Jesus Over RELIGION

Read Mark 11:15-18; Ephesians 2:20-22

Jesus is a peacekeeper, right? Wrong. Jesus is a God lover – and that makes Him not a peacekeeper, but a peace maker. And sometimes keeping peace and making peace are very different things.

The day after Jesus rode into Jerusalem as royalty He went to the temple. What did He find there? Prayer? The worship of God? Righteousness? It looked like that. But He saw through it. He saw a whole courtyard of people selling animals to be used as sacrifices. He saw the hearts of those who should be bent in prayer turned for profit. He did not see spiritually broken people coming to the temple to sacrifice to the Lord, but spiritually dead people who found it easier to leave their sacrifice at home, and just “pick something up” when they got there from merchants happy to charge a steep convenience fee – inside the temple.

Jesus silently wove together a whip out of cords as he watched this go on, righteous anger welling up inside of Him. And then He started making peace. He started whipping cattle and sheep and creating chaos in the temple. He overturned the tables of those selling animals and mementos. He yelled, “‘My house shall be called a house of prayer’, but you have made it a ‘den of robbers.’”

The religious leaders asked Him to prove His authority to do what He did (His actions made Him a keeper of the temple, which was the job of the priests). He replied, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” They scoffed at Him, but He knew (and His disciples later realized) that He was talking about His own body and prophesying events that were to happen in less than a week.

Jesus clearing the temple showed He had authority over corruption and even the highest religious leaders of His day. Jesus’ resurrection six days later would show the world how Jesus was the ultimate peace maker between God and sinful men. Paul later said in Ephesians that we (the Church) are being built together into the Holy Temple of God. When Jesus drives corrupt things out of us, let us remember that He is only making peace and it will end in God’s glory.

He is Worthy:

1.     Lord, thank You for showing us how You feel about sin and corruption.

2.     You are worthy to rule over everything in the church.

3.     Thank You for being zealous for me, as a part of Your temple.

We are Needy:

1.     Father, I have some money changers in my courtyard that I need You to drive out, including __________.

2.     Please help me to let You lead my life. I have done a good job messing it up, including _________.

Please guide my decisions today. I know that You live inside me, and I want Your house to be beautiful.