The Triumphal Entry

Mark 11

“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. Zechariah 9:9

The donkey was a royal animal, and the event was a coronation celebration. We do not know when this promenade was first established, but we do that Solomon was coronated as King after King David orchestrated such a parade while using a donkey.

This triumphal entry of Jesus was the only time our Lord permitted a public demonstration in His honor, and He did it to fulfill the prophecy of Zechariah 9:9. Jesus’ desire throughout His ministry has been to turn the people’s hearts back to the Word of God. It is seen throughout this chapter. Unfortunately, they continued to miss the point. They did not listen and their worship was amiss as they sought a military victory not a ministry or spiritual victory. They desired an earthly kingdom; not a Heavenly Kingdom. Their laying Palm Branches was a declaration of war, not an act of worship for King Jesus.

How would this be different in our present day, culture, and community? What changes would Jesus make if He entered our places of worship today? How would we respond to the suppression and persecution at hand and before us? How will you respond?

In Mark 11, we not only see honor, but we see hunger, honesty and holiness according to Wiersbe and Wilmington.
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The fig tree pictures Israel, taking up space but not producing fruit. Seeing a barren fig tree, Jesus cursed it, using it as an object lesson concerning Israel’s cyclical failure. Israel had been given much but had borne no spiritual fruit in some time. Thus, the Kingdom was going to be taken from it and given to the Gentiles. Paul would later write at length on this theme in Romans 9-11, using the imagery of the olive tree.

Even though the Passover was “too early in the season,” this particular kind of fig tree usually bore an early crop of fruit even before its leaves appeared, so Jesus was right in concluding that it was barren.

When we stop bearing fruit, the problem always starts with the roots.

“Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” Matthew 3:10 (ESV)

In this illustration, Jesus reminds the disciples and us that we must have a growing faith and forgiveness when we pray, or God will not answer.

In Psalm 93:5, the psalmist proclaimed, “Holiness adorns Your house.” But unholiness made the temple a place for thieves to hide! The leaders were not praying; they were preying and using religion only to make money and they were a stumbling block to worshipers worshipping. The selling of sacrificial animals such as doves and sheep were always being sold to those having to travel upward near 500 miles, but the leaders in the temple were taking advantage of those worshipers and turned worship into a lucrative business, not a house of honor.

I also believe Jesus’ anger stemmed from the Gentiles being kept from worship with all of the activity—buying and trading—in market place area outside the Temple doors where the Gentiles were allowed, as the Gentiles were not able to enter the inner Temple. All the buying and selling was a hindrance to the Gentile’s posture of worship.

Mark the chooses to address the honesty and authority of Jesus with a confrontation with those always trying to trap Jesus. But here, like always, the trappers trap themselves.

The Jewish leaders’ effort to trap Jesus with a question about the source of his authority backfired when he asked them about the source of John the Baptist’s authority. The real issue was that the Jewish leaders were fearful of losing their own authority.

“And they came again to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him, 28 and they said to him, “By what authority are you doing these things, or who gave you this authority to do them?” 29 Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. 30 Was the baptism of John from heaven or from man? Answer me.” 31 And they discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ 32 But shall we say, ‘From man’?”—they were afraid of the people, for they all held that John really was a prophet. 33 So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.” Mark 11:27–33 (ESV)

The leaders had not been honest with John the Baptist, and now they refused to be honest with Jesus. According to a John 7:17, when we obey, God teaches us more; if we disobey, we close the door on God’s truth.

How honest and honoring are you with God? Do you hunger for God’s Word and desire to live a life of holiness? Do you see Jesus as Lord or Liberator? How would you have responded to Jesus and His authority and actions throughout this chapter?
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Today, pray for a clear picture of who Jesus is and what He clearly came to accomplish.

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