Thank you, Lord God. I'm going to ask you to take your
Bibles and turn with me to the book of Mark, chapter 11. Mark,
chapter 11. I was reading this past week
and came across this passage of Scripture. It gripped my heart. Mr. Spurgeon said in his book,
Lectures to My Students, he said, if a passage of Scripture truly
grips your heart, he said, stay there and ask the Lord to give
you some light, some understanding. I want to read I want to read
this entire passage, Mark 11, verses 12 to 22. And as I read this passage, I
pray that this will not be mechanical. I mean that. I know when we're
looking, we're looking for the gospel of God's grace. We're
looking for salvation by grace. through faith in the Lord Jesus
Christ. And I pray that the Lord bless
this passage today to the salvation of His elect, the comfort of
His people. Mark 11, verse 12, the scripture
says, On the morrow, when they were come from Bethany, he was
hungry. And seeing a fig tree afar off,
having leaves, He came, if haply he might find anything thereon. And when he came to it, he found
nothing but leaves. For the time of figs was not
yet. And Jesus answered and said unto
it, that is, unto the tree, No man eat fruit of thee hereafter
forever. And his disciples heard it. And
they come to Jerusalem, and Jesus went into the temple, and began
to cast out them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew
the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold
doves, and would not suffer that any man should carry any vessel
through the temple. And he talked, saying unto them,
Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the
house of prayer? But you have made it a den of
thieves. And the scribes and chief priests heard it and sought
how they might destroy him, for they feared him, because all
the people were astonished at his doctrine. And when even was
come, he went out of the city. And in the morning, as they passed
by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. And Peter
calling to remembrance, saith unto him, Behold, the fig tree
which thou curseth is withered away. And Jesus answering, saith
unto them, Have faith in God." Now, in this passage today, we
find our Lord illustrating in the cursing of a barren fig tree
not only the unbelief of natural Israel and their judgment, but
the state and final end of all man-centered, works-off religion. And the words and the actions
of our Lord speak clearly of God's sovereignty And I pray
this morning that the Lord, the Holy Spirit, God Himself might
be pleased to teach us through this amazing passage of Scripture. I want us to look first of all
at the Lord's desire. God's desire. The Lord Jesus
Christ and His desire. The Scripture says in verse 12,
and on the morrow when they were come from Bethany, he was hungry. Now, I thought on that. I thought, you know, there's
no doubt that I can see, first of all, clearly, that passage
of Scripture right there proves the glorious humanity of the
Lord Jesus Christ. Now I know that. I know that
for Him to redeem His own. Now we know, we know from Scripture,
we go back to cite different Scriptures, we know that the
Lord Jesus Christ has a people. We know that. The Lord Himself
said in Ephesians 1-4, chosen in Him. from before the foundation
of the world. Paul writing to the church at
Thessalonica, chapter 2, verse 13, We are bound to give thanks
to you, for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, because God hath
from the beginning chosen you to salvation. through sanctification
of the Spirit and belief of the truth. We know that God has an
elect. That's not up for debate. But
I do know this, for the Lord to redeem His own from the curse
of the law, He had to be made like unto His brethren. A man
sinned against God. And a man is going to have to
obey God. And that man, the Lord Jesus
Christ, His righteousness, His faith, His faith, His faith is
the faith by which we are justified. Galatians 2.16 says that, knowing
that we are justified by the faith of Jesus Christ. His faith, His faithfulness charged
to us. Now, for Him to redeem His own,
He had to come into this world. He had to be made flesh. And
being made flesh, He hungered. He thirsted. He felt. Just like His people. The only
difference between Him and us is He had no sin. Now, I know
that He came into this world, and he's a man. He was hungry.
