The Gospel of Mark: The Fig Tree Pt. II

(On the following day, when they came from Bethany, (Jesus) was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see whether perhaps he would find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. He said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it. ~ Mark 11:12-14)

In the morning as they passed by, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. Then Peter remembered and said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. Truly I tell you, if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and if you do not doubt in your heart, but believe that what you say will come to pass, it will be done for you. So I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

“Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone; so that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.” ~ Mark 11:20-25 (Other ancient authorities add verse 26, “But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.”)


So we are back to the fig tree.

After the dramatic scene in the Temple, which has in its own way, withered at the roots, Jesus and the disciples return to the fig tree to find that it is no longer alive.

The cursing of the fig tree and the cursing of the Temple are thus linked.

For an early reader of this gospel, given that the Temple had been destroyed, this would make complete sense. And in a lot of ways, it can't and won't make as much sense to us as it did to them.

In some ways, Jesus' words here about prayer don't seem to fit. It doesn't feel like the cursing of the fig tree was simply about prayer working.

But when we connect it to the Temple, we can remember Jesus' quote during the Temple cleansing, which came from Isaiah:

"My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations."

Somewhere along the line, the Temple leaders had forgotten that. And in doing so, interfered with prayer.

And for Jesus, prayer was the center of how we related with God.

Holy God, thank you for the gospel - the good news - of your Son. Open my mind and heart to this good news and enliven me with your Spirit of servanthood that I might share this good news with a world in need. Amen


Engagement Question:


How do you pray?



 

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