“For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed and cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.” Mark 11:23
The occasion for the Lord Jesus speaking these words of faith in God, come after he had previously cursed a fig tree. There is a direct correlation between what Christ did to the fig tree, and faith. Scripture tells us that when Jesus first approached the fig tree, as He was hungry, “…He found nothing,” no fruit. The Lord Jesus never did anything that was not the right thing to do, nor did He waste any opportunity to teach His disciples the ways and purposes of God. We might ask, “Why did He curse the tree; why go to that extent? And what does this have to do with faith? We must remember that we are all created in the image of God to show forth the life of God, Christ’s life. This is only possible by the Spirit of Christ dwelling in the heart. It is as the believer abides in Christ, and Christ abides in him, that the fruit of this blessed life is manifested, greatly or in a lesser way. In other words, we are to go forth in obedient faith believing Jesus’ words: “…I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain.” (Jn. 15:16) The fact that the fig tree bore no fruit was a picture of a person who did not have the Spirit of God, and thus did not know Christ. Paul’s words are so very clear on the matter: “Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His.” (Romans 8:9) So then, by this illustration, the Lord Jesus shows us how imperative true faith is, first of all in belonging to Christ, and then, in order to walk with, by, and for His glory.
On the day after Jesus had cursed the fig tree, Peter, upon seeing that the fig tree had dried up from the roots, brought this to Jesus’ attention by saying, “Master, behold, the fig tree which Thou cursedst is withered away.” Again, the Lord will use the illustration of what happened to the fig tree as an example of the way of faith. True faith is the expression of a knowledge of the will of God, and a deliberate placing of one’s trust in God, for its accomplishment. Jesus then took the illustration of the fig tree, as contrasted with a mountain, in speaking of having faith in God. The central thrust of what He declares to the disciples is this: “Have faith in God.” In this simple statement is revealed both the magnitude of what God can and will do according to His will, and yet, unveil to us how God desires to work “beyond what we can ask or think,” beyond what we can see or hear. Peter saw a dried fig tree which was such because of the word of the Lord directed towards it. Jesus would use the contrasting illustration of a mountain to illustrate that there is really no difference to God, whether His word is addressed at a fig tree, or a mountain. The important thing is not the size of the object in question, but the attitude towards God with respect to it.
Many years ago, a dear servant of the Lord in the U.S received several letters of invitation to speak at missionary meetings and conferences in the Far East. Overwhelmed at the thought of such a great responsibility, he spread the letters out upon his bed, and told the Lord that he was not able to preach to these folk who worked on the front lines. The Lord simply responded to his hesitancy by showing him that he could not even speak to a child without Him, and that there was no difference. Both required God ministering by the Spirit.
Dear Father, Strengthen us to believe Thee wholly, and consistently, for that which is great and small. In Jesus’ name, Amen.