But I believe that the significance of that passage right there goes
much deeper than proving, though I take nothing away, Lord forgive
me, I take nothing away from the humanity of our Lord. I don't
do that. The blessed thought that God
was made flesh, the Word, God Himself made flesh, But there's
a lot deeper meaning. From the words of His lips, the
Lord Jesus Christ, He said this concerning His mission. He said,
My meat, My food, My desire, My hunger is to do the will of
Him that sent Me and to finish His work. the food for which
he truly hungered was to finish, to complete the work that the
Father had given him in the redemption of his sheep. And we see his redemptive work
set forth in his faithfulness, obedience to Almighty God. The redemption of his people
so filled his soul that he referred to their salvation and the accomplishment
of it, the accomplishment of the Father's will as being his
meat. He said, this is what I hunger
for. This is my desire. On the morrow when they would
come from Bethany, he was hungry. He ever hungered. He said of
Himself back in Proverbs 8, speaking of Himself as one brought up
with the Father, I was ever before Him. Our desire, our delight was with
the sons of men in the habitable places, in every nation, kindred,
tribe, and tongue. He has always desired, hungered,
thirsted for the salvation of His elect. That was his hunger. Secondly, let's look at his sovereignty
revealed in his omniscience, that is, in his all-knowingness. Verse 13-14 says, In seeing a
fig tree afar off having leaves, he came, if haply, he might find
anything thereon. to see if he found anything thereof. And when he came to it, he found
nothing but leaves. For the time of figs was not
yet. And Jesus answered and said unto
it, No man eat fruit of thee hereafter forever. And his disciples
heard it. Now you know, that's an amazing
passage of Scripture. You think about what he just
did, what he said, what he saw, and it seems at first to have
a real puzzling situation. Two questions arose in my mind
when I first read that passage of Scripture. Number one, Wouldn't one maybe ask this question? He saw this fig tree. Scripture
says it was a far off. And wouldn't he know whether
or not by his omniscience, would he not know whether there was
fruit on it or not? No, by being God, whether there
was fruit there, the Scripture says, he came if haply he might
find anything thereon. The second question I came up
with was this. Why would he curse this tree
before the time of its fruit? Now listen to what he said here.
When he came, verse 13, latter part, he found nothing but leaves,
for the time of figs was not yet. It wasn't time for figs yet.
The figs were not to be there yet. And he answered and said unto
it, No man. Eat fruit of thee hereafter forever."
And his disciples heard it. You know, if it had been time
for figs, and there would have been none there, in our mind
we would have said, well, I understand it. It just wasn't time for figs
yet. Or I'm sorry, it was time for
figs, and there were no figs there. But the Scripture says,
he came to that tree. The only thing that was there
was leaves. It was not time for figs yet, and he said, I curse
you because there's nothing here. Well, I know this. The problem is not with the Word
of God. The problem is with our understanding. Therefore, Lord,
help us. Help us to see. Help us to know. I so greatly wondered about this
passage of Scripture. I desired to look into what was
actually going on and read some history about the fig trees in
that part of the world. And I want us to look for just
a few minutes at actually what happened. I know, I know that
what our Lord did was right. I know that. I have no doubt
about that. He did that which was right.
Fig trees, I found out in that part of the world, produced a
little small bud at the same time that the leaves appeared. The fig trees, there where our
Lord was, at the same time the leaves came out, there was a
little bud that came out. And the name of that bud, and
I'm not going to say it correctly, I know. I'll spell it for you
and then I'll try to say it. It was T-A-Q-S-H. Catch. Catch. That touch, that little bud,
that little bitty thing, it was edible. But usually was only
eaten if there was just nothing else to eat. You could eat it.
