Monday -Holy Week- The Gospel According To Mark
Welcome to Daily Prayer. Today is Monday of Holy Week. The cleansing of the temple.
As we begin our prayer now, let’s quiet our hearts and minds before the Lord.
Lord, I come before you today and place my whole life in your hands.
I give everyone and everything to you, Lord.
Lord, drive out anything in me that does not bear fruit for your glory.
Lord, we continue to pray the prayer of Bartimaeus. "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me. Lord I want to see!"
Give us eyes to see you today Lord.
Ears to hear from you and a heart that worships you in Spirit and in truth.
O Lord, open my lips and my mouth will declare you praise.
A Scripture Reading from Mark 11:12-25:
12 On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. 13 And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. 14 And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it.
15 And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. 16 And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple. 17 And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.” 18 And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching. 19 And when evening came they[a] went out of the city.
20 As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. 21 And Peter remembered and said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” 22 And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. 23 Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received[b] it, and it will be yours. 25 And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”
In this sobering and powerful prophetic act, Jesus curses a fig tree, cleanses the temple, and teaches on faith and forgiveness.
The cursing of the fig tree is the final prophetic act and sign that Jesus performs before the Cross. It’s a judgement against Israel and their leaders for failing to be a light to the nations and the blessing that God intended them to be. On the outside they look alive but they have no spiritual fruit. No life that they are providing for this world. Jesus is the Christ of Israel who brings the life that no one else could bring.
A Prayer of Adoration:
Lord Jesus, you care about the Father’s house being a house for all nations.
You flipped over tables because you want all people to have access to the Father. You came to remove every barrier. You care about the lost, the broken, the hurting. You came so that our joy would be full in you.
We adore you Jesus. You have righteous anger about the house being misused and you gave your life to make sure that everyone has access to the presence of God. We adore you for your zeal for true worship and giving your life so that our sin would not keep us from your presence.
Lord, we don’t want to be like the religious leaders. We don’t want to honor you with our lips when our hearts are far from you but we confess that we have done this. Forgive us when our lives are full of leaves but bear no real fruit for your kingdom. Lord, forgive us when we don’t create space for outsiders to come in. Forgive us when we actually create barriers to people encountering you.
Lord, have mercy!
Apart from you we can do nothing.Forgive me for holding grudges that hinder my prayers. Create in us clean hearts O God and a fruitful lives for your glory.
A Prayer of Trust:
Our faith is in you Lord. Lord Jesus, we trust that you are the true temple and meeting place with the Father. We trust that you have made a way for us to be near to you. We trust that you have canceled the debt that we owe and so we cancel the debts that are owed to us. We receive the freedom and access to your presence that you came to give us. We draw near to you.
A Prayer of Intercession:
Lord, make the rough places smooth. Level the mountains that are hindering your name from being honored. Your kingdom come and your will be done.
Lord, Give us grace and power to forgive others. To release the great offenses that have been committed against us. Keep us from misusing your name. Give us great grace to be people of grace. Let us be people who worship you in Spirit and in truth.
Lord, make us a people who are zealous like you. Zealous for the Father to be honored. For the Father’s house to be full. For people from every nation to have access to your presence. To know you Jesus and to know the Father.
Lord, may Isaiah 56 continue to be fulfilled that you would make us joyful in the house of prayer.
As we listen to the passage again, let’s listen for a word or phrase that the Holy Spirit may want to highlight from today's verses:
15 And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. 16 And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple. 17 And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.”
20 As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. 21 And Peter remembered and said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” 22 And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. 23 Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received[b] it, and it will be yours. 25 And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”
Let's Pray the Lord's Prayer as we close:
Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come
Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven
Give us this day our daily bread
Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us
Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil
For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.