It’s almost cliché these days when someone says “faith to move mountains”, it’s more of a catch-phrase than a truth. But Jesus was not joking or exaggerating when He said that these things were possible, nor was He speaking in purely spiritual terms.
Today we will be studying the kind of faith which Jesus spoke of when He walked on the earth; we will learn what it is, where it can be found and how to activate it in our lives as Jesus taught us to. At the conclusion of this study, you will have everything you need to accomplish what Jesus spoke of.
So since we have a lot to cover today, let’s not waste any time and get right into the scripture, starting with Matthew 21:17-22:
“And he left them, and went out of the city into Bethany; and he lodged there.
Now in the morning as he returned into the city, he was hungry.
And when he saw a fig tree in the way, he came to it, and found nothing thereon, but leaves only, and said to it, ‘Let no fruit grow on you henceforward for ever.’ And presently the fig tree withered away.
And when the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, How soon is the fig tree withered away!
Jesus answered and said to them, Truly I say to you, If you have faith, and doubt not, you shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if you shall say to this mountain, Be you removed, and be you cast into the sea; it shall be done.
And all things, whatever you shall ask in prayer, believing, you shall receive.”
This is a fairly famous account, that many are familiar with, and we are going to examine it closely to see the details here. You have heard me say it before, that nothing is in the Bible by accident, and nothing is filler. Furthermore, every single detail and every word ha a purpose. This is why I always prefer to read slowly and to study with purpose. It does no good to read 20 chapters per day but not learn anything. The face of Jesus is so detailed and so magnificent that we need time to study Him from every angle and in every way to see as much of His glory as we possibly can.
We see in verse 17, that Jesus having left the temple and the city and stayed in at Bethany, which is a village at the Mount of Olives, about two miles from Jerusalem, on the road to Jericho. The name Bethany in Hebrew means “house of dates” – understanding that the date was a staple and principal food in Arabia, northern Africa and several other places in Jesus’ time. Now knowing that there is no insignificant detail in the Bible, what can we learn from these facts? That what Jesus is about to demonstrate for us is a principal and necessary lesson that is going to feed our spirit tremendously. Look at what He does next in verse 18:
The next morning, Jesus gets up and He is hungry. Yes, while Jesus walked on the earth He experienced everything that you and I experience. No one can ever accuse Jesus of not understanding what we go through here on this earth, even so He was perfectly without sin. (Hebrews 4:15) Aren’t you glad that we have a perfect High Priest and a perfect sacrificial substitute who took our place? Aren’t you glad that today even when we fail, we know that Jesus absorbed all of the wrath and judgment that was due to us and stands righteously before God as us today? As He is today, in all glory and righteousness, so are we in this world. (1st John 4:17)
Verse 19 continues that Jesus being hungry, saw a fig tree standing in the way. The Greek text here denotes a singular fig tree. This was not a row or a forest of fig trees, but a single tree standing alone, almost out of place. It carries with it a picture of boasting. Here stands this tree for all to see, with leaves on it, beckoning all who notice it to come and eat, but what is found on it instead was barrenness. It was an empty promise; leaves but no real fruit. As a side-lesson here, there are a lot of empty trees like this in the world today, and it spoils many people away from the LORD. Today there are believers who boast in themselves and promote themselves, and they show many outwards signs of Jesus (leaves) but when you approach them and examine them closely and look at their private lives, you find – as Jesus did here – that there is no fruit… it was all a facade, a pretend show that feeds and nourishes no-one. When you find someone like that, the Bible warns to stay far away from them and do not associate with them at all. (2nd Timothy 3:1-5)
The reason for this is that their end is always the same: destruction and death. Those who are pretenders and have no real relationship with Jesus Christ (which is the only way to produce good fruit) they are the ones who will be condemned. Without Christ there is no forgiveness, no salvation. These people are still dead in their sins, and through pretending they are rooted in selfishness and have no true desire for Jesus. So we see here in verse 19 that a sentence is pronounced upon this false tree, and I find it very interesting what Jesus says here: Let no fruit grow on you henceforward for ever.
Now He could have easily said “tree, die.”, it would have been simpler and more efficient. Remember though that nothing is in the Bible by accident, and Jesus never speaks any idle words. So let’s examine what Jesus was actually saying here.
In the original Greek text it is written: μηκέτι ἐκ σου̑ καρπός γίνομαι εἰς το αἰών
Literally translated as: “No longer nor hereafter shall any fruit come out of you forever”.
The significance of this would be more apparent to the people of that day than to us. We must understand that the fig tree is often symbolic of Israel; a fruit-bearing tree is representative of life and blessings, while a barren tree without fruit is representative of death and judgment. Israel, while outwardly very religious and seemingly “alive” like the tree, were actually spiritually dead because of their sin and their rejection of Jesus. Therefore, Jesus here was teaching that to reject Him would ultimately lead to fruitlessness and death for all eternity, and this lesson is just as much for us today as for Israel then.
Verses 20, 21 and 22 carry the main lesson for us. Jesus also uses this opportunity to teach those who believe, a wonderful truth of how to accomplish great things in faith. As we have previously studied, faith is information of God. Knowing this we can properly discern what Jesus states in these verses here.
In verse 21, Jesus makes a conditional statement that many people have failed to comprehend: Truly I say to you, if you have faith and doubt not, you can do not only this which was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain “Be you removed and cast into the sea.”, it shall be done.
The confusion comes in because most people think of “faith” as if it were belief. They think that when Jesus says to have faith that means that they need to focus and believe harder – whatever that means. However we know that the truth is that faith is information, so we understand that when Jesus says “have faith” what He is truly saying is Have information of God. In other words, Pay attention to the scriptures, see what God is saying and act accordingly. That simplifies things. Faith is not some mystical commodity that you magically receive. Faith is the information that is revealed from the scriptures by God.
How many understand that Jesus never frivolously chose to speak anything. Every single word that He spoke was first given to Him by the Father in Heaven. Turn now to John 7:16-18:
“Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.
If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.
He that speaks of himself seeks his own glory: but he that seeks his glory that sent him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in him.”
Jesus never spoke of Himself (that is, He never spoke His own words), but He only spoke the words of His Father in Heaven. Likewise, we can not arbitrarily speak words and expect perfect results if our words and will does not line up with the scriptures. We then would be speaking of ourselves for our own glory, and it will fail.
So the principle is this: Step one, is to always study the scriptures and find out what God is saying on the matter, whatever it is. His judgment is the only one that matters. If He says you are healed because of Jesus Christ, then you are healed and you should always be speaking in-line with that truth. If He says that your enemies are defeated right in-front of your face, then so be it and you should always be speaking accordingly. Whatever the scripture speaks to you guided by the Holy Spirit, that is what you should agree with and speak with.
This is the proper order of glory. Notice that in verse 18, we see that this gives glory to God and testifies that in Christ we are righteous, so it ends-up giving us true glory. Not the false self-seeking glory of the one who speaks of himself, but the true glory of being in Christ with no unrighteousness in Him.
My friends, this is the secret to mountain moving faith, taught by Jesus. Now you are equipped, and no obstacle can stand against you in Christ. Give Jesus the the glory, honor and praise for what He has done!