I read where he was eaten by peasants many times, and travelers
traveling along the way might stave off hunger and eat it. That little catch, T-A-Q-S-H,
that little bud was actually, it wasn't the fig. It was not
the fig. What it was, it was the precursor. It was what was there promising
what would appear later. A fig. Those of you that had
figs, in Louisiana we had fig trees. I used to go out in the
backyard and just, you know, we had nice big, big figs. I'd just go out there and pull
figs and just eat them. I loved them. Ate them when they
were ripe, when the figs actually was produced. Thatch. It was a little bud that appeared
about six weeks before the actual fig would come on the tree. But sometimes I read where the
thatch failed to appear. And where there was no thatch,
where there was no bud, There would be no fig. No bud, no fig. The leaves would come on, but
where there was no bud, there was not going to be a fig there. Now when our Lord came to that
fig tree, and knowing that, knowing the history, showing that Mark,
under the inspiration of God's Spirit, knew exactly what he
was talking about. Let's read that 13th verse again. And seeing the fig tree afar
off having leaves, he came, if happily he might find anything
thereon. And when he came to it, he found
nothing but leaves. For the time of figs was not
yet. The leaves were there, but there was no bud. There was no
promise. There was no precursor of fruit
that would be produced. Because when our Lord came and
there was no bud, leaves, but no bud, no promise, of that fruit
ever being there. That tree was corrupt. And it would be good for nothing
to just cumber the ground. A waste of space. And it was
good for nothing but to be hewn down and cast away. And our Lord, through that lesson
right there, He was setting forth His omniscience, His sovereignty
in electing grace and knowing those that are His. Now just
as that little bud, that little patch is the promise of fruit
that shall be produced before the actual fruit appeared, before
that fig appeared. Even our Lord in His omniscience,
His omnipotence, His omnipresence, His Godhead, He knows those that
are His. He is long-suffering to us-ward,
not willing that any of His elect should perish. In the Lord's good knowledge
and pleasure, you know that God has a sheep who are yet to be
called out. He said in John 10, we'll be
looking at this soon, or the sheep I have. They're not of
this fold. Them I must bring. His sheep. who are yet to be called out
of darkness are still His sheep. They've always been sheep. They
don't become sheep when He regenerates them in power and grace. They're
sheep before they're ever called out of darkness. They're His.
Sons. You don't become a son in time,
a son of God, because you are sons. God has sent forth the
Spirit of His Son whereby you cry, Abba, Father, into your
heart. Sons of God. Now, the Lord Jesus Christ knows
His people. And that little patch, that little
bud, He was using that as an illustration to set forth that
which God Almighty spiritually knows according to His will and
promise to show mercy and compassion. God knows. those that He is going
to grant repentance to. He knows those who are His. And He sees and knows what He
shall do in them. And just like that little bud
is the promise of fruit that will be produced, Our Lord sees
and knows that which He has always determined and established in
His everlasting covenant of mercy and grace. And that little bud
illustrates what God Almighty sees according to promise. Some say, well, I don't understand. You know, how can some see and
some God Almighty knows who is going to see? Where there was
no patch, no bud of promise, there'd be no fruit. And where
there is no covenant mercy, no promise of redemption, there
may be in time leaves of false profession, leaves that don't
do anything but give a false promise, but there shall never
be any fruit where God Almighty has not everlastingly set forth. There is a bud of promise. That
little bud of promise is His Word, His will, His counsel. I will have mercy on whom I will
have mercy. I will have compassion. There
are some of God's sheep walking around in this world today, and
they don't know God. He has yet to call them out of
darkness. There He is! Where is that bud? What is that bud of promise?
I'll tell you this, it's His will. There will be fruit there. There will be fruit. The promise. The promise. The promise of God.
The Lord Jesus Christ came to that little tree right there.
And there was nothing there but leaves. And He said, there's
not going to be any fruit here. This is the reason that the Lord
told the Pharisees over in John 10, when they asked Him, how
long do you make us doubt? He said, you know what? I told
you the truth. And you believe not because you're
not my sheep. My sheep hear my voice. I know
them. They follow me. I give them eternal
life. And they're never going to perish.
I want you to look. at God Almighty taking that illustration
right there in that fig tree, and look what happens next. They
came to Jerusalem, and Jesus went into the temple and began
to cast them out that sold and bought in the temple, over through
the tables, money changers, seats of them that sold up, would not
suffer that any man could carry any vessel. through the temple
and talked, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall
be called of all nations a house of prayer? You made it a den
of thieves, and the scribes, chief priests, heard it and sought
how they might destroy him. But they feared him, because
all the people were astonished at his doctrine. And when evening
was come, he went out of the city." Our Lord did exactly in
that temple, right there, what He did to that fig tree. He saw that fig tree and came. That fig tree was actually a
place where there was promised to be food. That fig tree, here's
a tree, got leaves, everything. He gave a promise of producing
fruit. He went to that temple, a place
that promised spiritual food. It's like that barren fig tree.
