Tawa Baptist

True Religion

Scripture: Matthew 21:10-19

Video Link: https://youtu.be/PqlzG3Y8V8w

Audio Link: Stream Sermon – 29 Mar 2026 – True Religion by tawabaptist | Listen online for free on SoundCloud

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • The merchants
  • The priests
  • The fig tree
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

At a wedding recently I met a man from Russia. He was telling me how quite often, in Russian wedding ceremonies, the bride and groom seal the deal by stepping on a glass. This might stem from a Jewish custom, I think.

There are generally lots of words in wedding ceremonies, but the act of stepping on a glass is symbolic. It signifies the finality of the marriage commitment. What has been done cannot be undone. Breaking a glass also reminds the couple that the journey of life involves sorrow as well as joy.

This acted-out parable communicates the meaning of the marriage commitment with a power and clarity that goes beyond words.

This morning, we continue our series on the parables of Jesus. Many of Jesus’ parables come to us in the form of the spoken word; stories which, in their own mysterious way, infiltrate the human imagination.

Not all of Jesus’ parables are stories though. Sometimes Jesus demonstrated his parables with symbolic actions that communicated God’s message with a power and clarity that goes beyond words.

With today being Palm Sunday (the beginning of holy week) our message focuses on Matthew 21, verses 12-19. This passage describes at least two acted-out parables of Jesus; symbolic actions performed on the first Palm Sunday, twenty centuries ago. From Matthew 21, verse 12 we read…            

12 Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. 13 “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’” 14 The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were indignant. 16 “Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him. “Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read, “‘From the lips of children and infants you, Lord, have called forth your praise’?” 17 And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany, where he spent the night. 18 Early in the morning, as Jesus was on his way back to the city, he was hungry. 19 Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” Immediately the tree withered.

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate God’s word for us.

In Luke 17 (last week’s message), Jesus talked about not causing others to stumble and rebuking those who sin against you. In the reading we just heard, from Matthew 21, Jesus rebukes those merchants and priests who are causing others to stumble, and he rebukes a fig tree for being fruitless.

You have probably heard the phrase, ‘throwing down the gauntlet’. A gauntlet is an armoured glove worn by knights in medieval Europe. A gauntlet protects your hands in battle.

If a knight wanted to challenge another knight to a duel, he would throw his gauntlet at the feet of his opponent. This symbolic act called into question the opponent’s honour and bravery. By picking up the gauntlet the opponent showed he accepted the challenge. If he refused, his honour was degraded.

Over time, ‘throwing down the gauntlet’, has come to mean any sort of action that demonstrates a desire to confront another person.

In Matthew 21, Jesus throws down the gauntlet to the religious leadership in Jerusalem. He is not so much questioning their bravery as he is their integrity. Jesus throws down the gauntlet in a number of ways.

In verses 1-11, Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey, surrounded by pilgrims who are shouting, ‘Hosanna to the Son of David’. This is an acted-out parable; it is Jesus’ way of announcing himself as Israel’s Messiah. It is also a challenge to those in authority in Jerusalem. Will they submit to Jesus as King or will they resist?

The merchants:   

Jesus’ first act, after arriving in the holy city, is to drive out the merchants and money changers from the temple courts. This is another way of throwing down the gauntlet.   

Jesus is demonstrating (through an acted-out parable) how God feels about business being carried out in the temple. Clearly, the Lord is not happy. 

Jesus is not flying off the handle in a fit of rage. His actions are considered, intentional, surgically precise and fair. Jesus is motivated by love for God and love for his neighbour.

Now the merchants were carrying out a necessary service to facilitate worship. They were selling doves and livestock for pilgrims to sacrifice to God in the Jerusalem temple. Likewise, the money changers were exchanging foreign currency for the right kind of currency. So why does Jesus drive them out of the temple courts?

In verse 13 the Lord provides Scriptural warrant for his behaviour by quoting from the Old Testament prophets. First Isaiah, then Jeremiah. When Jesus says: “It is written, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’”he is quoting from Isaiah 56, where we read…

3 Let no foreigner who is bound to the Lord say, “The Lord will surely exclude me from his people.” …4 For this is what the Lord says:foreigners who bind themselves to the Lord to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord, and to be his servants, all who keep the Sabbath without desecrating it and who hold fast to my covenant—7 these I will bring to my holy mountain and give them joy in my house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.”

