The next morning Jesus and the Twelve return to Jerusalem and come across the fig tree which is already withered away. The withering of the nation is certain. There will be no delay when it is God’s time for judgment. We need to be clear about this. The fig tree stands for the nation. Jesus is saying the nation of Israel will be cursed, will wither, will cease to be a tree. That is a serious statement for people of Jewish background. Frequently the Psalmist asked, “will you cast us off forever?” (e.g. Ps. 74,77). How can God do that given His clear promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, a promise that included “forever.”
This question does not get answered in Mark’s Gospel until Ch. 13. Jesus does not clear things up here because He wants to teach another truth to His disciples: HAVE FAITH IN GOD! When Jeremiah was preaching God’s strong message of judgment that would include the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, he could not understand how God could do that. Is there no balm in Gilead, no physician there? Why then is there no recovery for the health of the daughter of my people? (Jer. 8:22). Only later, as he watched the city burn, would he express his faith in God: Through the LORD’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not … Great is Your faithfulness … the Lord will not cast off forever (Lam. 3:22-31). Isaiah had to learn the same faith: ‘For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,’ says the LORD (Isa. 55:8-9). So would Zechariah: Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the LORD of hosts. Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain! And he shall bring forth the capstone with shouts of ‘Grace, grace to it!’ (Zech. 4:6-7).
Jesus taught His disciples the same truth. I believe when He says to “this mountain” He is referring to the current issue, that of Israel. If you pray the will of God you will see mighty works from God. If you do not pray the will of God, you cannot pray in faith! The disciples, stunned by the illustration, needed to HAVE FAITH IN GOD! Let me conclude with a quote from Warren Wiersbe.
Of course, this is not the only lesson Jesus ever gave on prayer; and we must be careful not to isolate it from the rest of Scripture. Prayer must be in the will of God (1 Jn. 5:14–15), and the one praying must be abiding in the love of God (Jn. 15:7–14). Prayer is not an emergency measure that we turn to when we have a problem. Real prayer is a part of our constant communion with God and worship of God.
Nor should we interpret Mark 11:24 to mean, “If you pray hard enough and really believe, God is obligated to answer your prayers, no matter what you ask.” That kind of faith is not faith in God; rather, it is nothing but faith in faith, or faith in feelings. True faith in God is based on His Word (John 15:7; Rom. 10:17), and His Word reveals His will to us. It has well been said that the purpose of prayer is not to get man’s will done in heaven, but to get God’s will done on earth.
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