Mark 11:20-21 NKJV
“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.'”
The day immediately after Christ’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem possibly left a lasting mark on the disciples’ memories. It was the day they witnessed, for the first time, their Master speaking to a tree (Mar 11)! At that moment, the disciples never made a comment but just proceeded with their Teacher to Jerusalem. That evening, they returned to Bethany, where they had been the previous day, and possibly passed by that same tree. However, they did not notice any visible changes on it. Besides, the Lord Jesus—much as He was divinely aware of what was going on—never said a word to or about the tree again.
Approximately 24 hours later, while on their way again to Jerusalem, the disciples “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,'” as in our reference text. Clearly, the power of Christ’s words, the patience to see the manifestation thereof, and the peace in being at the center of God’s will, all got demonstrated in that narrative through the Lord Jesus. Of the power of His words, Jesus never had to repeat His pronouncement to the tree. In any case, like His Father God, no word He says returns to Him void but prospers in the thing for which He sends it (Isa 55:10-11).
Of the patience to witness the physical manifestation of what He spoke, Jesus was never moved by the fact that it took a while for the physical signs to appear on the tree. Most certainly, the tree essentially died the very moment it was hit by the words of power. It would only be a matter of time for the visible changes to show up! Scripturally speaking, faith and patience are best friends (Heb 6:15)! Of the peace in doing things within God’s perfect will, our Lord Jesus was never at unrest about anything. Even when the physical fulfilment of His words to the tree had come to pass, Christ did not breathe a sigh of relief. No; He simply told the awe-struck disciples, “Have faith in God” (Mar 11:22 NKJV). Hallelujah!
Pst. Emmanuel