The prophet Isaiah gives us a vision of inclusion here. Jesus came to fulfil this vision. God’s purpose was for Israel to be a light to the other nations of the world. God wanted the nation of Israel to be a picture of what his kingdom is like. The other nations of the world were to learn about God from Israel.

With this in view, the temple was designed with an area for Gentiles (non-Jews) to come and seek the God of Israel. However, Gentiles could not go past their designated area in the temple courts. It was a case of, ‘you may come this far and no further’.

The merchants and money changers were plying their trade in the court of the Gentiles, which essentially made it impossible for people of other nations to draw near to God, in prayer.

By clearing the merchants out of the temple courts, Jesus was welcoming people of all nations. He was making room for prayer and reminding Israel of God’s purpose.

In Matthew 27, when Jesus gave up his spirit on the cross, we read how the curtain hanging in the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. This is a sign of what Jesus’ death accomplished. We now have direct access to God through Jesus, whatever our ethnicity. We no longer need a temple building.

Jesus’ rebuke, of the merchants, that they were making the temple a den of robbers, comes from the prophet Jeremiah. In Jeremiah chapter 7 we read…

9 “‘Will you steal and murder, commit adultery and perjury, burn incense to Baal and follow other gods you have not known, 10 and then come and stand before me in this house, which bears my Name, and say, “We are safe”—safe to do all these detestable things? 11 Has this house, which bears my Name, become a den of robbers to you? But I have been watching! declares the Lord.

In Jeremiah’s day (centuries before Jesus) many people hid their evil deeds behind the cloak of respectable religion. They gathered for worship on Saturday and carried out the prescribed rituals, but the rest of the week they disobeyed the ten commandments.    

Their religion was false and God was not having it. After centuries of warning, the Lord allowed the Babylonians to attack Jerusalem and destroy the temple built by Solomon, killing thousands and forcing the rest into exile.     

By quoting Jeremiah and referring to the merchants as ‘robbers’, Jesus is implying they were ripping the people off, exploiting them financially.

More than this, Jesus was throwing down the gauntlet; he was challenging the integrity of those who ran the temple system. They were no better than the people of Jeremiah’s day. God had allowed Israel’s enemies to destroy the temple once and he would do it again if necessary.

How then does Jesus’ clearing of the temple apply to us today? Let me offer two applications…

Firstly, our faith (our religion) needs to have integrity. It needs to be true.

We live with integrity by practicing what we believe. Coming to church on Sunday won’t cut it if we are not obeying Christ the rest of the week as well. We need to do justly, love mercy and walk humbly with our God.

In order to live with integrity, we need to clear time and space in our cluttered lives to pray and nurture our relationship with God. The goal is to be fruitful for God’s glory and we can only be fruitful when we abide in Christ.

In some African cultures, so I’m told, there’s a tradition of sitting outside someone’s house to say thank you. No words are spoken; the person simply sits. The longer you sit, the greater the thanks.

If you were to do that in kiwi culture it would seem weird, like you were stalking the person. But in some African cultures, this gesture expresses gratitude with a power and clarity that goes beyond words.  

How do you carve out time to be with Jesus? Prayer isn’t just asking God for stuff. Sometimes prayer is like sitting outside God’s house, offering our time in silent contemplation and gratitude for who he is and what he has done.

The priests:

Jesus’ rebuke of the merchants in the temple courts is really a rebuke of the religious leaders who allowed them to be there in the first place. It is to the priests we turn now. 

After clearing the temple, the blind and lame came to Jesus and he healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were indignant.

Jesus’ healing of the blind and lame within the temple is its own kind of acted-out parable. Jesus’ symbolic actions show us what a temple is for. A temple is place of prayer. A place where people are reconciled to God and made whole.

A place where vision and perspective are restored and people find the means to walk without a crutch. It is also a place where God is praised.

Jesus replaces the temple building. We find salvation and hope in Christ.

Jesus is our temple, our holy place where we are reconciled to God.   

Ironically, the chief priests and scribes show themselves to be spiritually lame and blind. Jesus would have healed them too, but they didn’t want this.

They were too busy being indignant. Indignant just means angry.   

