Mark 11

CHAPTER 11THEME: Triumphal entry; fig tree cursed; Jesus cleanses temple; fig tree withered; prayer; authority of JesusWe are coming now to the last days in the earthly life of our Lord. I have divided this chapter in this way:

1. Jesus presents Himself publicly to His nation as the Messiah (vv. Mar_11:1-11).
2. Jesus pronounces a blight on the fig tree (vv. Mar_11:12-14).
3. Jesus purifies the temple (vv. Mar_11:15-21).
4. Jesus’ prayer discourse (vv. Mar_11:22-26).
5. Jesus perturbs the religious rulers (vv. Mar_11:27-33). This eleventh chapter deals with the three days that He came into Jerusalem. I take the position that His so-called triumphal entry really wasn’t that at all. It was the Lord Jesus coming to Jerusalem in a public manner at the conclusion of His earthly ministry and presenting Himself. Actually, it amounted to a rejection of His overture. He really came in on three separate days, and not on just one day. I think that each Gospel is presenting a different aspect of His coming into Jerusalem. The first day He came was a Sabbath Day, Saturday. He returned on Sunday and cleansed the temple. Then He returned on Monday and wept over the city.

Mark 11:1

TRIUMPHAL ENTRYWe have seen in the last few chapters that Jesus is moving toward Jerusalem. He’s moving geographically and He’s moving chronologically closer to His death. This is the last week of His earthly life. Bethany and Bethphage are two little towns on the other side of the Mount of Olives from Jerusalem. (I intended to walk over there and back myself, but I never got around to it the few days that I was in Jerusalem. If I ever go there again, I want to do that. The fact of the matter is that I want to spend more time walking through that land.

It’s one thing to get in a bus or a car and ride along and have these places pointed out, but it’s another thing to take a map and walk along, stopping along the way and having a conversation with anyone who could understand English. I know one could discover many things which the average tourist does not see at all today.) Now the Lord Jesus is giving directions to two of His men.

Mark 11:2

There are two possible explanations regarding the colt that Jesus was to ride into Jerusalem. The Lord Jesus could have known about it since He is God and, therefore, omniscient. This could have been a miracle from beginning to end. On the other hand, all of this could have been arranged beforehand, and it would therefore be entirely human. It doesn’t seem necessary to read a miracle in here when the natural explanation is in order. I believe our Lord had arranged for this beforehand, and I think you will find greater meaning if you look at it that way. The important feature is that Jesus is asserting His authority. Notice that if anyone questions them about loosing the colt, they are to say that the Lord has need of it. That is asserting authority. While some are plotting His death, others are yielding allegiance to Him. “Straightway he will send him hither.” There were those who were obeying Him. Now that has been true for over nineteen hundred years. There are these two classes of people even today. As we read on, we find that they went into the town and found things just as the Lord had said.

Mark 11:4

You will notice that they merely follow His instructions and return with the colt.

Mark 11:7

I’m not sure that this was very impressive to those in Jerusalem. I’m sure it would not have been impressive to anyone who had been in Rome at the time that one of the Caesars returned from a campaign and had a great triumphal entry, a victorious return of a Caesar. It is said that so much booty and so many captives were brought back that the parade would go on for two or three days and nights. That would be triumphal, you see. Here it was just a few Galileans, peasants, but the impressive thing and the important thing is that the Lord Jesus is offering Himself publicly.

Mark 11:11

There are two things here that are important to see. It was obviously the Sabbath Day and the moneychangers and the oxen were not there. On this first day He came in as the Priest, and He was the sacrifice. He came in as the Great High Priest to offer the sacrifice that is acceptable to God for your sins and for my sins. And note that He did not spend the night in Jerusalem but returned to Bethany for the evening. Jesus had thrust Himself before the city publicly and was demanding a decision. As far as we can tell, He did not spend a night in the city that rejected Him.

Mark 11:12

FIG TREE CURSEDAnd this is “on the morrow,” the second day, and they were coming from Bethany. This is the second day He entered in triumph. This little incident has caused great controversy. On this day He cleansed the temple and He cursed the fig tree. The nation Israel, in my opinion, is represented by the fig tree. I recognize there are others who take exception to that, and I don’t want to be controversial. What I’m interested in is that there is a great spiritual lesson here. Israel had the outward leaves of a God-given religion, but there was no spiritual fruit. I wonder if we could say that of the church today? This would be His message to the church of Laodicea.

