OK. You know we sleep to the New Testament playing on my MP3 player 24×7. Every day, I wake up to a new passage. Today I woke up to the MP3 player playing Mark 11 and it captured me this morning. So, that’s what I studied. IT IS RICH… Here is just SOME of the greatness of this chapter.
Jesus curses a fig tree because there is no fruit on it; and rightfully so. Did you catch the end of verse 13 where it says “… for it was not the season for figs.” Clue #1: This isn’t about a Jesus taking it out on a fig tree because he was hungry. The end of verse 14 provides Clue #2 where it says, “… and the disciples heard it.” OK. I think Jesus was setting them up for a lesson, which comes “later”, when we get to verses 20-26.
The next morning the fig tree is dried up from the roots (Clue #3: OK… even Roundup doesn’t kill a fig tree overnight – something supernatural is going on here). When Peter notices (Yeah Peter!) Jesus lays it on them.
22 So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God. 23 For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. 24 Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.
25 “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. 26 But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.”
OK. Quick Greek lesson. Faith (v22) = pistis, which means to “believe to a complete trust.” Doubt (v23 “does not doubt”) = diakrinomai, which means “judge, or to judge there is a difference.” Heart (v23) = kardia, which means “inner self, including: the volition, the mind, the desires, etc., though the facility of the intellect may be slightly more emphasized.” Believe (v23) = pisteuo, which is “faith, believe to the extent of complete trust.” Says (v23) = laleō , which implies a literal breaking of the sound waves, to speak aloud. Received (v24) = lambano, “to take hold of, grasp, grab, acquire.”
I’m not advocating a “name it and claim it” mentality, because the Scripture is also clear that the Lord will give us the desire of our hearts – meaning when we are close to him, in intimate fellowship with Him, our desires will be planted in us by Him. This means we won’t be asking for a new Lexus, or a million dollars, or any self-centered, self-pleasuring thing. We will want what He wants and our prayers will come into agreement with His heart.
What I do think this passage, and what Jesus was trying to teach the disciples, is this. Our mind is the key to our belief and ultimately our faith. Clearly, “doubt” in this passage is the antithesis of “faith” – in this passage. When I unpacked “doubt,” it is very clearly dealing with the mind – “to judge”, or “to judge there is a difference.” That says to me that my mind is evaluating what’s coming out of my mouth (aka, my prayer) with what it believes and measuring up any discrepancy, or difference.
The second key for me, comes in verses 25-26. An odd place, at the surface, to throw in a seemingly unrelated statement. But Jesus does not throw down random thoughts. These are very related. For the sake of brevity, unforgiveness affects our prayers. Its related to the previous thoughts. If I haven’t forgiven someone, then when I pray to Father, my mind (my “heart”) is constantly evaluating the truth of it all. If I haven’t or can’t forgive someone, then the truth of God forgiving me is something my heart can’t receive, and if God hasn’t forgiven me, then how can I pisteuo that He will hear – much less answer – my prayers? This is when my heart diakrinomai (doubts).
What then is the significance of “says” in verse 23? Again, for brevity, and I may write another blog later on this, it has to be audible. I know I am way too guilty of praying silently, quietly, and in my Spirit – not always with my tongue, aloud, audibly. I believe there is significance to the implications of the word laleo. Jesus cursed the fig tree (which remember was NOT in season) aloud (the disciples heard it) because there is power in our words and in our audible prayers. This is going to require some more digging into…
I’m sorry for the length, but breakfast with Papa was GOOOOD this morning!
Daddy, you are SO good. Thank you for your Word. Thank you for time with me this morning. May the truth of your Word and the truth of your examples sink deeply into my heart today, so that I will not doubt in my heart, so that I will not judge there to be a difference in what I say and what I know about You.
So the battelfield is in the mind? How then do you overcome that?
Actually, I think it is in the soul, which encompasses the mind. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.” Some books leave out “mind” and just have “heart, soul, strength” which is spirit, soul, flesh. Our spirit is saved. It’s the discipline we studied that affects, certainly our flesh, and our soul – depending on the type of discipline we’re engaged in.
Rom 12:2 tells us to renew our mind. The verses that follow talk about how we think and act. I’ve wanted to do a study on how related our thoughts and actions are.
Eph 4:20-32 gives us really practical application of being “renewed in the spirit of your mind” (NKJV) – by the way, interesting phrase “spirit of your mind”… and much of the context of those verses is how we act… what we do.
I think Ben is also on the right track with the memorization.
Tell me, how do you overcome the battlefield of the mind?
I think the only way to do it is to soak yourself in the word. Praying over it and asking Dad to clean your mind or give you new thoughts is good but not enough. Our part in it is soaking ourselves with something else. Whatever you are wrapped up in, or passionate and pursuing about you will focus your mind on it consciously or self-consciously. I think you and
Ben are right, determine to soak in something other than your work or church or hobbies but let all those things make you focus on God. If we will search for God in everything than everything will make us focus on Him. Then do we have the power to overcome our thoughts and think differently.
shoe your timing is perfect, when i read mark 11.20-26 it fit a situation with a friend who really needs to hear that. thanks for letting God speak through you.