Surviving vs Thriving
Beginning the Journey • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Transcript
Intro
Intro
Show pic of healthy vibrant fig tree with no figs.
Is tree surviving or thriving?
How do we know if the tree is surviving or thriving?
What’s the difference between surviving and thriving?
Surviving “remaining alive, continuing to exist” - is life being maintained; doesn’t mean quality or health is good.
Thriving “to grow or develop well, to flourish, to prosper” - quality is now essential to the equation
How do we know if we’re surviving or thriving?
Passage
Passage
12 On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. 13 And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. 14 And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it.
15 And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. 16 And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple. 17 And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.” 18 And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching. 19 And when evening came they went out of the city.
20 As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. 21 And Peter remembered and said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” 22 And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. 23 Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25 And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”
First paragraph, vs12-14,
First paragraph, vs12-14,
What do you see? What stands out? (observations)
What was Jesus looking for? Fruit
What did he find? Fig leaves
What do fig leaves represent? Israel
Jeremiah 8:13 “13 When I would gather them, declares the Lord, there are no grapes on the vine, nor figs on the fig tree; even the leaves are withered, and what I gave them has passed away from them.””
Jeremiah 29:17 “17 ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, behold, I am sending on them sword, famine, and pestilence, and I will make them like vile figs that are so rotten they cannot be eaten.”
Hosea 9:10 “10 Like grapes in the wilderness, I found Israel. Like the first fruit on the fig tree in its first season, I saw your fathers. But they came to Baal-peor and consecrated themselves to the thing of shame, and became detestable like the thing they loved.”
Hosea 9:16–17 “16 Ephraim is stricken; their root is dried up; they shall bear no fruit. Even though they give birth, I will put their beloved children to death. 17 My God will reject them because they have not listened to him; they shall be wanderers among the nations.”
Joel 1:6–7 “6 For a nation has come up against my land, powerful and beyond number; its teeth are lions’ teeth, and it has the fangs of a lioness. 7 It has laid waste my vine and splintered my fig tree; it has stripped off their bark and thrown it down; their branches are made white.”
Micah 7:1 “1 Woe is me! For I have become as when the summer fruit has been gathered, as when the grapes have been gleaned: there is no cluster to eat, no first-ripe fig that my soul desires.”
Was this tree healthy? Was it thriving?
1. Difference between surviving and thriving; a thriving life is one that bears fruit./is fruitful
Look at vs 13
Mark 11:13 “13 And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.”
What does that mean? “for it was not the season for figs”?
Show Winter branch vs Spring branch
What’s the diff between these branches?
Winter: dry; stiff, leafless, fruitless
Spring: Moist, tender, vibrant, budding, some leafs
Jesus was looking for fruit! The first fruits of spring.
Hosea 9:10 “10 Like grapes in the wilderness, I found Israel. Like the first fruit on the fig tree in its first season, I saw your fathers. But they came to Baal-peor and consecrated themselves to the thing of shame, and became detestable like the thing they loved.”
BUT He didn’t see any!
Mark 11:13 “13 And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.”
1. Difference between surviving and thriving; a thriving life is one that bears fruit.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
Why did Jesus curse the tree to die? B/c it was fruitless
13 And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. 14 And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it.
Principle: Jesus has designed you with purpose and His desire is that you would walk in it.
When we don’t fulfill our purpose we experience death. What is our purpose? to glorify God and enjoy Him forever
Gospel.
God want’s you to be fulfilled; to live a life of purpose? How do you know if you’re walking in it, walking with Jesus? are you bearing Fruit?
What does Jesus’ cursing of the tree imply about Israel?
READ:
The cursing of the fig tree and the expulsion of the merchants from the temple (11:15–19) are prophetic actions that symbolize the same thing, the coming judgment on unfaithful Israel by the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple. Israel, like the fig tree, appeared to be thriving; but the appearances were deceiving because Israel and the fig tree were bearing no fruit. The magnificence of the temple masked the corruption and false security associated with it. Just as the fig tree was cursed and withered, so Israel was about to be condemned and decline in importance. Just as the merchants were expelled from the temple, so the religious establishment that authorized the merchants was about to be expelled from its favored place. Both the cursing and the expulsion are acted or dramatized parables in the tradition of the Old Testament prophets.
The New American Commentary
How do we ensure a fruitful life?
Third paragraph 20-25
Third paragraph 20-25
20 As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. 21 And Peter remembered and said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” 22 And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. 23 Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25 And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”
22 And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God.
God’s desire is that we would have faith.
Faith is the catalyst for experiencing fulfilment.
Show equation
catalyst
[R] —> [P}
Faith
[Fruit] —> [Fulfilment]
OR lil more accurate ( Faith —> Fruit —-> Fulfilment)
2. A thriving life is evident by fruitful faith. // A thriving life is only fruitful because of faith.
Action
Action
What do we do with this message? How do we take a step today toward living in faith and experiencing fulfilment?
Mark 11:17 (ESV)
17 And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.”
22 And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. 23 Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25 And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”
3. A thriving life is powerful because of prayer. Prayer precedes experiencing God’s power.
What’s something so big you struggle to believe God can do it?
Reach 3,000 Students with the hope of the gospel.
End w prayer prompts:
