If you Believe

            An old man sees a beautiful twenty-year old woman. He has been sad for the last fifteen years after loosing his wife and many close friends. “She will make me happy,” he thought. He prayed to have this woman. If he prayed hard enough, he believed he could have this woman. Matthew 21:18-22 relates to what this man believes as verse 22 says, “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer” (NIV). Prayer deals with submission of oneself to God in the purest form. This old man is not following what God intended in this passage as it relates to prayer. There are many things this old man has wrong.

            The book of Matthew was written by Matthew, an ordinary sinner and tax collector. He was transformed by God and called one of Jesus’ twelve disciples. He writes mostly to the Jewish reader to provide an account of Jesus. He provides information about Jesus’ birth, John the Baptist, Jesus’ ministry, His death, resurrection, and ascension. His focus is mostly on Jesus’ teaching through his parables and metaphors (Quest).

            One of these famous metaphors shows up in Matthew 21:18-22. Jesus walks with his disciples, spots a fig tree that had no fruit, and tells it to die. The disciples wonder what this is about and Jesus explains that if one has faith he can do more than bear fruit. He speaks of this faith and prayer a person can use to do anything.

            Matthew 21:19, “Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” Immediately the tree withered” (NIV). Immediately. The Message Bible says the tree “withered on the spot, a dry stick”. A tree, like faith, grows slowly in order to produce good fruit. Once a tree begins to die, or a person doubts, it serves no purpose. A person cannot be used to further the gospel without faith. The Bible Knowledge Commentary wrote about faith and doubt saying, “Jesus used this event to teach a lesson in faith, for if they had genuine faith in God they not only would be able to do miracles…The Lord was teaching the importance of faith rather than doubting or simple marveling. By contrast the nation of Israel had failed to exercise faith in Him” (Walvoord). God requires full belief, which serves a full purpose, not doubt or lack of producing fruit.

            Furthermore, verse 22, “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer” (NIV). If you believe. The Amplified Bible words this verse, “having faith and (really) believing” (Amplified). Belief, or “real belief” is added to this prayer, which goes beyond a week “bedtime prayer” that many participate in. Matthew 17:20 can help the reader understand this belief. “He replied, “Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you” (NIV). Believing a person can move a mountain takes a lot of “real belief”. Belief, or this kind of pure belief, is not rooted in itself. It is through belief in God, that this “mountain-moving” kind of belief is possible. The Wycliffe Bible Commentary writes about this passage saying, “This kind of faith, however, will only ask those things that it knows to be God’s will” (Pfeiffer).

            The old man that desires a twenty-year old woman is not seeking God’s will. He follows his desires and prays for what he wants. He does not ask God if he can have this woman, but rather demands that God will give him this woman. The old man has another problem. He has been depressed for many years and seems to be looking to this woman to fix his problem by making him happy. He is not seeking God first. If his desire were fulfilled, there’s no telling if he would seek to love God with what he has been given because he can’t serve God with what he was originally given.

The Life Application Study Bible provides insight on Matthew 17, saying, “The power of faith is illustrated by its ability to remove this mountain…Scriptural faith is a trust in God’s revealed Word and will. Hence faith to move a mountain can be exercised only when God reveals that to be his will” (Life). In many situations God allows individuals to have others in a romantic way, but in a God-fearing relationship, the individual must ask what God’s will is before he begins to ask for what he desires. A Godly prayer, also known as the Lord’s Prayer, is outlined in Matthew 6: 10-14. It begins saying “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be thy name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (NIV). For the desires of man will change as he recognizes and commits himself to God’s desires and will.

            The statement in verse 22 of Matthew 21, “If you believe” is significant. It says “if you believe” not “if you desire”. It does not simply state, “Pray”. Believe and pray.

            There are two stories surrounding this fig tree metaphor in Matthew 21. The story that precedes it is Matthew 22:12-17. In this story, Jesus overturns tables and expresses his frustration with people selling sacrificial animals outside of the temple. Jesus says in verse 13, “My house will be a house of prayer, but you are making it a den of robbers” (NIV).  He proceeds to heal a blind man is praised by children. When children are mentioned in the Bible, they are often shown for their faith. One example is in Matthew 18:3, “"Truly I say to you, Unless You turn around and become as young children, you will by no means enter into the kingdom of the heavens" (NIV). Matthew includes this segment about children to lead into another passage about faith.

