Cursed!

Mark 11:12-14, 20-21

Opening Words: There are 52 weeks every year. Each one is important and not a single one should be wasted. However, there is one week that changed our world forever, Holy Week. On the Christian calendar Holy Week is the last week of Lent, beginning on Palm Sunday and ending at dawn on Easter. It is the week the church remembers the final days of Jesus’ earthly ministry. It recalls the expectation of Palm Sunday, the rejection of Maundy Thursday, the devastation of Good Friday and the final victory of Easter morning.

This is Holy Wednesday and on this day we remember all that Jesus said and did during Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of Holy Week. According to the Gospel of Mark on Monday Jesus cleansed the Temple and cursed the fig tree. On Tuesday Jesus is anointed in Bethany, teaches about the Kingdom of God at the temple and had his authority questioned by his enemies. On Wednesday his enemies plot against him.

We are instructed this evening from the eleventh chapter of Mark, verses twelve through fourteen and verses twenty and twenty-one. It is Monday of Holy Week and Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem. May God give you ears to hear this warning. Let me call this message Cursed!

Mark 11:12-14, 20-21 12The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. 13Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. 14Then he said to the tree, "May no one ever eat fruit from you again." And his disciples heard him say it.

20In the morning, as they went along, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots. 21Peter remembered and said to Jesus, "Rabbi, look! The fig tree you cursed has withered!"

During the Revolutionary War, a loyalist spy appeared at the headquarters of Hessian commander Colonel Johann Rall, carrying an urgent message. General George Washington and his Continental army had secretly crossed the Delaware River that morning and were marching on the Hessians army camped in Trenton, New Jersey. History tells us the spy was denied an audience with the commander and instead wrote his message on a piece of paper. A porter took the note to the Hessian colonel, but because Rall was involved in a poker game so he stuffed that unread note into his pocket. When the guards at the Hessian camp began firing their muskets in a futile attempt to stop Washington's army, Rall was still playing cards. Without time to organize, the Hessian army was defeated. The battle occurred on December 26, 1776, giving the colonists a late present--their first major victory of the war. How many warnings in your life have you ignored? Let there be no doubt about20it. This evening’s scripture lesson is a warning.

It is a warning our generation can easily miss but to Jesus’ generation it was clear. Everyone in Jesus’ little corner of the world knew the fig tree symbolized Israel. Like the bald eagle symbolizes America, like the bear symbolizes Russia, the dragon symbolizes China, the bull dog symbolizes Britain, the fig tree symbolized Israel. When Jesus cursed the fig tree they understood that Jesus was cursing Israel. It would be like showing a picture of a caged bald eagle. How could you miss the point? There is just something wrong about that picture. Eagles are meant to soar and fig trees are meant to grow and produce fruit. But Jesus curses the fig tree and it dies. The people in Jesus little corner of the world understood that Jesus was warning the nation of Israel. However, in our time it is a warning to the church. There are certain things that God expects from us.

So this evening I want to talk about three warnings that the parable of the fig tree teaches our generation. Each one can be summarized in a single word. Each word begins with the letter P. The first word of warning is meant for you, personally. The second word of warning is meant for the church, locally. The third word of warning is meant for the church, universally. I am glad you are here this evening. I am glad you here to receive these warnings. I hope you take it seriously. So if you are ready to be warned say, “Amen!“

Profession

The first word of warning is the word profession. One of the things Jesus expects from you is your ability to profess your faith. In other words, are you able to tell the world what Jesus has done for you. However, what is equally important is that you genuinely believe. There is no room in the church for a hypocrite. The fig tree told the world it was full of fruit but it didn’t have a single fig. Can you tell the world what Jesus has done for you? Is the world able to see that you genuinely believe?

Consider these things with me:

Do you sing "Sweet Hour of Prayer", but remain
content with 5 minutes prayers?

Do you sing "Onward Christian Soldiers", but wait to
be drafted into His service?

Do you sing "I love to tell the story", and never
mention it at all?

Do you sing "We’re Marching to Zion", but gripe about
going to prayer meeting?

Do you sing "The Whole Wide World for Jesus", and
mistrust everyone who isn’t an American?

Do you sing "Amazing Grace", but have doubts about your own
salvation?

The first word of warning is the word profession. Jesus expects you to be able to tell someone else what Jesus has done for you and live out those words. And all of God’s people said, “Amen!”

Promise

The second word of warning is the word promise. One of the things Jesus expects from the church is to live up to her promise. In other words, we must live up to our potential. When Jesus went to the fig tree he wasn’t looking for a banana. Jesus was looking for a fig. Jesus didn’t expect it do something that it wasn’t designed to do. He knew the promise of that fig tree was to grow figs! God expects us to live up to our potential as individuals and God expects us to live up to our potential as a church. To whom much is given, much is expected. Does anyone here this evening believe we are living up to our potential as a church?

Charles Lamb tells the story of Samuel le Grice. When he was young, people said, “Samuel will do something special.” As he grew older yet did nothing, people said, “Samuel could do something if he tired.” When he was old people said, “Samuel could have done something if he tried.” Samuel’s story is a story of promise without fulfillment. How many Samuel’s do you? How many people do you know who aren’t living up to their potential? How many churches do you know that are full of potential?

I came to this church fifteen years ago for the same reason I stay today. There is an untapped potential in this church that can’t be ignored. Have you ever taken an inventory of God’s blessing here at 4580 Canfield Road? We are located in a wonderful community. We own 20 acres of land? We worship in a wonderful building. We have a first class pavilion and outdoor chapel. We belong to an denomination that has served this community for generations. Everyone of you has been given a special gift. This congregation is full of potential! How many congregations do you know who would trade place with us? This is the truth. God has given us a great deal and God expects a great deal from us. It is not enough to be filled with potential and promise. We must produce fruit. And all of God people said, “Amen!”

Produce

The third word of warning is the word produce! In the life of the church we must make some disciples. That is why our mission statement reads, “Western Reserve will develop disciples through worship, service and deed.” We are in the disciple making business. The mission statement of the United Methodist Church is to make disciple for Jesus Christ. How many disciples have we made? If that number bothers you say, “Amen!”

Thanks to the poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, everyone has heard of the "midnight ride of Paul Revere." But few have heard of Israel Bissel, a humble post rider on the Boston-New York route. After the Battle of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775, Bissel was ordered to raise the alarm in New Haven, Connecticut. He reached Worchester, Mass., normally a day's ride, in two hours. There, according to tradition, his horse promptly dropped dead. Pausing only to get another mount, Bissel pressed on and by April 22 was in New Haven--but he didn't stop there! He rode on to New York, arriving April 24, and then stayed in the saddle until he reached Philadelphia the next day. Bissel's 126 hour, 345 mile ride signaled American militia units throughout the Northeast to mobilize for war. Thanks to Israel Bissel the entire northeast was ready for the invasion because they took the warning seriously.

I hope you take the warning seriously. Jesus cursed the fig tree and warned us about three things. First, he warned to profess the faith. Are you ready to tell your little of the world what Jesus has done for you? Second, he warned us that we must live up to our full potential as a church. Third, he warned us that survival is not enough. Jesus expects us to make a disciples. After all we are in the disciple making business. And all of God’s people said, “Amen!”