Jesus Christ taught in Mark 11:23-24(NLT), “23 I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart. 24 I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours.” Our Lord and Master taught this faith lesson to the disciples after an amazing occurrence. The day before, he was hungry and saw a fig tree in the distance. The tree had leaves but it didn’t have fruit because it was too early in the season. Jesus knew that even though this tree didn’t have fruit, the fact that it had leaves indicated that it would at least have sweet buds that were often a quick snack as well. It didn’t have these buds and therefore, this tree was one that would not bear fruit. Jesus Christ spoke these words, “May no one ever eat your fruit again!” And the disciples heard his powerful words.
Jesus Christ is the living Word of God, and he is the only begotten Son of our Heavenly Father. He is our example, and he walked this earth with all the power and authority that God had given him. This means we should pay incredibly close attention to how he used that power and authority. Jesus had many options here, but we know from the Bible that he only did those things that pleased God, and he remained continually within the boundaries of God’s laws and truth. So, in this instance, we must observe that Jesus didn’t just merely transmute thought to the tree, he spoke to the tree. He’s the One that created trees and assigned their function. He knew that this tree was a counterfeit because it was not doing what he had created it to do. It had to go.
Jesus Christ opened his mouth and spoke Words that were backed by his power and authority. This is a part of his example that you and I must imitate as we walk by faith. We must take note of every possible detail of his actions. After Jesus Christ spoke those words to the tree, he did not plead with God to back him up, nor did he wait around to see if his Words would come to pass. He knew the thing he had spoken was a done deal and simply went on about his Father’s business. Not only did he nullify that perverse tree, but he went to the synagogue and turned over the tables of the money changers that were trying to make a mockery of God’s Temple by using it as a marketplace.
A day after, on the way back, traveling through the same area they had the day before, the disciples noticed the fig tree. It had withered and died from the roots up. It is very important we understand that when Jesus Christ initially spoke to the tree, it was dead when his words hit the air. That’s how authority and power works! There were some things happening behind the scene that no one could yet see. The process began underground, as death moved through the roots and progressed upward. Faith behaves similarly.
In the Old Testament Book of Daniel, God’s prophet, Daniel, prayed for His help and God sent an angel to help. The angel told him in Daniel 10:12-13(NLT), “12 Don’t be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day you began to pray for understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your request has been heard in heaven. I have come in answer to your prayer. 13 But for twenty-one days the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia blocked my way. Then Michael, one of the archangels, came to help me, and I left him there with the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia.”
What the angel said to Daniel is extremely important for our walk as believers. Daniel prayed, number one, for understanding. How many of us do that? We make our prayers about what we desire and want from God, but I will venture to say that very few of us pray for understanding. Secondly, the angel mentioned that Daniel had humbled himself before God. We’re not humble if we fail to seek understanding and fail to seek God for His directives, instruction, and guidance concerning what we desire in life. By their very nature, prayers to God signify that we are prepared to change, to realign our minds and hearts so that we come into greater agreement with His blessings and Will.
In Deuteronomy 30:10(NLT), God instructed Moses to tell His people, “The LORD your God will delight in you if you obey his voice and keep the commands and decrees written in this Book of Instruction, and if you turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and soul.” The new covenant we have with God that Christ ushered in doesn’t exempt us from God’s requirements. Quite the contrary, it empowers and strengthens us to follow the law of love in the same way that Christ did. God doesn’t deal in magic where one can make a wish and it appears. That’s fantasy. Faith requires us to walk with the power and authority of Christ, and that authority can only come by following the Word of God.
Often there are specific requirements concerning what we must do to please God, and if we have not asked Him for these with the heart and earnestness to follow what He tells us, it’s possible that we’re asking amiss. The result of seeking God by praying for understanding and humbling ourselves before Him is that our faith is mobilized, and our request is on the way to us as soon as we pray. Jesus Christ has absolute authority and power, and he always tells the truth and lives by the truth. Our authority and power must be operated by that same commitment. When it is, we can pray according to God’s Will, believe that we have received it as soon as we prayed, and it will be ours. ■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“Believe and You Will Receive”, written by Reverend Fran Mack. Edits by Kim Times and K. Stephens for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2023. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.