And they came again to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him, and they said to him, “By what authority are you doing these things, or who gave you this authority to do them?” Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. Was the baptism of John from heaven or from man? Answer me.”

Mark 11:27-33

And they came again to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him, and they said to him, “By what authority are you doing these things, or who gave you this authority to do them?” Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. Was the baptism of John from heaven or from man? Answer me.” Mark 11:27-30

I continue my study of Mark, leaning on the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for Mark.  Today, I focus on an unassisted review of Mark 11:27-33, which is the text for the next chapter of the commentary. Observations of the text based on the Sword Bible Study Method: 

• What do we learn from the passage about God?: V27 states the Jesus came again to Jerusalem and to the temple.  Jesus knew full well what was going to happen to Him ultimately in Jerusalem - He was going to His death.  Yet He never backed down - Jesus was fearless.  He heard and followed God's call and never wavered.  V28 describes how Jesus challenged people - on this occasion Jesus sought for the chief priests and scribes to truly recognize who He was - the promised Messiah.  Jesus constantly challenged the disciples to grow in their understanding of God and His will for their lives.  We are also to grow in our understanding of Him and His will.  Proverbs 27:17 and Hebrews 5:11-14.       
• What do we learn from the passage about people?: The Jewish leaders did not accept Jesus and what He was saying.  When confronted by Truth, people either embrace it or reject it (sometimes passively by doing nothing).  Here and throughout the Gospels, the Jewish leaders rejected Truth because it threatened them.  There is a warning here for believers as well because God's Word does not change.  Yet believers sometimes warp and twist the Word into something it is not to suit their own will not God's will.  See also 2 Timothy 3:16 - God's Word is perfect and useful in all circumstances, even when it is difficult to hear, such as when God wants to train or rebuke us.  God knows what He wants us to hear and He reveals it us whether we want to hear and accept it is another matter - see Hebrews 4:12-13.      
• Is there anything from the passage God wants us to obey (SPEC: Sins to avoid,Promises to claim, Examples to follow, Commands to obey?):  Avoid running from Truth.  Claim and embrace Truth in all circumstances - 1 Thessalonians 5:18.  Sharpen and help others grow.

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Father God, You are an awesome God who loves and who is Truth.  You give me Your Word, the Holy Spirit, the church, and my brothers and sisters in Christ to encourage and sharpen me.  Thank You Jesus for how You save and bless!  I am not deserving of such blessings.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

Mark 11:12-25

And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.  Mark 11:22-24

I continue my study of Mark, leaning on the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for Mark.  Today, my focus is a commentary-assisted review of Mark 11:12-25.  Excerpts from the commentary's third (of three) division (vv20-25):

• The title of the third division per the commentary is "Jesus Will Challenge Us to Believe in God, but He Understands Doubt."
• "Mark concludes the fig tree/temple story with lessons on faith, prayer, and forgiveness, the very things the people should have found through God’s temple. The fig tree event brackets and interprets the temple story. Jesus did not just cleanse the temple, He cursed it. It had failed in the divine assignment, and it would be destroyed. With no fruit, its use was at an end. God would remove it: in less than a generation (AD 70), the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and the temple. Jesus uses all of this as an opportunity to teach His disciples two more valuable spiritual truths." 
• "When they passed the fig tree the next day, it was dead (v. 20). Any sympathy for a soulless tree in our day is badly misplaced and says much about our sloppy, sentimental culture and its tragic perversion of real values. God had told Jonah to weep over lost people, not a plant (Jonah 4:10-11)! Jesus says to weep over a dead temple, not a dead tree."
• We are referred to John 15:1-10 where Jesus teaches the disciples to abide in Him, the True Vine and He warns them that if they do not they will be "thrown into the fire."  We are urged to take this warning very seriously!
• We are also encouraged to pray - and see prayer as a "commitment to God's will."  We are referred to Matthew 6:9-10; Mark 14:36; John 14:13-14; 15:7; 16:23-24; and 1 John 5:14-15. 
• "[W]hen we pray, we trust not only in His power to give us what we ask but also in His wisdom to give us what we need! I trust Him enough to have Him turn me down if that is what He chooses." 
• "[W]e are to be such a temple extending the same forgiveness that we have received from the God we now call Father."

Prayer is a demonstration of our utter dependence on God.  Help me Father with the unbelief in my life so that I can live more of a life of prayer.  I desperately need You.  

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Father God, You are an awesome God the loves, saves, and intercedes on my behalf.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of how You love and save.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching.