Hosanna literally means ‘save us now’ and Son of David is code for the Messiah, God’s anointed King. The children can see that Jesus is the Messiah come to save them, but the religious leaders cannot see what is staring them in the face, even with all the miracles Jesus is performing.

What was it Jesus said in Matthew 5? Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. The children are pure in heart; they can see God at work in and through Jesus. The religious leaders are not pure in heart. They are blind.   

The priests question Jesus saying, “Do you hear what these children are saying?” They think Jesus should be silencing the children’s praise. But Jesus does not silence the children. Again, Jesus quotes Scripture to his opponents (much like he did with Satan in the wilderness).

The Lord says, “Yes,” [I do hear what they are saying] “have you never read, “‘From the lips of children and infants you, Lord, have called forth your praise’?”    

Of course they have read it. This comes from Psalm 8. Far from silencing the children’s praise, Jesus is holding up the children as an example for the religious leaders to follow. Talk about throwing down the gauntlet. But the religious leaders don’t pick up the challenge. They have no response for Jesus.

So the Lord retires to Bethany for the night. Bethany is about two miles outside of Jerusalem on the side of the Mount of Olives. Jesus is making time and space to be alone with God. I imagine Jesus was sitting outside God’s house in silent contemplation and gratitude for what God has done in revealing his glory to little children.       

The fig tree:

Okay, so given the corruption and dodgy dealings in the Jerusalem temple we can understand why Jesus rebuked the merchants and the priests. But what was his beef with the fig tree?

From verse 18 of Matthew 21 we read: 18 Early in the morning, as Jesus was on his way back to the city, he was hungry. 19 Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” Immediately the tree withered.

Fig trees, in the Middle East, bear fruit twice a year. Usually in June and then again in September. We know for a fact that Jesus came across this fig tree in early April, because it was a week before the Jewish Passover festival.

The tree was not supposed to bear fruit for another three months and yet Jesus speaks to it in such a way that it withers. That doesn’t seem fair. We are not used to that sort of carry-on from Jesus. Was the Lord just a bit hangry? (Someone get Jesus a Snickers.) Well, no. Jesus’ encounter with the fig tree was an acted-out parable.

According to Joel Green[1] (and other Bible experts) fig trees bear an early crop of bitter and immature male figs called ‘taksh’ which drop off before the proper fruit comes in June. Taksh is sometimes eaten by the poor, but it doesn’t taste very nice.

If a fig tree doesn’t bear the immature taksh, then it won’t bear proper fruit in June or September. Jesus could tell the fig tree was barren because it had no taksh on it. The leaves were also misleading. Normally, a fig tree with leaves promises fruit. The leaves of this fig tree though were like false advertising.   

Jesus was not condemning a perfectly good tree that would have fruited in due course. The tree had already condemned itself by being fruitless.

The fig tree (like the grape vine) was symbolic of the nation of Israel. (Sort of like the maple leaf is symbolic of Canada and the silver fern is symbolic of New Zealand.)

With this imagery of the fig tree in mind, the Old Testament prophets[2] used the withering of fig trees as a symbol of God’s judgement on Israel.

Jesus’ encounter with the fig tree, therefore, was an acted-out parable of God’s judgement on Israel for practising empty (fruitless) religion. It was a symbolic action that communicated God’s message with a power and clarity that goes beyond words.

To the casual observer the Jerusalem temple system looked good, but it lacked substance. The fruit that God wanted (of justice, mercy and humility) was not there. Indeed, the religious leaders were plotting to murder Jesus, the Messiah of God.

The withered fig tree was a prophetic sign of what was going to happen to the Jerusalem temple. In AD 70, some decades after Jesus’ death and resurrection, Jewish nationalism provoked the Romans to lay siege to Jerusalem and destroy the temple building and many lives with it. Jesus’ prediction came true.

It’s important to understand that in giving this prophecy, Jesus held no malice in his heart. Grief, yes, but not hatred. Just a day before, when he entered Jerusalem, Jesus wept over the city as Jeremiah did before him.  

We come across another parable featuring a fig tree, in Luke 13. In the context, Jesus was telling people they needed to repent or perish. From verse 6 we read

6 Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it but did not find any. 7 So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’ 8 “‘Sir,’ the man replied, ‘leave it alone for one more year, and I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. 9 If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.’”

