Daily Bible Plan - Mark 11 (Pt.1)
- FCC Communications Team
- Nov 18
- 5 min read
19. November 2025
Devotion by Lady Anita Antwi
Theme: Unleashed for Kingdom Advancement - Mark 11:1-14
Fortified City Church / Love City Church / Basel French Assembly / Luzern City Fellowship / PIWC Bern / Global prayer family
INTRODUCTION
Mark 11 is a powerful chapter that takes us through the final days of Jesus before the cross.
Every moment in this chapter is intentional. Jesus is not just traveling, He is teaching.
He is not just speaking, He is revealing the condition of the human heart.
He is not just performing actions, He is setting spiritual standards for His disciples and for us today.
In Mark 11, Jesus shows us:
• how to welcome Him,
• how to bear fruit,
• how to cleanse the “temple” of our hearts,
• how faith works,
• how forgiveness unlocks power,
• and how to walk in God-given authority.
This chapter is not only historical, it is practical, prophetic, and personal.
Let’s walk through it step-by-step, with examples and life applications.
THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY — WELCOMING JESUS RIGHTLY
(1. Mark 11:1–11)
Summary: Jesus enters Jerusalem on a donkey. People shout “Hosanna” and spread palm branches.
What It Means: When Jesus entered Jerusalem, He could have chosen a horse, a symbol of strength, power, and royalty. But instead, He chose a donkey. Not because it looked impressive, but because it reflected His heart.
1. A donkey represents peace, not war… humility, not pride… service, not status.
Jesus was showing us what His Kingdom looks like: not loud, not boastful, not forceful, but gentle, humble, and full of peace.
Even more beautiful, the donkey was an ordinary, overlooked animal. But when Jesus sat on it, it carried the glory of God into the city.
And that is the message for us today:
Jesus chooses the humble.
Jesus uses the ordinary.
Jesus sits on the lives no one else notices.
It’s not about how impressive we are. It’s about who sits on our lives. Just like that donkey, when we make room for Jesus to take His rightful place, He can use us to carry His presence into the world.
May our lives be humble, surrendered, and ready for Him.
• The people celebrated loudly, but many did not understand Who He truly was.
• Jesus enters Jerusalem gently, not forcefully.
2. To Fulfill Prophecy (Zechariah 9:9)
Over 500 years earlier, the prophet Zechariah declared: “Behold, your King comes to you… humble and riding on a donkey.”
— Zechariah 9:9
Jesus chose the donkey to publicly reveal Himself as the promised Messiah.
He was saying: “I am the King Israel has been waiting for.”
The donkey was the sign the Jews were supposed to recognize. A clear fulfillment of prophecy, a message that their King had come in humility and peace. Yet many of them missed it. They saw the moment, but not the meaning. They celebrated the noise, but missed the revelation.
And just like them, many of us believers today can miss the whole point of the gospel.
We get caught up in activity but overlook intimacy…
We honor Him with our lips but not always with our hearts…
We shout “Hosanna” in public but refuse to surrender in private.
May we not be believers who see Jesus passing by, yet fail to recognize who He truly is.
May our eyes be open, our hearts be sensitive, and our spirits awake to what God is doing.
I pray that we never miss it—never miss His voice, His leading, His correction, or His presence. May we recognize every “donkey moment” God sends, and may we embrace the fullness of His gospel with understanding and obedience.
Example:
Some people welcome Jesus loudly on Sunday but ignore Him on Monday. Some want a Savior but not a Lord.
Life Application:
Ask yourself:
• Do I welcome Jesus into every area of my life?
• Or just the parts I’m comfortable with?
Practical Step:
Start your day by saying:
“Jesus, I welcome You into my thoughts, decisions, emotions, and plans.”
THE FIG TREE — GOD EXPECTS FRUIT, NOT JUST LEAVES
(2. Mark 11:12–14)
Mark 11:12-14 NIV
“The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. Then he said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard him say it.”
Summary: Jesus sees a leafy tree, but no fruit, and curses it.
What It Means: The tree looked alive but had no substance.
This symbolizes people who appear spiritual but bear no real fruit. Mark informs us that it was not the season for figs, which makes Jesus’ reaction surprising. If it wasn’t fig season, why curse the tree?
Because even out of season, a fig tree with leaves was supposed to show signs of fruit. Passover always comes in March/April, and fig trees season is not until May/June. However, figs trees generally produce a number of buds in March, leaves in April, and ripe fruits later on. Jesus was looking for the edible buds, the lack of which indicated that the tree would be fruitless that whole year.