Mark 11:12-25

And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching. Mark 11:18

I continue my study of Mark, leaning on the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for Mark.  Today, my focus is a commentary-assisted review of Mark 11:12-25.  Excerpts from the commentary's second (of three) division (vv15-19):

• The title of the second division per the commentary is "Jesus Will Condemn What Promises One Thing but Delivers Another." 
• "We call what we read in verses 15-19 “the cleansing of the temple.” It is actually its condemnation. It is Jesus’ critique of false religion. It is not too strong to say He hates it. I am inclined to believe there were actually two cleansings: one early in His public ministry (John 2:13-22) and one at the end of His ministry (Matthew 21:12-16; Mark 11:15-19; Luke 19:45-47). The acted-out parable of the cursing of the fig tree now finds its fulfillment and reality in our Lord’s assault on those He identifies as a “den of thieves” (Mark 11:17), a hive of spiritual robbers!"  
• "The Jewish historian Josephus tells us that in one Passover year (AD 66), 255,000 lambs were bought, sold, and sacrificed in the temple courts (Edwards, Mark, 341). Pilgrims were requested to bring an acceptable (perfect!) sacrifice that had to pass a rigorous inspection. Most chose—were really forced—to buy an approved animal certified by the mafia of temple priests backed by the powerful and corrupt Sanhedrin. The markup was shameful and immoral. Some estimate they charged 16 times the normal price (two pigeons normally sold for $0.25 now sold for around $4.00). Money-changers would exchange foreign currency, which was unacceptable for transaction in the temple, into Jewish currency, again for an outrageous fee. Jesus saw extortion, bribery, greed, and dishonesty in this religious bazaar. He got physical in righteous rage and indignation, and He cleaned house! Burning with passion and purity, He restored, at least for a moment, the temple of God to its rightful purpose."  
• "Verse 17 brings us to the heart of our Lord’s anger over what His temple has become. The text says by His actions and His words, “He began to teach them.” He then quotes from Isaiah 56:7, “My house will be called a house of prayer for all the nations.” However, now citing Jeremiah 7:11, He declares, “But you have made it a den of thieves!” So much is here! Only Mark includes the crucial phrase 'for all the nations.'"  
• We are warned about the state of the American church and how it is failing to produce the fruit God seeks. Jesus came to create a kingdom for all nations.  "Israel missed this, and too many of our churches do as well—both at home and in their concern for the nations. And as the chief priest was mainly at fault, so are many pastors today. A genuine revival in this area will succeed or fail on the back of our religious leaders."   
• "It was popularly believed that when the Messiah came He would purge the temple of Gentiles. Instead, Jesus comes and cleanses the temple for Gentiles. Israel’s religious show with all its glitz and fanfare was an empty embarrassment. Instead of bringing people into God’s presence they obscured it until no one could find Him. Jesus effectively said, 'Enough! Your charade is over.'"  
• "Jesus’ protest caught the attention of the Sanhedrin (v18; see also v27)! He had called them out. Little wonder that the religious elite wanted to destroy Him. And the stakes are now much higher. It was one thing for Jesus to antagonize the country lay preachers, the Pharisees. It is something else to take on the chief priest and the powerful Sanhedrin. A showdown is on the horizon."
• We are exhorted to read the entirety of Jeremiah 7 and see God's anger towards Judah and a warning to repent of its wickedness with a promise of God's mercy only if they repent.

This warning applies to all of humanity but in particular to the church that God established to produce fruit. 

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My Prayer: Father God You are an awesome God who loves and saves...You provide mercies that never cease and are new every morning.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of my salvation nor the mercies You pour out daily in inexhaustible supply.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it.

Mark 11:12-25

And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it. Mark 11:14

I continue my study of Mark, leaning on the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for Mark.  Today, my focus is a commentary-assisted review of Mark 11:12-25.  Excerpts from the commentary's introduction and for the first (of three) division (vv12-14):