            The passage following the metaphor of the fig tree is Matthew 21:23-27. This is where Jesus’ authority is questioned. Many authoritative figures question what gives Jesus the authority to perform miracles and such. Just like man cannot move a mountain on his own, Jesus must have faith in God. This passage outlines the power of God and the need everyone has to submit to him in order to do his will.

            The metaphor of the fig tree lies about two-thirds of the way through the book of Matthew. This is one of the later lessons of Jesus. Many stories surrounding this one follow the same theme of faith. It foreshadows faith that needs to come later in Matthew and becomes more and more important as Jesus’ thoughts and actions reveal his submission to God’s will. In Matthew 26: 39 Jesus prays, “Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My father, if it is possible, may this cup [of death] be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will” (NIV). Jesus’ will aligns with His father’s.

            The New Testament has been viewed by many as a delightful form of literature. Every passage is organized in a poetic way. The metaphor of the fig tree is no different. Just like a student writing a paper to explain an idea: the metaphor is stated, questions are asked, and the metaphor is explained. Then, faith is talked about and foreshadows the faith that comes about further in Matthew, this constant surrender.

This passage speaks many volumes about God. He is all-powerful as he is the enabler. As an individual believes in him, he is able to move mountains in God’s name. Matthew 21:21 says “Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but you can say to this mountain, ‘Go throw yourself into the sea” (NIV). Humans choose to be faithful, but they must choose to be faithful to God, proving God is the enabler, the all-powerful one. In the passage following the fig tree passage, Jesus shows that God is the enabler by saying “John’s baptism--- where did it come from? Was it from heaven, or from men?” (NIV). He doesn’t straight out say he has his authority from God, but from the fig tree passage, the reader can infer it is saying God is the omnipotent one.

God listens to an individual’s requests. Verse 22 in Matthew 21 says a person can receive whatever he asks for in prayer through his belief. Furthermore, Philippians 4:6 states, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and petition present your requests to God” (NIV). By God asking people to present their troubles and desires to Him, He is making Himself available to listen, and he does.

This passage also reveals God as a transformer. He changes hearts. In verse 21 of Matthew 21, Jesus says a person, in his belief, can tell a mountain to move and it will move. The faith a person initially has changes to a stronger faith that can move these mountains. Likewise, the passage Matthew 14:22-35 shows this kind of transforming faith. Peter, one of Jesus’ twelve disciples sees Jesus walking on water and walks on the water to meet Jesus. After walking a little ways, he becomes afraid and begins to sink as he begins to doubt. This is one form of transformation. Peter does not allow Jesus to transform him as he sinks into the water. When he chooses to believe; however, he is able to walk on the water. He is transformed by God to do something that is scientifically impossible. God transforms others all throughout history. Take the author of this book, Matthew for example. He was once a tax collector, hated by much of society, and was transformed into one of Jesus’ disciples. He went on to write about this great faith.

This passage speaks volumes about people as well. Jesus uses a fig tree in his metaphor and compares people to this tree. This tree has the potential to produce good fruit, but it does not. People have the potential to do unimaginable things things, but when they doubt they wither away like this fig tree.

Hebrews 11:1 says, “Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see” (NIV). God is an omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient God. He is not always around in a physical sense or present in ways people expect him to be, but he calls individuals to trust him anyway so our desires can be aligned with his desires.

God calls people today to have faith, just like he called Peter to walk on water through faith. He enables people to have in faith in order to prevent them from withering away. It takes a lot of faith to believe in a Jesus that existed many years ago, but he asks that people will believe in him in the different ways he will work today, so they and others they will influence can trust him in what is to come.

An old man, desiring love and affection can find it through Christ. He may not feel loved in a physical or expected sense, but his desires can change with the purity of his heart. The all-powerful God can make him desire to pray for this young beautiful woman. He may seek to be a fatherly figure for her and show her God’s love. He may be transformed through God’s love. If he has enough faith. If he prays earnestly with a pure heart. If he listens to God’s will. If he has belief beyond what he can see with his human eyes. And this passage foreshadows something else that came true in the end of Matthew and continues to be proven today: God exceeds expectations.

Works Cited

Life Application Study Bible: New Living Translation. Carol Steam [sic], IL: Tyndale

House, 2007. Print.

Pfeiffer, Charles E., and Everett F. Harrison. Wycliffe Bible Commentary. Moody, 1980.

Print.

Quest Study Bible NIV. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2003. Print.

Walvoord, John F., and Roy B. Zuck. The Bible Knowledge Commentary. David V Cook,

1989. Web.