INTRODUCTION

On the day we call Palm Sunday, Jesus arrives in Jerusalem after a long journey. As He enters the city, the people proclaim Him as King. He is the King, the King come to inspect His house and declare judgment against it.

THE TEXT

“Now when they drew near Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, He sent two of His disciples; and He said to them, ‘Go into the village opposite you; and as soon as you have entered it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has sat. Loose it and bring it . . . .’” (Mark 11:1-26).

FULFILLING PROPHECY

As Jesus gets near Jerusalem, he sends two disciples into the village to get a colt for Jesus to ride on (vv. 1-2). This is an assertion of Lordship: As soon as the disciples say “The Lord has need of it,” the owners of the colt let them take it (vv. 3-6). Jesus is arranging a deliberate fulfillment of prophecy. He knows the prophecy of Zechariah 9 about a conqueror arriving in Jerusalem to the acclaim of the people, and He prepares a scenario in which He fulfills it (vv. 9-10). The only other place in Scripture where people lay down garments in front of a king is in 2 Kings 9:11-13. Clothing represents a person, and laying down clothes is a sign of humiliation in front of a ruler. Like Jehu, Jesus enters the city in order to inspect and ultimately destroy a corrupted temple.

FIGS AND TEMPLES

As soon as He enters the city, Jesus enters the temple and looks around. He is not only a conquering king, but the true priest, who inspects the temple for uncleanness (cf. Leviticus 14:33-53). The alternation of the story of the fig tree and the temple indicates that the two incidents are mutually interpreting (Mark 11:20). Jesus inspects the temple for fruit in the same way he inspects the fig tree. Neither has fruit on it, and Jesus’ condemnation of the fig tree foreshadows the eventual destruction of the temple (v. 21). Someday, the temple will be withered from the roots up, and will be desolated. The reason, Jesus says, is because the Jews have turned a house of prayer into a robbers’ den. They don’t use the word for prayer, but instead use it as a “safe-house” where they can escape the consequences of their sins.

SAY TO THIS MOUNTAIN

When the disciples marvel that Jesus’ words have withered the fig tree, Jesus responds by talking about faith and prayer. Prayers of faith are as effective as Jesus’ own curse against the fig tree (v. 22). Whoever prays believing that that he will be given whatever he asks will receive it (v. 23). Jesus’ example about the mountain and the sea is not a random example. “This mountain” refers to the temple mountain that’s right in front of Jesus as He speaks, and throughout Scripture “the sea” refers to the Gentile nations. Jesus says that the disciples can pray for the Lord to cast the temple mount to the Gentiles, and it will happen.

FORGIVENESS

We must pray in faith, but Jesus also says that we must pray with hearts free of bitterness and hatred against those who wrong us. If we want the Father to forgive our sins and hear our prayers, we must forgive one another. The message of Paul Sunday is not only a message about the power of Jesus’ words and the power of prayer, but about the power of God to forgive sins as we forgive others.