Before Jesus can use you, He has to disrupt you — and that's actually good news.

We all love the version of Jesus who comforts us, encourages us, and comes alongside us. But what do we do with the Jesus who confronts us? Because that's exactly who we meet in Mark chapter 11.

This story is situated in Holy Week, and as Jesus enters Jerusalem for the last time, everything is about to shift. The crowds are cheering, palm branches are flying, and people are crying out Hosanna — God, save us! It's a high moment. And then Jesus walks into the temple... and turns it upside down.

Here's what I want you to see today, because this is the passage that gets misused more than almost any other: you are not Jesus in this story. You are the temple. Before Jesus can use any of us for anything, He has to come in and disrupt the systems inside of us that keep us from real worship — the appearances, the transactions, the religion-without-transformation that can look perfectly healthy on the outside while bearing zero fruit.

We also dig into the curious moment when Jesus curses a fig tree — and why that's not about Jesus needing breakfast. It's a prophetic symbol, pointing to the same problem in the temple: the appearance of life without the substance of it. Looking good on the outside, but not actually connected to God at all.

And we sit with something I find both hard and beautiful: as the story enters Passion Week, Jesus doesn't just overturn tables — He goes on to suffer. He allows things to happen to Him because He knows what it's accomplishing. And because He went ahead of us in that suffering, we are never alone in ours.

We can't have a life that's Jesus plus anything. It's Jesus plus nothing — and that actually ends up being everything.

Want More?

• 📖 Read along: Mark 11:15–19 (and the whole chapter for full context)
• 📖 Cross references worth exploring: Ezekiel 36, Jeremiah 8
• 📚 Resource mentioned: The New Living Translation Study Bible
• 📧 Sign up for Nicole's email newsletter at https://nicoleunice.com/ for resources, links, and more from the podcast
• ⭐ Loving the podcast? Leave a review and share this episode with someone who needs to hear it
• 💬 Leave a comment on YouTube — Nicole loves hearing from you!
• 🎧 For more faith-filled podcasts, visit lifeaudio.com

Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

What if the thing you're asking God to bless is actually the thing He's asking you to let go of? That's the question sitting at the heart of Mark chapter 10 today, and friend, it's a big one.

We're looking at one of the most well-known — and most misunderstood — stories in all of the Gospels: the story of the rich young ruler. This is a man who runs up to Jesus, eager, sincere, and doing everything right. He's kept the commandments since he was a boy. And yet, as Jesus looks at him with love he names the one thing the rich young ruler isn't ready to release. And he walks away sad.

Jesus isn't making a blanket statement about wealth. He's doing what He always does — he's exposing where this man's trust actually lives. Because you can't be completely obedient to God without giving him your full allegiance. And that's what Jesus is after — not just your behavior, but your whole heart.

So today I'm asking you: what are you holding in your hand so tightly you haven't even noticed? Where are you saying, 'Jesus, I'll follow you — as long as I get to keep _____"? Whatever that _____ is, that is what this episode is for.

Want More?

• 📖 Read along: Mark 10:17–22
• 🎙️ Missed last week? Go back and listen to the Mark 9 episode on faith, doubt, and the prayer "I do believe — help my unbelief."
• ⭐ Loving the podcast? Leave a review and share with a friend who needs this message today
• Check out Nicole's website and subscribe to her weekly newsletter: https://nicoleunice.kit.com/

• Nicole’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/nicoleunice

• 🎧 For more faith-filled podcasts, visit Lifeaudio.com

Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Have you ever found yourself saying, I want to believe — I really do — but there's this part of me that just... doesn't? That is exactly where we land in Mark chapter 9 today, and friend, you are in good company.

We're wrapping up our mini-series on confusion to clarity, and this week we're sitting with one of the most honest prayers in all of Scripture — just six words: I do believe. Help my unbelief. It comes from a desperate dad who has been fighting for his son, who tried everything, even coming to Jesus's disciples, and still walked away empty-handed. And yet, in that moment of raw honesty with Jesus, healing happens anyway.

Here's what I love about this story: the man's unbelief did not stop Jesus from acting. Jesus doesn't need our perfect faith. He needs our whole heart — the good stuff and the doubt, the confidence and the fear. That's what wholehearted really means.

We also talk about why the disciples couldn't drive out the spirit — and what Jesus's answer ("this kind only comes out by prayer") tells us about the interior life Jesus is calling us to. Spoiler: our spiritual power doesn't come from doing more. It comes from being with our Heavenly Father.

And we close out the chapter with Jesus flipping the script on greatness — anyone who wants to be first must be last and servant of all. Because the way of Jesus isn't power. It's humility. It's vulnerability. And it is a full, beautiful, rigorous life of discipleship.

Want More?

• Check out Nicole's website and subscribe to her weekly newsletter: https://nicoleunice.kit.com/

• Read along: Mark 9 (and review Mark 8 to catch up on last week's episode)

• Miss last week? Go back and listen to the episode on Mark 8 — where Peter declares Jesus as Messiah and Jesus asks, "But what about you — who do YOU say that I am?"
• Check out Nicole's YouTube Channel and connect with our community!
• Enjoying the podcast? Leave a review and share this episode with a friend who needs it today.

Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.