In this spoken parable, Jesus highlights God’s grace in giving people more time to repent. God does not want to destroy. He would rather redeem. But we must not presume upon God’s grace. If we don’t bear the fruit of repentance, God will bring us to a just end.

The religious leaders had plenty of opportunity to repent. John the Baptist came before Jesus saying: the axe is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

Then Jesus came preaching a gospel of repentance and performing miracles, for three years. After Jesus’ death and resurrection, the nation of Israel would be given another 40 years of Christian witness before the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and the temple. Sadly, many missed their opportunity.

Conclusion:

Jesus’ acted-out parables of clearing the temple and declaring the fig tree fruitless, are a call to God’s people down through the ages, to practice true religion. The kind which bears the fruit of justice, mercy and humility. We can only do this by God’s grace and the power of Jesus’ Spirit.

Let us pray…

Loving God, we have sinned in thought, word and deed. We have sinned in ignorance and by our own deliberate fault. We have been unfair to you and unfair to others. Forgive us we pray. Help us, by your Spirit, to walk in freedom and righteousness. Through Jesus we ask. Amen. 

Questions for discussion or reflection:

  1. What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?
  2. What acted-out parables (or symbolic actions) have you participated in? What meaning do these convey?
  3. Why did Jesus drive out the merchants from the temple courts? What was he communicating through this acted-out parable? How does Jesus’ clearing of the temple apply to us today? How might it apply to you personally?
  4. Discuss / reflect on Jesus’ references to Isaiah 56 and Jeremiah 7. How did these prophecies relate to the people/temple of Jesus’ day? How might they relate to our situation today?
  5. What is the purpose of a temple? Why is a temple building no longer necessary? Who fulfils the purpose of the temple for us?
  6. How do you carve out time to be with Jesus? What does your prayer life look like? Do you make room to sit and consider God’s goodness and grace?
  7. Why does Jesus say to the fig tree, “May you never bear fruit again!”? What does the withering of the fig tree signify?
  8. What does it look like to bear the fruit of repentance? Is there anything you sense God wants you to repent of? Take time this week to make things right with the Lord.

Bibliography:

  • R.V.G. Tasker, ‘TNTC: The Gospel According to St Matthew’, 1963.
  • William Barclay, ‘Gospel of Matthew Vol. 2’, 1967.
  • Michael Green, ‘BST: The Message of Matthew’, 2000.
  • Craig Keener, ‘The Gospel of Matthew – A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary, 2009.
  • R.T. France, ‘NICNT: The Gospel of Matthew’, 2007.

[1] Refer Green, page 223

[2] C.f. Isaiah 34:4 and Jeremiah 8:13.

Tawa Baptist

The Heart of Worship

Scripture: Mark 11:12-25

Video Link: https://youtu.be/RLIx1XnnbJA

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Parables
  • Prophecy
  • Prayer
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

When I was training to become a pastor, I spent three months one summer working as a chaplain in Greenlane Hospital. At that time, Greenlane Hospital specialised in cardio thoracic medicine (hearts and lungs).

One day I sat with a patient who had just had a heart transplant. He was so incredibly grateful for the opportunity of a second chance at life.  He went into all sorts of detail about how sick he was before the surgery and how he was going to live his life differently now. I think he had spent his youth recklessly. 

He seemed sincere. I got the feeling he didn’t just get a new heart, he got a whole new attitude, a new spirit, a new vitality.

His was the only heart transplant I remember from that summer. More often than not the surgeon chooses to repair the heart in the least intrusive way possible. But, if the heart is beyond repair (and they can find a donor), the doctors will make a judgement to replace the old heart with a new one.

Today we continue our series for Lent, looking at some of the events in the week leading up to Jesus’ crucifixion. Today’s reading focuses on Jesus’ assessment of the Jerusalem temple and its leadership. The Jerusalem temple was the heart of Jewish life and faith. Sadly, it had become sick beyond repair and needed to be replaced. From Mark 11, verses 12-25 we read…

12 The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. 13 Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. 14 Then he said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard him say it.

15 On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, 16 and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. 17 And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’” 18 The chief priests and the teachers of the law heard this and began looking for a way to kill him, for they feared him, because the whole crowd was amazed at his teaching.

