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Today’s Scripture Reading: Matt. 7:15-23; Mark 11:12-14,20-24
"Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire." Today we find Jesus and the disciples again walking from Bethany to Jerusalem. On their way they come across the fig tree that the day prior Jesus had cursed for not having any fruit. The tree is now withered and dried up from the roots. What was so significant about this tree? Why would Jesus have cursed it in the first place? The Fig Tree: It is important to first understand that a fig tree, prior to being in full leaf, should have had fruit from the prior year’s growth. Thus this particular tree would have appeared to have fruit but didn’t. I believe that Jesus was communicating a message about those who put on a show of spirituality but never produce fruit. As we saw in Matthew 7, Jesus is very clear about the consequences of fruitlessness. It is also interesting to note that throughout the Bible the fig tree is used to represent the nation of Israel and its leaders, such as in Hosea 9 or Jeremiah 24. Not too long prior to this Jesus had shared the parable found in Luke 13:6-9, about the owner of a vineyard who planted a fig tree and for three years it had not produced fruit. He threatened to cut it down. Likewise, Jesus’ public ministry had been for a period of three years and the leaders of Israel had still refused to be fruitful. Only 40 years after this the nation of Israel was scattered, and the temple was destroyed. They had failed to bear fruit. Now unless you would be tempted to write off the nation of Israel it is important to notice the prophetic words of Jesus in Mark 13:28-31 indicating the reappearance of the fig tree before the end. So the question needs to be asked, what does it mean to bear spiritual fruit? Bearing fruit is a matter of the heart, here are some areas to examine for fruitfulness:
Question for Reflection
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Today’s Scripture Reading: Deut. 16:1-8; Mark 11:15-19
“On the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses.” (Ex. 12:15a) As we saw yesterday in Exodus 12, and again today in Deuteronomy 16, it was declared by God that each household in Israel was to rid itself of any leaven within the house. This was ceremonially completed on Nisan 15, or the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. So you might be asking, how does this relate to the passage of Christ entering the temple in Mark 11? Well, most of the time when leaven, or yeast depending on your translation, is referenced in the Bible it is a symbol of sin. So let’s take a closer look. Leaven: What are some of the properties of leaven? First, leaven grows or multiplies. If you’ve ever had the opportunity to make bread from scratch, you know that you can keep a batch of yeast around almost indefinitely. As long as you don’t use up the entire batch it will continue to multiply so that you never run out. This can also be observed with sin. Sin has a way of multiplying. Tell a lie and it will inevitably lead to another, and another, and another. You get the picture. Second, leaven permeates an entire batch of dough with great ease and speeds up the rate at which it will spoil. Likewise, sin in one area of your life will eventually, and usually quite quickly, find it’s way into other areas of your life. A little sin will spoil an otherwise spotless life. God doesn’t set a limit on the amount of sin allowed because He knows that any sin affects the entire person. Finally, leaven puffs up. The whole point of using leaven when cooking is to cause the dough to rise, or become puffed up. This is symbolic of the original sin of pride. Isaiah 14:12-15 describes how Satan was cast out of Heaven for his pride. At Passover, God required that each house be cleansed of any leaven, which represented sin. The money changers in the temple were cheating people who came with a sincere desire to worship God. This practice was despised by God, and even predicted and condemned in Jeremiah 7:11. Thus in Mark 11 we have Jesus entering the temple, His Father’s house, and removing the sin. Questions for Reflection
In light of today being Palm Sunday and this being the week to remember Jesus' sacrifice for us, I thought I'd repost some thoughts that I shared last year. These devotional-type posts reflect on the significance of the events that occurred on this week some two-thousand years ago in the form of daily devotionals. I'd like to encourage you to read the passages that are listed to gain a broader understanding of the many events that you and I often take for granted. While there is special significance in looking at the actual dates called out for these events, it can also lead to confusion and distraction from the more significant meaning of the events. In other words, the what is more important than the when. Therefore, I'm going to avoid as much as possible dwelling on the specific dates. Just know that they ultimately line up so well that it is clear that throughout the Old Testament, God is setting up the one week that forever changed history. Hope you enjoy these posts. Today’s Scripture Reading: Exodus 12:1-24; Mark 11:1-11
