In so many ways, everything was going Jesus way and it looked like this might truly be the moment God would redeem his people and establish his kingdom, but in just 4 days, many in that same crowd would turn on Jesus and call for his crucifixion and the question that is always asked is how could that happen? How could crowds that cheered Jesus one day call for his death just a few days later? Part of the answer is found in what Jesus did during those 4 days. After he arrived in Jerusalem, Jesus and his disciples travelled to the Temple everyday where Jesus taught, but unlike his previous sermons which talked about the power of love and grace and forgiveness, Jesus’ teaching in the temple was filled with judgment. It was during these days that Jesus called the religious leaders hypocrites and told the people to follow what these leaders said because they taught the Law of Moses but then he said do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach.
Jesus called the religious leaders white washed tombs, which meant that while they looked good on the outside - inside they were filled with death. Because of this, the religious quickly turned on him, but Jesus harsh criticism wasn’t just reserved for the religious leaders. There were two things Jesus during these days in the Temple which shocked and stunned the people and we read about them in Mark 11:12-21.
In the days that lead up to his arrest, trial and crucifixion Jesus was staying in the village of Bethany outside of Jerusalem and everyday he and the disciples would travel into the city. The first day as they were walking into the city, it says Jesus was hungry and saw a fig tree in full bloom so he goes to the tree looking for fruit to eat. Now while it says that it was not the season for figs, that doesn’t mean there still may not have been some fruit on the tree. There could have been fruit left over from an earlier harvest, or there could have been early buds hidden among the leaves for the second harvest, but either way Jesus goes to the tree looking to find some fruit because the tree appeared to be healthy and strong, but when he gets to the tree and looks closer he finds nothing and so Jesus curses the tree. The next day when Jesus and his disciples entered the city, they pass by the same tree and the disciples are shocked to see that the tree has died. The disciples are used to seeing Jesus bring healing and life to situations, but here they see him bring judgment and death and honestly, it is unsettling. Why did Jesus curse this tree?
Let’s be clear, Jesus didn’t have a personal vendetta against the tree and he wasn’t angry that the tree didn’t provide him food. Jesus cursed the tree as a warning to God’s people. Fig trees were symbolic of God’s people. Several times in the Old Testament fig trees were used to represent the people of God and just as fig trees were to produce fruit that would sustain life, so God’s people were to live their lives in such a way that they would help bring life to the world. Individually and collectively the people of God were to be healthy and strong trees that would produce fruit so when Jesus sees a tree that looks healthy and strong on the outside but has nothing of value to offer on the inside – he curses it to make the statement that God’s people cannot look good on the outside but have no fruit or faith on the inside.
It is this same message that Jesus gives when he clears out the Temple later the same day. The Temple in Jerusalem was the very heart of worship for God’s people and it was to be a holy place where people could experience the power and presence of God. When Jesus arrives in Jerusalem, he would have seen that the Temple looked good on the outside. The Temple was a magnificent physical structure and not only was it a beautiful place, it was a busy place and all the activity there helped provide for the ritual scarifies required as part of worship. Like the fig tree, the Temple looked good on the outside, but when Jesus entered and took a closer look, things were not so good.
When Jesus entered into the Temple he would have first entered into an outer area known as the court of the gentiles. This was the only place in the Temple where non-Jews were allowed to pray, so this was the only place they could experience the presence of God, but it was this area that the merchants and money changers had set up their tables for business. People came to the Temple for 2 main reasons, to pay the Temple tax and offer sacrifices. For the Temple tax, people had to pay with a specific currency, so for the sake of convenience, money changers were allowed in the Temple to help the people make the necessary exchanges. Merchants selling pigeons and doves were also allowed to set up in this area so they could sell animals to people from out of town who needed birds for the sacrifices; again this was set up as a convenience for the people. The problem was that all of this business was set up in the court of the gentiles which was the only place non-Jews were allowed to worship and pray. So this activity, as good as it was, kept people away from God.
So while the Temple looked good on the outside it was dying on the inside. The whole point of the Temple was to be a place of worship and prayer and because of the money changers and merchants; people who were hungry for God and looking for God were being turned away empty. One of the purposes of Israel was to be a light to the nations and call people to God, both Jews and Gentiles, and yet what Jesus finds is that they are actually turning people away. So like the fig tree, while the Temple and all the activity may have looked good on the outside - they were not offering life and faith on the inside and this is what upsets Jesus to the point where in an act of uncharacteristic anger and frustration, he turns over the tables and drives out the merchants from the Temple.
So both cursing the fig tree and clearing out the Temple were bold acts of judgment on God’s people. Jesus was clear that God’s people were not being who God created them and called them to be and Jesus actions, along with his words of judgment against the religious leaders, created a climate that became toxic toward Jesus. The religious leaders and many of the people began to try and find a way, anyway, to silence Jesus. So that helps us understand how so many people could have turned against Jesus in such a short period of time, but these bold acts of Jesus also serve as a warning to us today. As God’s people, both individually and as a church, do we just look good on the outside or are we actually bearing fruit?
