This chapter contains Jesus’ first public miracle (the wedding wine), a cleansing of the temple, an early prediction of His death / resurrection, and an acknowledgement of Jesus’ ability to know the hearts of people.
“The Passover… was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple he found those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the money-changers sitting there. And making a whip of cords, he drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and oxen. And he poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables. And he told those who sold the pigeons, ‘Take these things away; do not make my Father’s house a house of trade.’ ” (v13-16 abr)
Several factors were at play here:
– money changers and vendors were taking advantage of people (especially the poor and the gentiles / foreigners)
– the vendors and livestock inside the temple likely took up a great deal of space, limiting the number of people who could enter, especially during Passover
– the temple is a house of prayer and worship, not a place for monetary profit
– Jesus, though righteously angered, was controlled and restrained enough to methodically fashion a whip (He wasn’t quick to anger)
– Jesus, early in His ministry, was already displaying His divine authority
– He poured out the vendors’ coins as a gesture of restoring that which was stolen
– Jesus wanted all to be welcome at the temple, and people were essentially making it an exclusive place for wealthy Jews (though not explicit, this is certainly implied)
My main learning today is to cleanse my own temple (my mind, body, and spirit) of sin. Just as removing the leaven from a house prior to Passover is symbolic of removing all traces of sin, Jesus’ cleansing of the temple also symbolizes this important truth. We are to be vessels washed on the inside (not just the outside), ready for God’s use as He sees fit. We are to make space for prayer and worship, and be hospitable to all of our neighbors out of love. These are all things I need the Spirit’s help to work on in my life. How about you?
Father God, our Pure and Righteous Lord, full of mercy and grace, we worship You alone. May part of our worship be submitting to the renewing and cleansing work of Your Spirit, so we may be clean and spotless vessels in Your service. Please work in and through us to bring the cleansing blood of Jesus to all of our neighbors, so they too may experience glorious renewal. In Your holy and awesome name we pray, amen.
~ Conqueror in Training