19 When evening came, Jesus and his discipleswent out of the city. 20 In the morning, as they went along, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots. 21 Peter remembered and said to Jesus, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree you cursed has withered!”

22 “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. 23 “TrulyI tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25 And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate God’s word for us.

Parables:

Most people, waiting for an organ donation, have mixed feelings about it. Yes, they want to have the surgery and move on with their life. But, at the same time, they are acutely aware that receiving a new heart or a new set of lungs means someone else has to die. And that’s not a great feeling.     

As I mentioned before, the Jerusalem temple of the first century, was the heart of the Jewish nation. Sadly, the temple system had become too sick to repair and so God, the surgeon, was planning a transplant using his own son. Jesus had to die so others could live.

The man I sat with, in Greenlane Hospital, was well aware of his need for a new heart and welcomed the surgery. But the religious leaders of Jesus’ day were not so keen. They were too blind to see their own need, let alone recognise that Jesus was from God. Jesus had to find a way to communicate the seriousness of the situation.

On his way to the temple, Jesus feels hungry, sees a leafy fig tree and goes over to look for fruit. It’s about mid-April and fig trees don’t normally bear fruit until June, in the Middle East.

When Jesus found nothing but leaves he said to the tree, ‘May no one ever eat fruit from you again’.  This is not the kind of behaviour we have come to expect from Jesus. Was he a bit hangry? Did he lose his temper? No. This is an acted out parable, it is deliberate.    

Jesus is well aware it’s the wrong time of year for figs. He is not expecting to have a feed. The fruitless leafy tree simply provides a vehicle for Jesus to communicate the reality of Israel’s heart disease.

By putting the parable of the fruitless fig tree alongside the account of Jesus clearing the temple, Mark (the gospel writer) is saying, ‘the fig tree represents the Jerusalem temple and its leadership’. It looks good. It looks inviting. But on closer inspection it is fruitless. The temple system has become empty religion.

Perhaps the mention that Jesus was hungry points to the reality experienced by many of those who came to worship at the Jerusalem temple. Their faith was not nourished by ritual sacrifice. They went away dissatisfied, hungry.

When Jesus entered the temple that same day, he began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, 16 and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts.

This is another acted out parable. Jesus is demonstrating (in a dramatic way) how he feels about the business being carried out in the temple courts. Mark doesn’t say that Jesus is angry but, clearly, he is not happy with the status quo.  

Whatever Jesus was feeling his actions are measured, surgically precise, fair. He doesn’t fly off the handle in a fit of rage. Jesus’ actions are considered, intentional and appropriately weighted to the situation. 

Jesus, like God the Father, is motivated by love. It is because Jesus cares deeply that he draws attention to the corrupt temple system. It is because God loves the world that he chooses to donate his Son’s heart to save us.  

So why is Jesus not pleased with the business being transacted in the temple? Well, as the parable of the fig tree demonstrates, the religious leadership were practising empty religion. They were taking the Lord’s name in vain.

To the casual observer the temple system looked good but it lacked substance. The fruit that God wanted (of justice, mercy and humility) was not there. The money changers and those selling doves were dishonest. They were scamming pilgrims, ripping people off. 

Prophecy:

Jesus explains his acted out parable by quoting from the prophets. When the Lord says: “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’? he is quoting from the prophet Isaiah.

God’s purpose was for Israel to be a light to the other nations of the world. God wanted the nation of Israel to be a picture of what his kingdom is like. The other nations of the world were to learn about God from Israel.

With this in view, the temple was designed with an area for Gentiles (non-Jews) to come and seek the God of Israel. In ancient times, Gentiles could not go past their designated area. It was a case of, you may come this far and no further.

The merchants and money changers were plying their trade in the court of the Gentiles, which essentially made it impossible for people of other nations to draw near to God, in prayer, at the temple.

By clearing the merchants out of the court of Gentiles, Jesus was welcoming people of all nations. He was making room for prayer and reminding Israel of God’s original purpose.

Now, as most of you are aware, we had a church garage sale yesterday. The auditorium and hall were packed with stuff. Given the timing of this message, some of you may be thinking, is our pastor criticising the garage sale? Is he saying we shouldn’t hold it anymore?