That fig tree was a picture of this temple right here that the
Lord Jesus Christ came to. That temple was promising. We've
got something that you can eat. Good food. God's food. We promise
that there's something. But the Lord Jesus Christ, just
as when He came to that fig tree and He saw, there was nothing
there. Leaves of profession. Leaves
of false promise were found in those that were selling animals
for sacrifice. But the Lord knew, there's no
promise of fruit here. Not in those works of false religion.
There's no covenant of grace here. There was never going to be any
fruit in that place. Not in the works. Not in man's
works, not in man's will. They were nothing more than a
den of thieves. Robbers of men's souls. Thieves
and robbers among the sheepfold, the yard. Promising life, but
they were nothing more than promises. Empty promises. The works of
man's effort. keeping the law for salvation
and promising peace before God by your works and by your will
and by your profession and by your baptism, that will never
give life. And the Lord purged it. He said, this house, It shall
be called of all nations a house of prayer. You've made it a den
of thieves. You've promised food to people,
and there's nothing here. Leaves of promise. And just like
he told that fig tree in verse 14, no man eat fruit of thee
hereafter forever. Concerning the worship and promotion
of those in that temple, therefore by the deeds of the law, shall
no man be justified in his sight. For by the law is the knowledge
of God." That fig tree, it had no bud. That temple where they
were selling animals, they were lying to people. No promise. There will never be any fruit.
There will never be any fruit produced out of this. Never. Lastly, verse 20, 22. In the
morning, As they passed by, they saw the
fig tree dried up from the roots, and Peter calling to remembrance,
saith unto him, Master, behold, the fig tree which thou cursed
is withered away. And Jesus answering, saith unto
them, Have faith in God. The next morning they saw the
effects of an empty promise to give life. This is what's going to happen
to every place, every man, every woman that rests in their own
efforts to be able to please God by their own works and by
their own will. This tree promised to provide
food for one to live by. And false religion promises the
same thing. But what they say, false religion
says this, do and live. And its end is going to be the
same as was illustrated in that fig tree right there. Matthew
7.22 says, Many, many. Oh, I looked at that word again.
I thought, Lord, don't leave me to myself. Many. will say to me in that day, in
the day of judgment, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy
name? In Thy name cast out devils?
In Thy name done many wonderful works? Do you notice here they
did not appeal to the mercy of God? Do you know what they appealed
to? It's what I did. This is what I can do. This is
what I accomplished for you. This is what false religion promises. Do this. Act this way. Say these things, and you have
life. The Lord said there will never
be life there. Lord, look at all the fruit that we produced. Evidently, You're not aware of
the wonderful things that we produced. Scripture sets forth, Matthew
7.23, Then will I profess unto you, I never knew you. I never knew you. I never knew
you and there will never be any fruit produced in you. If the
bud of His eternal promise His eternal counsel to show mercy. If the bud of His everlasting
covenant of grace be not found, there will never be any fruit.
It is the fruit of God's Spirit. We don't produce fruit. We manifest
God's fruit. God's love. God's longsuffering. Gentleness. Meekness. Have faith
in God. Lord, look at that tree right
there. Have faith in God. Lord, look what happened to that
tree. You believe God. You believe as the Lord God has
given you faith to trust Christ. Trust not in the works of man's
own ability to produce fruit and righteousness. Believe that
the Lord has everlastingly promised to show mercy to you. Lord, have
mercy on me. Lord, have mercy on me. I find
no confidence in the flesh. By the grace of God, if He's
given you faith to believe that in Him alone there is salvation,
you're a blessed man, blessed woman. Lord, teach us this day. Look to you. The Lord calls us
to see it fresh. Salvation is of the Lord. And
He tells us about it. God's purpose is to save. God
saves in time and tells the objects of His mercy what He's done for
them. And they believe Him. And they don't trust themselves.
Bless these words for Christ's sake.