• The title of this chapter for the commentary is "A Savior for All Nations" and the main idea is: "Jesus is a Savior for all nations, without barriers."
•  We are first warned that believers' primary mission is to share the Good News.  The commentary states as it reflects on the declining state of the American church: "...we must change, or God will judge us for neglecting and even hiding the truth that we have “a Savior for all nations!” God judged His people Israel for this sin. Why would we think He would deal with us any differently?"
• As the entirety of the text vv12-25 focuses on Jesus in the temple in Jerusalem, we are reminded that a perfect temple exists in Heaven, in (and as) Jesus, and in all believers: "[Jesus] has a spiritual temple, which is the church (1 Corinthians 3:16). He now has a personal temple scattered all around the world as a witness that He is indeed a Savior for all nations. That temple is you and me (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). Indeed that temple is anyone who recognizes that they are not their own, for they were bought with a price, the precious blood of “Christ our Passover” (1 Corinthians 5:7), “a lamb without defect or blemish” (1 Peter 1:19)."  
• Jesus did not like what He saw in the temple as He entered Jerusalem.  
• The title of the first division per the commentary is "Jesus Will Curse Those Who Put On a Show but Do Not Produce." 
• "[The cursing of the fig tree in v14] is (as we will see) an object lesson, an acted-out parable of our Lord’s judgment on Israel and on those who claim to be one thing but are actually another, who put on a show but do not produce. It is a curse on the temple and the nation of Israel. By application it could be a curse on you and me and on our churches."  
• "Though it is not yet “the season for figs” (v. 13), the presence of the leaves would indicate this tree would have fruit on it—if not full figs, at least paggim, small green figs (knops). Though not all that tasty, they were edible and could relieve His hunger. However, the tree bore no fruit. Its leaves promised one thing, but it had not produced. It was a hypocritical fig tree. The outward appearance, said, “Come here! I have fruit that will meet your needs.” However, when you arrive, you realize you have been deceived. It was a show with no substance."  
• Jesus saw Israel and the religious leaders when He saw the tree.  
• Once again we are exhorted to "produce fruit" lest we suffer the same fate as Israel.  
• "The prophets often spoke of Israel by the symbol of a fig tree (Jeremiah 8:13; 29:17; Hosea 9:10,16; Joel 1:7; Micah 7:1-6). Jeremiah 8:13 especially stands out[.]"  
• "There is a point without a doubt. Fruitlessness now may result in fruitlessness forever. Lose your usefulness for Jesus, and He may curse you and move on! It is not He who needs us, it is we who desperately need Him. We need Him to save us. We need Him to make us useful and fruitful."

Help me with those areas of my life where I have unbelief and have mercy on me! Indeed, Father God, continue and complete a work in me to produce fruit as You intend.  

Comment and discuss this post. 

My Prayer: Father God, You are a gracious God full of mercies that never cease and are new every morning.  You provide for all needs and You save - thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of my salvation nor any of the blessings You pour out for me.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

Mark 11:12-25

Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. Mark 11:24

I continue my study of Mark, leaning on the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for Mark.  Today, I focus on an unassisted review of Mark 11:12-25, which is the text for the next chapter of the commentary. Observations of the text based on the Sword Bible Study Method: 

• What do we learn from the passage about God?: V12 - we see a great example of how the Incarnate Son of God took on flesh and experience all of the humanity we experience - He is able to sympathize like no other (see also Hebrews 4:14-16).  Vv13-14 we see Jesus curse a fig tree - this is the same God who has the power to raise people from the dead so why doesn't he produce fruit from a tree even if it is not the season?  The mystery of God - He has a plan and He will reveal it to us when He is ready - see vv20-21.  In vv15-17 we see a reliance on ALL of scripture, as Jesus reaches back to the Old Testament (and new in Matthew) to ensure we see the temple and God's house appropriately.  
• What do we learn from the passage about people?: In vv15-17 people seek to use God and His house the temple for their glory and good. In v18 we see jealousy and envy on the part of the chief priests and scribes - they fear loss of their own position, status, etc. vs seeing Jesus as the Promised Messiah.    
• Is there anything from the passage God wants us to obey (SPEC: Sins to avoid,Promises to claim, Examples to follow, Commands to obey?): There should be reverent fear of God in all respects as we should not twist God into something He is not nor into something that should serve us - on the contrary we exist to bring glory to God.  Vv22-24 contains a great promise to claim on faith and prayer.  

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Father God, Jesus, You are an awesome God that loves and saves!  Thank You for my salvation and for Your Word.  I am not deserving.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior. Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

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.

