“Far be it from me to not believe, even when my eyes can’t see, that this mountain that’s in front of me will be thrown into the midst of the sea.”
As we sang those words, my mind drifted to the words of Jesus, and the realization of what He was telling His disciples:
“Have faith in God. 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 believe that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him.”(Mark 11:23)
This verse is found in the middle of Jesus’ final week…a week that was filled with prophetic acts and judgments against the Old Covenant…from the cleansing of the Temple to the Mt. Olivet discourse. One such prophetic act was the cursing of the fig tree which then withered. The religious leaders and the Old Covenant system was useless to produce fruit and He cursed the tree as a prophetic act of judgment against the Temple system. The disciples marvel when the see the tree withered as a result of Jesus’ curse and He responds by telling them that they can do the same thing, if they believe. They can speak to the mountain and it will be thrown into the sea. Was Jesus referring to big problems? Or, things that seem impossible?
Hebrews speaks of two mountains, Mt. Sinai and Mt. Zion, as metaphors, symbolic of the Old Covenant and the New Covenant. Mt. Sinai, the Old Covenant system, was a burdensome thing to the Israelites, a constant reminder of their sin. It engulfed their lives…their identity…their culture. Everything was wrapped up in this mountain. For a moment, try to imagine how big Mt. Sinai, the Old Covenant and Temple system, was in the lives of the Israelites. This was not a temporary problem that loomed large in their eyes. This was the monstrosity that consumed their lives and had always been a part of life for them…and their ancestors for thousands of years! They could not fathom life without the Temple…but it constantly reminded them of their sin. Furthermore, it had gotten so misused that it no longer offered any life, but was only burden. This is the mountain that Jesus was telling them would be thrown into the sea…if they only believed.
And it was…in 70AD. The entire New Testament is filled with urgings to have faith…keep believing…don’t look back. The end of the age…the Old Covenant age…is near. This mountain that’s in front of Israel will be thrown into the sea.
What’s in your life that is a constant reminder of your failures and has been a part of your life and your history for as long as you can remember? What monstrosity engulfs your life…encompasses your identity…and everything seems wrapped up in…that’s all you’ve ever known and it drains the life out of you? If faith can rid the believing Jews of the system in which they had lived their entire lives and built their entire culture around…surely faith can rid you of that which has encompassed your life, reminding you of your failures. If belief and standing firm will make the 1st century believers see the demise of the primary persecutor of their faith…surely if you believe and stand firm, you will see the demise of the one thing that has persecuted you all your life.
That one thing you have always thought you would never be rid of…maybe it’s a physical diagnosis, or a disability…that mountain will be thrown into the sea.
That one area which you believed you would never conquer…maybe it’s an addiction or an area of weakness….that mountain will be thrown into the sea.
That one monstrosity that has always impeded your vision and stolen your hope…maybe it’s word curses spoken nonchalantly or pain that has walled you up…that mountain will be thrown into the sea.
Only believe.