Fig Trees and Mountains

Let’s look at a passage about Jesus as he was preparing to go to the cross and win the victory for me and you. Now he had approached a fig tree that appeared to offer something of satisfaction, but when he saw it was a deceptive tree, he cursed it, and it lost its power to deceive. It was a foreshadowing of something that was about to happen.  

“Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. And Peter, remembering, said to him, ‘Rabbi, look! The fig tree which you cursed has withered away.’ So Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Have faith in God. For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, “Be removed and be cast into the sea,” and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.’” (Mark 11:20-23, NKJV). 

Jesus was God, and he could have done much more than just curse the fig tree. Instead, he invited his disciples into something much bigger. 

When Jesus went to the cross, he took authority over the things that deceive us, set us free from them, and gave us gifts (see Ephesians 4:7-9). We can be deceived by substances or work or relationships; we’re drawn to all kinds of things, thinking, “This will make me happy” only to draw close and realize it’s an illusion of satisfaction. Jesus destroyed the power of the fig tree in our lives, but he left the bigger battle to be fought in partnership with us. 

Jesus didn’t tell Peter, “You thought the fig tree was something? Watch this. I’m going to curse the mountain, the thing that allowed the deceptive fig tree to prosper in the first place.” Instead, he invited the disciples into a larger battle where he gave them and us authority over the mountains in our lives. Those mountains are something deeper in us that gives deception the soil to grow. We can spend a lot of time getting over lust and addiction and all this other stuff, but those are the fig trees. The mountain is what is in our character making us vulnerable to the deceit of worldly things. 

Jesus is saying to you, “I am giving you heavenly authority. Now I want you to take authority over the mountains in your life.” 

^{Carter Conlon joined the pastoral staff of Times Square Church in 1994 and was appointed Senior Pastor in 2001. In May of 2020, he transitioned into a continuing role as General Overseer of Times Square Church, Inc.}