They didn’t have anythingthey were poor and blind and needed to have ointment to open their eyes. This means that the Holy Spirit was not there. I believe this is the same thing that Isaiah was talking about in Isa_29:13: “Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men.” I would consider this the condition of the church today. The Lord Jesus cursed the fig tree, and the fig tree withered away.

Mark 11:15

JESUS CLEANSES TEMPLEHere He cleanses the temple. John tells us that He cleansed it at the beginning of His ministry and now cleanses it at the end of His ministry. This took place on the second day, and this was not the Sabbath Day; it was Sunday. The moneychangers were now in the temple. They had a seat on the stock market and were there so that when strangers came from other countries they could exchange coins. The strangers couldn’t use their foreign coins but needed the legal coin of the temple. When these moneychangers would make the exchange, they, of course, charged the people a certain percentage. It served a good purpose in a way, but the trouble of it was that our Lord said it had become a den of thieves. It had become a religious racket. Friend, this is always a danger in any Christian enterprise. That is the reason folk ought to check on religious organizations before they support them. You see, His public presentation of Himself as the Messiah was not a triumphal entry into Jerusalem. He was rejected. I don’t like the term, and it is not scriptural to call it “triumphal.” Wait until you see Him someday when He comes and the “…dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them …” (1Th_4:16-17). You will see that tremendous throng of folk who have trusted Christ during more than nineteen hundred yearsmillions of saints going out. My friend, that will really be a triumphal entry. I think it’s going to take place over a long period of time.

The raising will be in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, but the parade has a long way to go. He’s going to lead them into a new place, a new creation, a new home for this new group. It will not be just to the moon, but to the New Jerusalem. What a glorious thing that will be! That will be triumphant! We have come now to the third day.

Mark 11:20

FIG TREE WITHEREDThis causes our Lord to give this discourse on prayer. They marvelled at the fig tree, and this causes Him to give the discourse.

Mark 11:22

TEACHING ABOUT PRAYERIt’s interesting that this discourse on the prayer of faith grew out of Peter’s calling attention to the blighted fig tree. You see, the first step in prayer must be faith in God. The writer to the Hebrews stated this same principle: “But without faith it is impossible to please him; for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” (Heb_11:6). If you don’t believe in God, friend, then the skeptic is certainly correct when he says that prayer is a madman talking to himself. Having faith in God is the first step.

Mark 11:23

This is a verse that is so misunderstood today. The Christian does not need to throw mountains around literally, but he needs power for living and meeting the daily mountains of cares and problems. This is why Paul could pray for the Ephesians, “That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man” (Eph_3:16). Don’t pray for me that I’ll be able to move the mountains that are behind our headquarters here in Pasadena. Frankly, I see no point in moving the mountains. And if I did move them, where in the world would I put them?

I don’t want to put them out in the ocean because they look pretty up where they are. But I want to tell you very candidly that I would like to be strengthened with might by the Holy Spirit in the inner man. That, my friend, would be greater than moving a mountain. That’s the thing that is important and is, I feel, what He is talking about as He gives them this visible illustration to show what prayer can do.

Mark 11:24

Have faith in God. This does not give you the ability to satisfy your own selfish desires, but have faith in God that His will might be done in your life.

Mark 11:25

Here is a condition that the individual must meet before prayer is heard and answered. An unforgiving spirit will short-circuit the power of prayer, and that’s important to understand. God forgives us for Christ’s sake (Eph_4:32). That is the way we are saved. But if you and I are going to have power in our lives, there must be forgiveness. That is very important. Now we find the chief priests coming out to try to trap Him.

Mark 11:27

AUTHORITY OF JESUSThey are still on His trail, you see, these bloodhounds of hate. They are resisting Him at every turn. They challenged His authority. They were the religious rulers; they were the official representatives of religion in their day, and they had delegated no authority to Him. So they want to know where He got His authority.

Mark 11:29

That was a good question, by the way, and it was a devastating question to the religious rulers. You see, if they said that John’s baptism was from heaven, then the obvious follow-up would be, “Then why didn’t you accept it?” If they repudiated John, then the people would be antagonized, for they accepted John.

Mark 11:31

They had to wiggle out of answering the question of Jesus by claiming ignorance. It might be argued that this did not afford Jesus a sufficient ground for not answering their question. My friend, they were not seeking an answer. They were trying to trap Him. They had no intention of following His teaching if He had told them. He does not answer them because He is not falling into their trap. This, to me, is one of the great proofs of His deitythe way He handled His enemies. Remember that when men and women came to our Lord with sincere questions as sincere seekers, they received a sincere and genuine answer to their inquiries.