Mark 11:1-26

No more than five miles from Bethlehem, where angels once announced His birth, Jesus now comes to die. It is the week of the crucifixion, and He has come to Jerusalem. Fulfilling prophecy, He is acclaimed as king in His “triumphal entry” into the city, but He’s not coming to reign. His actions and words reveal His ultimate purpose – to open the way for all nations to come to God.

Palms and Praise: Jesus’ Triumphal Entry (1-10)
• Is there something wrong with this picture?

• Praise on their lips…but what’s in their hearts? (see Mk. 7:6)


Cursing and Cleansing: A Fig Tree and the Temple (11-21)
• Israel Illustrated: All leaf and no fruit!

• Israel Exposed: A worship of man, not God.


Faith and Forgiveness: Instruction to Followers (22-26)
• Have faith in God!

• Be forgiving toward men.



“Is it not written, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of thieves.”
Jesus, Mark 11:17


New Braunfels Bible Church February 5, 2012

For Further Study

1. Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem shows Him both as king and as humble servant. Read Zechariah 9:9-10, and notice how Zechariah has juxtaposed this entry into Jerusalem with Jesus’ future reign over the earth in the Millennial Kingdom. Read the parallel accounts of this event in Matt. 21 and Luke 19. What additional details do we learn?

2. Read Luke 19:41-44, which tells what happened just after Jesus was acclaimed by the crowds, and approached the city. What do His words reveal about the true hearts of the people? How does the cursing of the fig tree – a symbol of Israel – match up with Jesus’ words?

3. The temple was a place of meeting for worship of God. While the Jews were the Chosen People, God intended that the whole world be blessed through them (see Gen.12:3). In Jesus’ words in Mk. 11:17, for whom was the temple intended to be a house of prayer? Although they had turned the ‘court of the Gentiles’ into a livestock bazaar which made worship of God impossible, Jesus – by His sacrifice – would open the way for all nations to come directly to God. See Matt. 27:51 and Hebrews 10:1-18!

4. When Jesus “cleansed” the temple of the people doing business related to sacrifices, He attacked the whole sacrificial system of the Jews. Sin required sacrifice, and Jews could bring them for a temporary fix, but others were shut out. Read Hebrews 10:1-18 and understand how Jesus overturned the entire sacrificial enterprise through His death! Do you realize now why people were “astonished” at His teaching, and Jewish religious leaders began plotting to destroy Him (v18)?

5. Far from the materialistic ‘health and wealth’ teaching of some religious hucksters today, Jesus calls His followers to faith on their journey until His Kingdom comes. When will we need to have faith most? How does forgiving those who have wronged us (v25) relate to this?

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