Mark 11:1-11

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. Mark 11:11

I continue my study of Mark, leaning on the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for Mark.  Today, my focus is a commentary-assisted review of Mark 11:1-11.  Excerpts from the commentary's fifth (of five) division (v11):

• The title of the fifth division per the commentary is "Worship the One Who Always Acts Justly."   
• "This day ends rather uneventfully. Tomorrow will be a different day (11:12-25). Jesus enters Jerusalem, goes to the temple, looks things over carefully, sees that it is “late” (late for the temple?), and leaves with the disciples for Bethany."  
• It appears that Jesus is no longer impressed with the temple as He might have been when He first saw the temple at 12 years old (see Luke 2:41-52).  "No, He makes a commanding survey of the situation and goes away to return the next day. Then He will curse something—the temple—that should have been bringing the nations to God (Mark 11:17) but in reality was driving them away."  
• "It would seem that this would have been the moment for Him to claim and receive His Messianic throne and kingdom. Amazingly, not one thing happens. The enthusiastic crowds have mysteriously vanished. Was He only “King for a day”? Jesus, with no fanfare whatsoever, leaves with the Twelve."  
• Mark 1 is linked to prophecy from Malachi 3:1-2 as the commentary shares from Malachi how "[t]he refining fire has arrived to purify that which is putrid. The cleansing lye has arrived to cleanse that which is filthy. He will start His work with the temple. He will finish His work on the cross. He acts justly when He judges. He is so worthy of our worship!"   
• The commentary shares a table below comparing the first coming of Jesus to the second.  

 

• "Few bowed before the great King the first time He came. However, every knee will bow when He comes again (Philippians 2:9-11)."

Indeed the portrait of Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem humbly on a donkey compared to how He will arrive at the second coming is quite a contrast.  Jesus as the servant King is not something that humanity can understand without supernatural intervention - that of the Holy Spirit who intervenes to incline ears and soften hearts to hear, understand, and see the majesty of Jesus and what He did for us.  While still an enemy and hostile to Him (see Romans 5:10), Jesus willingly laid down His life, enduring unimaginable suffering and pain, so that we could be freed from slavery to sin now and for eternity.  Thank You Jesus!

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My Prayer: Father God, You are an awesome God that reigns.  I KNOW what You did for me and I eagerly await when You come again to reign in the New Jerusalem.  You give me salvation to be in attendance for this reign and You free from the bondage of sin now...giving the Holy Spirit also.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such a gift - the greatest gift of all time.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You. Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.   Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!”

Mark 11:1-11

And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!” Mark 11:9-10

I continue my study of Mark, leaning on the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for Mark.  Today, my focus is a commentary-assisted review of Mark 11:1-11.  Excerpts from the commentary's fourth (of five) division (vv9-10):

• The title of the third division per the commentary is "Worship the One Who Alone Can Save."   
• The author of my commentary, Danny Akin, marvels at the shouts of those seeing Jesus enter Jerusalem.  He writes in the commentary: "I am fascinated by the shouts of the crowd. Their words could not be truer, but they could not have been more misunderstood by those who were shouting them. Only Jesus knew the full significance of what they were saying. “Hosanna” means literally, “Save, I pray.” It draws from Psalm 118:25-26 (from the Egyptian Hallels; Psalms 113–118) which says, “Lord, save us! Lord, please grant us success! He who comes in the name of the Lord is blessed. From the house of the Lord we bless you.” Passover celebrated the Hebrew people’s deliverance out of Egypt. Now the nation of Israel anticipates a messianic liberation and deliverance from Rome." 
• "'Blessed' draws from Numbers 6:24-27 which says, “May Yahweh bless you and protect you; may Yahweh make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; may Yahweh look with favor on you and give you peace. In this way they will pronounce My name over the Israelites, and I will bless them.” The One who is blessed, or better, who will be the blesser, is (1) He who comes in the name of the Lord, and (2) He who is 'bringing the coming kingdom of David!'"  
• The commentary emphasizes the following text and how Jesus' fulfills prophecy: 2 Samuel 7:12-16, Isaiah 9:1-7, Isaiah 11:1-10, Jeremiah 23:5-8, Ezekiel 34:23-24, Micah 5:2-4.  At the same time, the commentary notes how "prophecy was not being fulfilled in the way they thought, hoped, and believed it would be. They are right. He is their King. But He is not here to purge Israel of foreign domination. No, He is here to purge His people of their sin! They are looking and longing for a temporal, political, and military Savior. He, however, is bringing what only He can bring: a complete and eternal salvation of body and soul! They want and expect a Savior only for Jews, but He is a Savior for the whole world, for any and all who will believe on His Name." 
• We are referred to John 1:12, 3:16, 14:6, Acts 4:12, and 1 Timothy 2:5.

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Jesus, You alone save!  And You saved me while I was still an enemy and hostile to You - I am saved not through anything I have done....thank You Jesus for my salvation.  The greatest gift of all time.  I am not deserving of such a gift.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.