Let us read from the passage extracted from Mark 11:11-25 below.
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Jesus entered Jerusalem and went to the temple. He looked around at everything, but since it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the Twelve.
The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. 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. Then he said to the tree, "May no one ever eat fruit from you again." And his disciples heard him say it.
On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple area 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, and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts.
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.'"
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.
When evening came, they went out of the city.
In the morning, as they went along, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots. Peter remembered and said to Jesus, "Rabbi, look! The fig tree you cursed has withered!"
"Have faith in God," Jesus answered. "I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins."
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From the above passage, we see a different side of Jesus. In comparison to his previous trip to Jerusalem when he was only twelve, Jesus seems to have changed from a mild and inquisitive teenager to an aggressive and critical adult. What can we observe from this passage?
Firstly, Jesus seems to have been unreasonable. Though it was not the season for figs, he cursed the fruitless fig tree because it did not satisfy his hunger. Secondly, Jesus resorted to the use of violence in the temple court. The temple market was a widely-accepted commercial practice during his time, yet he disapproved of it and created a big scene in that area. Now, was Jesus a changed person at the final lap of his messianic journey?
Looking deeper into the scripture, we can see that Jesus was definitely not being unreasonable. He had overcome the 40 days of trials and temptation prior to the commencement of his ministry. He said that Man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from God. Therefore, Jesus could not have possibly cursed the fig tree because of his hunger, but rather as a vivid illustration to teach his disciples the importance of faith in prayer. This was crucial because he was going to leave them soon.
Jesus, being zealous for God, was exhibiting a type of holy anger in the temple court. His actions resembled that of Moses when he smashed the Ten Commandments in front of the Israelites during the golden calf incident. Obviously, the people still had not understood the laws of Moses fully and Jesus’ gestures seems to suggest that the written laws were smashed the second time and they would find fulfillment through Him.
Perhaps we can ask ourselves some practical questions. When we pray, are we placing our faith in God or are we subjected to the status quo of the world? Do we obey a set of written rules blindly or do we obey God by letting Jesus Christ reign in our lives? Instead of asking whether Jesus had changed, maybe we need a real change ourselves.
(End)
