A House of Prayer

 

            On the day after Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem, we are confronted with a side of Christ that we seldom see in Scripture.  As He entered the Temple courts, He was filled with righteous indignation or to put it more bluntly:  He was angry! 

            During Passover, thousands of Jews traveled to Jerusalem to celebrate the feast of remembrance.   Rather than bring a lamb for the sacrifice with them, especially when they traveled long distances, it was easier to purchase a lamb in the city.  Since they were coming from distant lands, their money would be from their homeland.  Just as we need to exchange our American dollars when we travel to a foreign land, they needed to exchange their homeland currency for coins that would be acceptable in Jerusalem.  As a result, the sale of sheep and the exchange of money in the outer court of the temple became routine. 

            The idea of selling animals and exchanging money was not what drew the ire of Christ.  After all, the traders were performing a needed service, especially during this festival week.  The problem was that they were often selling defective animals that were unfit for sacrifice and they were charging exorbitant exchange rates.  In effect, they were robbing the people who had come to worship.

            As children continued the shouts of “Hosanna” from the day before and as people sought His healing power, Christ first focused on clearing His Father’s House of the sin that had not just cheated the people but had tainted the worship and reverence of this sacred building.  God’s Shekinah Glory filled that place, and Jesus made it clear that they had turned God’s House of prayer (Isaiah 56:7) into a den of robbers (Jeremiah 7:11). 

            Since we don’t celebrate the Passover and the Temple has long been destroyed just as Jesus said it would be, it’s somewhat difficult for us to understand His wrath that day.  That is until we bring it to our level.  I Corinthians 6: 19 reminds us that our bodies are temples, the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit.  Paul goes on in verse 20 to remind us that we were bought with a price and then he challenges us to “Honor God with your body.”

            My question for us is:  Is our Temple a House of Prayer or has it become a “den of robbers/sin”?  When was the last time that we viewed our bodies as sacred places?  What does that mean?  There are some obvious answers like keeping it free from drugs and sexual perversions but what about the less obvious answers like eating healthy, exercising, and most important of all, spending time with Jesus?  Have we allowed sin to get a grip by cutting corners, living in what we like to call the “gray” areas, or maybe just doing our own thing? 

            It’s easy to want to cheer Jesus on as He cleared His Father’s House but it’s a lot harder to ask Him to clear the house God has given us.  It’s our choice:  will we be a house of prayer or a den of robbers?

I Corinthians 6: 19, 20