No. I’m not saying that. Let me be very clear. The timing of the garage sale and my preaching on Mark 11 is unrelated. Holding a garage sale in the church hall once a year is not the same thing as money changers camped in the Court of the Gentiles on the Temple Mount.  

For one thing we are not ripping people off. If anything we are providing a community service. People in the community are getting a good deal from us.

What’s more, we are not excluding anyone from approaching God in prayer. A garage sale opens the door of the church to the wider community. Besides, you don’t need a church building to pray.

Later, in the gospel of Mark, when Jesus died on the cross, we read how the curtain hanging in the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. This is a sign of what Jesus’ death accomplished. We now have direct access to God through Jesus. We meet God in Christ. Jesus replaces the Jerusalem temple.  You can pray to Jesus anywhere.

So, how does Jesus’ clearing of the temple apply in our world today? Let me offer you three ways to understand this…

Firstly, who are the money changers in our society? Who are the ones who make an enormous profit at the expense of everyday people? Well, we’ve seen in the news recently the obscene profits generated by overseas banks. Then there are the finance companies who appear friendly enough but, in reality, take advantage of desperate people by charging over the top interest.

There is something not right about the way we finance things in this country.

If you work in a bank, then I don’t think the answer is to quit your job. We need men and women of integrity to be salt and light in our financial institutions. We need people who will use their influence for good; to help shift our thinking away from scarcity towards abundance. Away from greed towards generosity. Away from personal gain towards social responsibility.

So that’s one application of Jesus’ parable of clearing the temple. I think also Jesus is taking a crack at nationalism here.

‘Nationalism is identification with one’s own nation and support for its interests to the exclusion or detriment of the interests of other nations.’    

It is not a bad thing to identify with your own nation. In fact, it is a good thing to support the interests of your own country by paying your taxes and making a positive contribution to society.

But, when support for your nation is taken to an extreme, so that other nations suffer, then that becomes nationalism. Jesus is not okay with nationalism. Nationalism does great harm to the world God loves. 

By allowing merchants to set up shop in the court of the Gentiles, the religious leaders were promoting Jewish nationalism. They were effectively excluding other nations from drawing near to God.

When Jesus said, ‘Love your neighbour as you love yourself’, he wasn’t just talking about our inter-personal relationships. He was also talking about a nation’s global relationships.

Russia’s illegal invasion of the Ukraine is a product of nationalism. Likewise, when large countries pursue their own economic interests in a way that destroys the environment and contributes to climate change so that smaller, poorer nations start disappearing into the sea, that also is a product of nationalism. 

We are talking about how Jesus’ clearing of the temple applies to us today. Here’s a more personal application. Given that Jesus is the one through whom we meet with God, then clearing room means making time and space in our busy lives to pray and study the Bible.

The goal is to be fruitful for God’s glory and we can only be fruitful when we abide in Christ. How do you carve out time to be with Jesus?

Returning to Mark 11, Jesus also quotes from the prophet Jeremiah, to explain the meaning of his actions.

The phrase, but you have made it a den of robbers, is a reference to Jeremiah’s prophecy that God was going to destroy the Jerusalem temple because the people were practising false religion. They carried out the prescribed rituals without the fruit of righteousness, without obeying the 10 commandments.     

Jesus is indicating that the religious leaders of his day are just like the religious leaders of Jeremiah’s day. God is not obligated to protect the Jerusalem temple if the priests and people misuse it. God allowed Israel’s enemies to destroy the temple once before and he will do so again.

The next day, as they were walking past the fig tree, Peter noticed it had withered. The dead tree has now become a prophetic parable for what was going to happen to the Jerusalem temple.

In AD 70, some decades after Jesus’ death and resurrection, Jewish nationalism provoked the Romans to lay siege to Jerusalem and eventually destroy the temple building and many lives with it. Jesus’ prediction came true.

It’s important to understand that in giving this prophecy, Jesus held no malice in his heart. Grief, yes, but not hatred. In Luke 13, a parallel passage, Jesus weeps over Jerusalem as Jeremiah did before him.  

