"I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.(11:23)
After a fig tree incident Jesus narrates three aphorisms, faith (23), prayer (24) and forgiveness (25). These aphorisms might be Jesus’ direct word. According to the Bible scholars’ explanation, these aphorisms have formed before Mark’s gospel’s writing and it each shows its independent tradition. Let’s see faith first.
Luke’s gospel says about faith as following, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it will obey you.” (Luke 17:6) Matthew 17:20 also has a similar content. However, Mark’s gospel doesn’t have the important expression of Luke and Matthew’s gospel, “a mustard seed’. And Luke’s gospel examples ‘a mulberry tree’ while Matthew and Mark ‘a mountain’. Matthew 21:21, the report of a fig tree tradition repeats the same phrase ‘a mountain will be thrown into the sea.’ All these facts clearly signify that such form of phrase already had settled in the early Christianity era.
This sort of expression is hyperbole. Though you may have strong faith you cannot throw a mountain into the sea. Through such hyperbole the authors of the gospel delivers the fact that Jesus is Messiah. Messiah is a savior. Nothing is impossible for the savior. So the thing to wither a fig tree and to throw a mountain into sea should be possible for him.
If we think here we also can do the same as we have faith, it is embarrassing. We are saved by believing the fact that Jesus is Messiah. In other word, we are participated in the messianic event by believing Messiah.
After a fig tree incident Jesus narrates three aphorisms, faith (23), prayer (24) and forgiveness (25). These aphorisms might be Jesus’ direct word. According to the Bible scholars’ explanation, these aphorisms have formed before Mark’s gospel’s writing and it each shows its independent tradition. Let’s see faith first.
Luke’s gospel says about faith as following, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it will obey you.” (Luke 17:6) Matthew 17:20 also has a similar content. However, Mark’s gospel doesn’t have the important expression of Luke and Matthew’s gospel, “a mustard seed’. And Luke’s gospel examples ‘a mulberry tree’ while Matthew and Mark ‘a mountain’. Matthew 21:21, the report of a fig tree tradition repeats the same phrase ‘a mountain will be thrown into the sea.’ All these facts clearly signify that such form of phrase already had settled in the early Christianity era.
This sort of expression is hyperbole. Though you may have strong faith you cannot throw a mountain into the sea. Through such hyperbole the authors of the gospel delivers the fact that Jesus is Messiah. Messiah is a savior. Nothing is impossible for the savior. So the thing to wither a fig tree and to throw a mountain into sea should be possible for him.
If we think here we also can do the same as we have faith, it is embarrassing. We are saved by believing the fact that Jesus is Messiah. In other word, we are participated in the messianic event by believing Messiah.
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