Leaves were a promise—a signal that fruit should be there. But this tree had leaves without substance… appearance without reality… promise without fulfillment.
Jesus wasn’t cursing the tree for lacking fruit in a season it couldn’t control. He cursed it because it advertised fruit it didn’t have.
The fig tree represents people who look spiritual on the outside but have no real relationship with God on the inside. It represents Christians who display leaves, activity, words, motions, charisma but lack the fruit of obedience, love, prayer, and transformation.
This story is not about figs. It’s about authenticity. Jesus is teaching us that God is not impressed with appearance. He is looking for fruit.
May our lives never be full of leaves but empty of fruit.
May what we show on the outside reflect who we truly are on the inside.
And may we be believers who bear fruit in every season of life.
Example:
Someone may attend church, lift their hands, and speak big big Christian phrases…
but at home they have no love, no patience, no prayer life.
Life Application:
Ask:
• Does my life show the fruit of Christ?
• Or am I just putting on leaves?
Practical Step:
Let’s pick one fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22–23) and practice it today —
love, patience, kindness, peace, joy, self control etc
Conclusion:
In Mark 11:1–14, Jesus teaches us two simple but powerful truths:
welcome Him with humility and bear real fruit. The donkey shows us that Jesus comes gently and desires surrendered hearts. The fig tree reminds us that appearance is not enough. God looks for true spiritual fruit. May our lives reflect both humility and authenticity as we follow Him.
Closing Prayer
Lord, help us welcome You sincerely into our lives and live lives that bear real fruit.
Remove anything in us that is only for show, and fill us with humility, obedience, and true devotion. May our hearts honor You in every season.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.
Great devotional for the soul!
God showed us the way..
God showed us the example...
We must be humble and allow Him to be seen through our lives when He exalts us, because without a doubt exaltation comes.
We have been born to shine with the light of Jesus, produced in a life totally surrendered to Him and his will, which will make us produce fruits, many fruits, glory to God that we are his body, his church, his beloved and trust in us, he has trained us thanks to the Holy Spirit to do his works, imitating his conduct, imitating his faith and that of his obedient children, Hallelujah, thank God for the clarity in his Word and his…
Wow wow wow
Today's devotion has really touched me. It has shown me that Jesus chooses the humble, uses the ordinary and Jesus sits on the lives no one else notices. Therefore his Kingdom is not a boastful, prideful kingdom but a kingdom of peace, humbleness, gentleness and Loving, God is not looking for someone that is perfect, he is looking for someone that is unseen, someone that is willing to open his heart and obey, and a heart that will bare fruits .
Thank you so much Lady Anita God richly bless you and Communication Team
Wow just finished reading this devotion and I will have to read it again! Mark 11 is so powerful.
These are my personal takeaways from today’s devotion:
- The Donkey - it is amazing to me that one animal can represent so many key structures. Lady Anita wrote that it represents peace, not war, humility, not pride and service, not status. And on top of that it is usually an overlooked animal!
This shows me that God looks at your inner values and can choose anyone humble enough for His Kingdom.
It also makes me pay more attention to the details of God because the jews were supposed to recognize Him based on that donkey ride and more things but…
Mark 11:1-14
"Every moment is intentional.
Jesus is not just traveling. He teaches us things, He does not just speak to us, He reveals the condition of our hearts, He does not just act, He sets spiritual examples for us."
Wow...
What this chapter showed me in particular is that Jesus chooses the humble and not those who walk in pride and exalt themselves!
Jesus himself humbled himself before everyone, like with the donkey, so who am I to walk in pride and exalt myself!
This reminds me of Luke 14:11,
*“Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”*
I realize again how important it is not to walk in pride, but to have reverence…
Reading this devotion from Mark 11 reminded me that my Christian walk is not about how I look from the outside, but about how much room I truly give Jesus inside my heart. The picture of Jesus riding on a simple donkey touched me deeply—because it shows that He chooses the humble and the ordinary. It challenged me to stop trying to “look” spiritual and instead let Him genuinely be a part of my life every day.
Overall, this passage helped me and reminded me that God is not looking for perfection. Still, authenticity—a heart that is humble, responsive, and willing to change, and what He wants most is a genuine heart that bears fruit, even in quiet, unseen moments.