Are we here at Faith Church bearing fruit? Are we fulfilling the purpose of the church which is to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world? Are we helping people connect to God, are we encouraging people to serve God and those in need around us and are we growing in faith and in number. I am encouraged because I believe the answer to these questions is yes. We are bearing fruit. We have more people seeking God through worship and we are offering more opportunities for people to worship like the Wednesday times of prayer and reflection that will start next week and continue through Lent. I am excited by the number of people who willing serve God in the church by giving their time to help with meals for those in need, sing in the choir and the Easter choir, and help with our children and youth and in missions. I am also excited that while many churches in our denomination are shrinking in size, we are growing. We are bearing fruit, but I think Jesus clearing of the Temple serves as a particular warning to us.
What was going on in the Temple with the money changers and merchants was taking place because things in the Temple were so busy. There were so many people coming to worship and serve in the Temple that to take care of them all they provided the service of money changers and merchants, and yet in all their busyness they forgot the most important thing of all – prayer. In seeking to serve God and the people, they had somehow forgotten God in the process. In our Men’s Bible study we are studying the book of Revelation and we just finished the letters to the churches and in the letter to the church in Ephesus Jesus commends the people for all their hard work but then he says, but you have abandoned the love you had at first. The warning for us in all of this is that when things are good and when things get busy it is easy to forget our first love which is worship and prayer and our own personal connection with God, so while we are bearing fruit as a church, we can not get so busy that we forget that the single most important thing for us as the body of Christ is to worship God and keep our hearts and minds fixed on Jesus and to provide opportunities for others to experience God’s presence through prayer.
So as a church I believe that we are bearing fruit, but what about as individuals? Are you bearing fruit? Am I bearing fruit? How can we even tell if we are bearing fruit? Well, the Bible says that the fruit we should be producing in our lives is love, joy, peace, patience kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control. As you look at these words and reflect on your own words, attitudes and actions of this past week, have you been bearing fruit? Have we been patient and kind toward others? Have we been gentle with our families and self-controlled in our thoughts and habits? Have we been filled with love, joy and peace in our relationship with God and the people of God? Or have we just been putting on a good show. Are we all leaves and no fruit? Are we all activity and no prayer?
I have to say, when I think about it like this, I am not sure I have been producing as much fruit as I want to these days. At times I feel like that fig tree, looking good on the outside but not so sure if there is the fruit Jesus is looking for on the inside. If you are feeling that way as well, don’t worry because God is not here to curse us, but He is here to call us to bear fruit. Jesus curses the fig tree not because he was going to destroy God’s people but as a call to the people to deepen their faith. If we keep reading in Mark 11 we see that the cursing of the fig tree unsettles the disciples and in their anxiety Jesus says to them, have faith in God.
Two of the specific steps Jesus calls the disciples to take to deepen their faith in God have to do with prayer and forgiveness. Again, look at Mark 11:23-25. Jesus calls his disciples to pray with faith trusting not in what we can do but in what God can do. We can’t move mountains but God can, so we pray for God to do those things we can not. Prayer is so important to Jesus, it was what got him angry in the Temple and it is what he calls his disciples to if they want to deepen their faith, so we need to take prayer seriously. Can we commit ourselves to prayer every day and can we make the prayers not just about us, or our family and friend but can our prayers include times of adoration and thanksgiving as well. This Wednesday marks the beginning of the Lenten season and so it is a great time to commit ourselves to the spiritual discipline of prayer, and praying together in small groups and Sunday school classes is also great so if you are not already part of a group think about joining one.
Prayer is the key to a deeper faith, but so is forgiveness so can we also commit ourselves to living lives of forgiveness? Can we let go of the hurt that we hold on to and begin to forgive those who have hurt us? Remember that forgiveness doesn’t always mean relationships are reconciled – it simply means that we release our desire to seek revenge and allow God’s grace to work in our lives and in the lives of others. Worship on Ash Wednesday will also provide us the opportunity to confess our sin to God and seek the kind of forgiveness and grace that can deepen our faith, so again I invite you to join us this Wednesday at 7.
Bearing fruit is not an option if we are followers of Jesus, Jesus comes to us and looks for it, our world is hungry for God and so they also come to us and look for it, so our lives need to be filled with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control and if they aren’t, or if we know we need to deepen our faith then let’s take this Lenten season and do it, and let’s begin with prayer.
Next Steps: Are we bearing fruit?
• Read the sermons Jesus gave that led up to his last 24 hours:
o Matthew 21:12 – 26:16
o Mark 11:12-13:37
o Luke 19:45-22:6
• Begin the Lenten Season with prayer. Join with others on Ash Wednesday at 7:00 PM for prayers of confession and forgiveness.
• Set aside 10 minutes every day that you will commit to prayer. Include prayers of adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication.
• Ask God for forgiveness and then ask God for the strength and courage to forgive others. Name those you need to forgive and include them in your prayers.
• Consider joining a small group for the Lenten Season and explore the 24 hours that changed the world and can change your world.
