An Apprenticeship to Jesus Gospel of Mark Study Week 11 Introduction: Hey everybody, welcome to the podcast, I’m Nick and it’s fantastic to be here with you today. We are on week 11 of our new season called An Apprenticeship to Jesus: Gospel of Mark Study. Last week, we looked at Mark 10 and we see that apprenticeship to Jesus means: Honoring God’s design for relationships. Cultivating childlike trust in God. Surrendering idols, especially the love of wealth. Leading by serving others. Crying out to Jesus in faith, knowing He hears us. This week, we are going to see turn the corner toward the cross and be warmly welcomed into Jerusalem. Make sure that you download the PDF of the study and listen with a friend. Let’s jump in to the study. Would you pray with me. Opening Prayer: Heavenly Father, open our eyes to see Jesus. Open our ears to hear what you have to say to us and soften our hearts. Help us to be more like Jesus today. In His name we pray, Amen! Read Mark 11 Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples 2 and said to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it. 3 If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it and will send it back here immediately.’ ” 4 And they went away and found a colt tied at a door outside in the street, and they untied it. 5 And some of those standing there said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” 6 And they told them what Jesus had said, and they let them go. 7 And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. 8 And many spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. 9 And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! 10 Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!” 11 And he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple. And when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve. 12 On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. 13 And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. 14 And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it. 15 And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. 16 And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple. 17 And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.” 18 And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching. 19 And when evening came they went out of the city. 20 As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. 21 And Peter remembered and said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” 22 And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. 23 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 believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25 And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.” 27 And they came again to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him, 28 and they said to him, “By what authority are you doing these things, or who gave you this authority to do them?” 29 Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. 30 Was the baptism of John from heaven or from man? Answer me.” 31 And they discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ 32 But shall we say, ‘From man’?”—they were afraid of the people, for they all held that John really was a prophet. 33 So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.” Mark 11:1–33, ESV Instead of me asking the questions today, I’m going to answer one. What did you learn from Jesus in this chapter? Discussion: What did Jesus say in this chapter? What did Jesus do in this chapter? What did you learn from Jesus? What surprised you about Jesus? What confused you about Jesus? What questions do you have? How can I be like Jesus this week? Closing Prayer: We want to know You, O God, and serve You with our whole hearts and with a willing mind; for You search our hearts and understand every motive behind our thoughts. Amen! Adapted from 1 Chronicles 28:9 Exercises for the week (pick 1 new practice this week) One Minute Prayer - The 1-minute prayer is a simple way for anyone to build up the habit of talking to God consistently throughout the day. Anyone! It’s quite simple. Here’s how it works. Basically, after every event or activity throughout your day, stop for one minute to talk to God before you move on to the next thing on your calendar. That’s it! It’s that simple, and it allows you to have a constant conversation with God throughout the day. Scripture Memory - This week, take time to commit the following verses to memory. “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.  Philippians 4:8, ESV Fasting - This week, pick one meal to skip. During the time you would be eating that meal, take extra time to pray for Christians suffering persecution in Muslim countries. Assignment for next week : Read Mark 12 I am so excited for what is coming in 2026 for the 2 Minute Disciple Podcast. We will be spending 365 days with Jesus from the beginning of his life through his ministry and concluding with his death and resurrection. Each day we will have a simple rhythm so that we can meet Jesus in the scriptures. Make sure you check out my primer on Lectio Divina on our blog page. Thanks for listening, share, support and live it out this week. See you next week.  Herrin, Noah; Holy Habits 10 Small Decisions That Lead To A Big Life; Chosen Books, Minneapolis, 2023.