roman money. Therefore, the moneychangers were there to exchange the money of all the Jews coming from distant lands to keep the Passover. Of course, the problem was that the moneychangers had the ability to charge excessive amounts for the exchange. One writer records that the moneychangers would charge a 6% fee to exchange money and would charge an additional 6% for giving change. This would amount to half a day’s wage for the common man. A further problem was location of all these transactions taking place in the house of God.
The second transaction was the purchase of animals for sacrifice. Worshippers did not have to buy animals at the temple, but it was very difficult for pilgrims from long distances to bring sacrificial animals. Remember that the law said that the animals must be without blemish. This was left up to the determination of the priests, who could reject the offering so one would have to buy the animals they sold. One writer records that a pair of doves could cost as much as 50 times more inside the temple complex than outside. Further, these transactions were being carried out in the house of the Lord. With the millions of people that came to Jerusalem for the Passover, the temple became a regular circus which Jesus was cleansing.
Fulfillment of prophecies
But this is not the only reason why Jesus cleansed the temple again. The other reason is that this action was a fulfilling of prophecy. First, let us consider the prophecy of Malachi 3:1-4. Malachi describes the messenger who will prepare the way for the coming of the Lord. Described in the Lord’s coming is the purification of the temple and His people. The Jews believed that when the Messiah came, He would cleanse the temple. Of course, this purification was not expected to be against the Jews, but against the heathen nations that had encroached the temple area. In 166 B.C. the belief was that the Messiah would cleanse the temple from the desolation of Antiochus IV Epiphanes. In the first century, the cleansing was to be of the Romans who had established a fortress against the temple. But Jesus does not cleanse the heathen nations, but the heathens of Israel .
Jesus then goes on to quote two prophecies. The first prophecy is from Isaiah 56:7 which, in its context, describes the nations coming to the holy mountain and offering sacrifices. This would be fulfilled in the admitting of the Gentiles into the covenant. The second prophecy is from Jeremiah 7:11. Notice the context of this prophecy from verses 8-12. Jeremiah describes the abominations of the people and says that destruction will come like it did when the people forsook God at Shiloh . This is the implication of Jesus’ words now in the temple. Jesus is saying that their actions in the temple are an abomination and they will be judged. The specific imagery that would have come to these Jews minds when recalling the words of Jeremiah would be the destruction of God’s tabernacle at Shiloh and the destruction of God’s temple in Jerusalem in 586 B.C. Jesus is foreshadowing that this will happen again. That is why we see the chief priests and scribes desiring to kill Jesus in verse 18. They understood what Jesus was saying and they did not like it. However, the crowd was “blown away” by the teaching of Jesus.
Condemnation of internal hypocrisy
In Jesus cursing the fig tree, we saw Jesus was condemning external hypocrisy, witnessed in the lack of fruit in those who claim to be disciples. Now, Jesus is condemning internal hypocrisy. These Jews claimed to be the followers of God and in a covenant relationship with Him. The chief priests and scribes were the religious leaders of the day who allowed such activities to take place in the temple courts. Jesus condemned these people through His quotation of Jeremiah 7. Though the people appeared to be religious, they were full of abominations. The religious leaders had their outward piety on display for the people to believe that they were holy. Yet, their hearts were full of wickedness and evil. The leaders had greater motives than pleasing God. They were more concerned with their own rules for the temple and were more concerned about turning a profit in the house of the Lord than worshipping God the way He desired. The praise of people was more important than service to God. The respect of the nation was more important that doing things God’s way.
How much more we see this today as the denominations and other religious groups turn the worship of the Lord into ways to pad the treasury! Instead of being the light unto the world, religious groups have turned the gospel into a commercial enterprise. Fundraising is the focus and tithing is demanded and preached on. The concern for doing things God’s way is lost. But before we think that they are the only ones with problems, we must see that we ourselves can fall into the same error as the priests and scribes. If we claim to be followers of God, yet have things more important to us than pleasing God, we are hypocrites also. Any motive that is greater than pleasing God is not acceptable. We may be able to put on the perfect show on the outside and have people believe we are the perfect family. But internally we may be allowing sin and wickedness to invade. We cannot delude ourselves into believing that we are followers of God when our desires are focused upon anything else but God.
Back To the Fig Tree (11:20 -26)
The scene
It seems that it is now the next day and Jesus and His followers are passing on the road again between Bethany and Jerusalem . As they were walking along, the disciples see the fig tree that Jesus had cursed now withered. Peter remembers what Jesus had said previously and says to Jesus, “Look! The fig tree that You cursed is withered.” Jesus seizes this amazement as an opportunity to teach His disciples again about being a true follower of God. In our last moments, let us consider some of the lessons Jesus is making.
Condemnation of hypocrisy
--Through prayer. Jesus shows His disciples that we have hypocrisy in prayer when we doubt. This ought to make logical sense to us. Why would we pray if we do not believe it is going to happen? Why do we bother to speak to God if we doubt that God will respond? Yet many who claim to be disciples of Christ are full of doubt when they pray. What we learn is that we need to consider ourselves before we pray to God. Ask yourself a question when you are to make a request: Do you believe that God will answer? Do you believe that what you are requesting can happen? If not, you may as well save yourself the time and not pray. James tells us that one who doubts in prayer cannot expect to receive anything from the Lord. Jesus makes the same point here. Prayer demands faith. We must believe that what we are asking for can happen by the power of God. Otherwise, we are wasting our time and our words are not getting past the ceiling.
--Through unforgiving hearts. Jesus not only shows that we are hypocritical when we pray with doubt, but He also points out that we are hypocritical when we pray while having something against anyone. We cannot expect to have answered prayers when we have an unforgiving heart. Even worse, we cannot expect our own sins to be forgiven when we are unwilling to forgive others. What Jesus says to do should not be lost upon us. If we have anything against someone, Jesus does not say that you need to go make that person repent to you for their offense against you. Jesus does not say that you need to force that person to ask you to forgiven them. Jesus says that if you can think of something that you have against someone, you better forgive that person so that God will hear your prayers and forgive you. When we are unwilling to forgive, God is unwilling to forgive. I do not believe that we are mindful enough of this consequence. We hold grudges and are angry at our neighbors, at our friends, at even other Christians. But when this is the case, we show ourselves not to be true followers of God, but hypocrites. True disciples forgive those who do not ask for it. True disciples forgive, being mindful that our forgiveness from God is dependent upon this.
Conclusion:
Hypocrisy is severely judged. The first important lesson we must take away from these scenes is that hypocrisy is severely judged.
Hypocrisy comes in many forms. Unfruitfulness is hypocritical. Having motives other than pleasing God is hypocritical. Doubting and being unforgiving is hypocritical. These are errors that we can slip into and not realize that we are violating God’s law. Just as Israel was severed from God and destroyed for its hypocrisy, so we also are severed from God and will be judged when we act similarly.
Clean out the hypocrisy. Therefore, we need to clean the hypocrisy that may be in our lives. Let us consider what Jesus has called us to do:
- Look to bear fruit. We must be the light to the world to bring people to God.
- Look to God first. The only priority we must have is pleasing God. When we adopt that value, then we can be true servants of God.
- Look to self last. We want to hold grudges and want to have people grovel for mercy. God told us to forgive others immediately or we will not be forgiven.