“on the tenth day of this month each family must choose a lamb” God’s Word, in the Torah, states that the lamb would be selected on the 10th of Nisan. Jewish tradition had added the custom of the High Priest going out to Bethany on this day to select the lamb that was to be sacrificed. He would then bring it into Jerusalem and into the temple. Take a moment to reflect on the significance of Mark 11:11. Why would Jesus go into the temple to simply look around and then leave? Could it be because He was the Lamb of God (John 1:29) who had been selected by God to be the Passover Sacrifice? This is the picture the people of Israel should have had in their mind as Jesus came into Jerusalem from Bethany. The jubilant reception Jesus received from the crowds, the cries of “Hosanna”, indicate that they were aware that something of significance was happening. Some would even make the claim that prophecies such as Daniel’s 70 weeks in Daniel 9 can be seen to predict, to the day, this return of the Messiah. However, the crowd did not consider the implication of Christ’s coming as the fulfillment of the Passover. Why was the lamb led into the temple? So that four days later it could be sacrificed. Instead the crowds cried “Hosanna” which literally meant “Save us now!” They wanted deliverance from Rome, but God intended deliverance from sin, the fulfillment of the Passover Sacrifice. Many did not want to accept God’s answer, or His timing. Four days later the crowd can be seen crying "crucify Him." Questions for Reflection:
This week I'm running my first ever free Kindle e-book offer. As you can see above, it's doing pretty well in some categories. Gotta love that paranormal suspense classification. On one hand it is exciting to see so many downloads of In The Image of Man. With two full days remaining, over 500 copies have been downloaded. I can only hope that most of these are actually read. Of course, I'd also love to have many of them write reviews.
On the flip-side, it is tough to see that many copies downloaded without any resources being raised to donate to Living Water International. To this point, I've struggled with offering it for free for that reason. Then it dawned on me that if I were publishing and selling books for a profit, I would definitely run some free days, as do most authors, to build a readership and awareness, and potentially reviews. It is really a cheap and quite effective form of promotion. One comment I read discussed the fact that because nearly all authors are offering their books for free at some point, many readers simply wait for the freebie rather than purchasing a copy. Probably quite true. The exceptions would be when someone's favorite authors come out with their new book. In a sense, this is what all authors hope to establish over time, and one good way to get readers is through free offers. Either way, I am excited to think that so many people have the opportunity to experience the message of this book. That is after all the primary reason I write in the first place. If you know someone who might enjoy the book, let them know about the offer. Or, you can always pick up the paperback for them, and help someone get clean water as well. 'Till next time!  With the completion of the first draft of Restoration's Journey, Book Two of the Unseen Dominion series, I have set about rereading Book One. I am not one to typically read a book more than once. Obviously, this is different. In reality, I've probably read this book several times over during writes, rewrites, edits, and more edits. However, this time is unique.
This is the first time I've read this book without looking to edit anything. Actually, it is in preparation for editing that I am reading it. Given, the time since the first book was originally written, I want to ensure a consistency of style and voice within the series. Therefore, I am reading In The Image of Man in order to lock the style, and choices I made with it, into my mind before entering the content edit of Restoration's Journey. This doesn't mean I won't make different choices with the sequel about style. But if there are changes, I need to ensure they are conscious and actually improve the reader experience. So, what do you say. Want to join me in reading In The Image of Man this month? 'Till next time.  Kracken by Ray EllisMy rating: 3 of 5 stars This was an engaging story that continued to pull me in throughout. Important to the Sci-Fi genre, Author Ray Ellis creates believable characters and immerses them into a well described environment. At times, I would have appreciated even more detail as to the scene the author envisioned. However, there was enough detail to allow for the creative filling in of the rest. Ray did a good job of keeping the story pushing forward to an intriguing, unexpected, and somewhat open-ended conclusion. My primary struggle with this novel originated with the use of the omniscient point-of-view. At times, scenes jumped around a bit much and this kept me from being able to dive as deep into the characters as I wanted to. Overall, this was a good read and worth the investment of my time. I received a free electronic copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. View all my reviews |
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