John 2:12:17

John 2:12:17 After this he went down to Capernaum with his mother and brothers and his disciples. There they stayed for a few days. When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple courts he found men selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple area, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! How dare you turn my Father’s house into a market!” His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.”

Sometimes in our desire to make the modern church "user friendly" and to create havens of peace and happiness for believers, we have turned our churches into places where the main purpose for gathering is to eat, drink, and be merry. Christians should come together to worship God: we pray, sing, hear the Word of the Lord, and enjoy the fellowship of other believers. Nonetheless, the church is the body of Christ in action: a lighthouse, pointing the lost to a safe harbor. We provide a sanctuary where captives to sin and sickness find freedom, where broken and bruised people experience healing and transformation. Yet we can become so involved with activities, meetings, and "good works" revolving around making life better that we forget we are the temple of God. Whether we are alone with God or in fellowship with his body, He abides in us and with us as we seek to hear his voice and to do his will.

In today's passage, Jesus drives out the animals with a whip, overturns the money exchangers' tables, and commands the sellers of doves to depart because they had turned his Father’s house into a market. He literally cleaned house. Are we willing to let the Lord clean the sanctuaries where He dwells or are we so comfortable with our present condition of worldliness and self-fulfillment that we would not want Jesus to make any major renovations or sweeping changes? Christ's zeal for serving and obeying his Father God motivated his life: his perspective, his knowledge, and his actions. His all or nothing attitude allowed for no compromises with the ways of the world. His actions that day in the temple may have even embarrassed his followers who gloried in his miracles and his increasing status as one sent from God. They all had followed him to Jerusalem, even his closest relatives; yet I wonder if they were prepared for the spectacle Christ created that day as He confronted the temple authorities, the leaders in their spiritual and secular world. The scene in the temple courts reveals Jesus the revolutionary and champion for righteousness, One willing to attack the very foundations of a society. His zeal for God and his temple overshadowed all other purposes and activities on that day.

We who are in Christ are the temple of God, his dwelling place. Collectively and individually, we are a sanctuary of prayer and service to God where the Holy Spirit oversees and controls the agenda for each day. Are we willing to let the Spirit of God stir up a revolution of faith and commitment to God in our lives? Are we willing to let God cleanse us inside and out? In the temple story, the activities that so disturbed Jesus were to some degree necessary to carry out the required sacrifices and temple duties. People needed to exchange their money into the temple currency to buy an animal or dove as a sacrifice. The animals there were needed by the temple visitors to serve as their sacrifices to God. Everything in the temple courtyard was needed, yet Jesus expressed frustration and anger with the commotion, the commerce, and the focus these necessary activities revealed. The entire scene had taken on a worldly character or tone rather than a spiritual or God-centered atmosphere. In this climate of buying and selling merchandise, the people had become more concerned with the commerce of the activities than the inherent spiritual issues of obedience and service to God.

Jesus was angry with the environment, the focus, and the condition of the hearts of God's people. He was angry because He knew his Father deserved unadulterated worship, a sacred environment, and proceedings that glorified and exalted his name. Yes, we have many necessary activities in our lives, at home and in the church. Yes, we live in the world, but the Bible says we are not of this world: our purpose is to hear God's voice, do his will, and serve him unreservedly. In the temples of our hearts and in the buildings where we corporately worship, we should offer up a sweet aroma of love, praise, and service to our heavenly Father. The core of our existence must never drift to JUST LIVING THIS LIFE AS USUAL. Bless you today, dear ones, as you go about the Father's business.

(Happy to be back in the kitchen after a refreshing break. . .)