Prayer:

The disciples appear to be a bit surprised by how quickly the fig tree withered after Jesus spoke against it. So Jesus uses the opportunity to talk about prayer. We might wonder how Jesus’ teaching on prayer relates to the temple incident. Well, let me explain…

To the ancient mind a temple was sacred ground. It was the place where divine presence resided in a special way. Most people felt closer to God in the temple and imagined prayer to be more effective when offered in God’s house.  

In verses 22-24 Jesus makes it clear that faith in God (rather than geographical location) is what makes our prayers effective. Faith is what really connects us to God, not temples or church architecture.

In verse 23 Jesus says: “TrulyI tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them.”

Faith that moves mountains. This is a challenging verse, especially for anyone who has prayed earnestly and with full conviction that their prayer would be answered positively, only to be disappointed when things did not turn out the way they had hoped. 

The assumption in verses 22-24 is that we are praying for things that are in line with God’s will and purpose.  If you pray to win Lotto Powerball, fully believing you have right the numbers, God is under no obligation to answer with a ‘yes’. Prayers offered in faith are not magic. God is unlikely to give you something as harmful as 10 million dollars. He loves you too much for that.

But what about those less selfish prayers, the ones when we are ask God to heal a loved one and yet they still die despite our water tight belief? In a case like that the problem is not with your faith, nor with God’s power.

Prayer is not a mathematical formula. Prayer is cloaked in mystery. Sometimes God’s answer is incomprehensible this side of heaven. From our vantage point, in this world, we cannot see the whole picture of what our prayers accomplish. For what it’s worth, I believe that when someone goes to be with Jesus, they are healed completely and totally.

In the context of Mark 11, ‘this mountain’, that Jesus says can be moved by prayer and faith, is most likely the mountain on which the temple was built. Jesus seems to be saying here that the old temple system, with its ritual sacrifice, is being removed by God and a new system (based on faith in Christ) is being established.

God is removing the old heart and giving Israel (and indeed the world) a new heart to worship him. Jesus is that heart.

Thinking more broadly, ‘this mountain’ might be a metaphor for any seemingly immovable obstacle. For example, ‘this mountain’ could be a powerful but corrupt institution that is beyond reform and needs to be thrown into the sea so it can be replaced with God’s kingdom way of doing things.

The main thought, in verses 22-24, is that God can do what we think is impossible. No one in the first century would have thought it possible to transplant a human heart nor replace the temple with something better. And yet, by God’s grace, these things have actually happened.     

Jesus concludes his lesson on prayer by talking about forgiveness. Jesus says: “…if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”

This relates to the temple as well. The temple was a place where people went to be reconciled with God, to be forgiven. In the time of Jesus, the Jews performed ceremonies of reconciliation involving animal sacrifice. Jesus has just been saying the old temple system is on the way out. So how are people to be reconciled to God without a temple. How are we to be forgiven without ritual sacrifice?

We are reconciled to God through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, when we forgive those who have sinned against us. If the old (hard) heart of worship was based on ritual sacrifice, then the new (tender) heart of worship is based on faith with forgiveness.

The inconvenient truth of the gospel is that God’s forgiveness of us is conditional on our forgiveness of others. We cannot expect God to answer our prayers if we are holding onto resentment against someone else. Is there anyone you are struggling to forgive at the moment? Pray for the grace to forgive while you can.

Conclusion:

With that in mind, let us pray now…

Gracious God, we thank you for donating your heart, your Son, that we might live. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. And Lord, when we find it hard to forgive, help us to be honest about our hurt and give us the grace we need to let it go. Through faith in Jesus we pray. Amen. 

Questions for discussion or reflection:

What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?

  • Why did Jesus speak against the fig tree? In what way was the fig tree like the religious leadership of Jesus’ day?
  • Why did Jesus overturn the tables of the money changers in the temple? What was Jesus saying through this acted out parable?
  • Discuss / reflect on how Jesus’ clearing of the temple applies in our world today?
  • Have you ever prayed for something with total belief that it would happen, only to have your hopes for that prayer disappointed? What was the situation? How did you feel? What is the basic assumption underlying verses 22-24?
  • What do we find at the heart of true worship (according to verses 22-25)? Are these things at the heart of your worship of God? If not, what needs to change. How might we strengthen how heart for worship? 
  • Is there anyone you need to forgive? What do you need to let go of your hurt?