“Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business. When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers’ money and overturned the tables. And He said to those who sold doves, ‘Take these things away! Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise!’ Then His disciples remembered that it was written, ‘Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up.’” (John 2:13-17 NKJV)
“Time for a trip to the dump.” Dreaded words, spoken recently by my wife. She then enumerated all the junk that needed to be removed from the house. I agree—but it is nasty, sweaty, sometimes back-breaking work that requires a long excursion almost to Madison County where dust or mud and piles of stinking trash await your arrival. My wife is right, of course, and afterwards things will get much better. For one thing, her scowl will transform to a smile.
Jesus saw that His Father’s house was full of trash. Nasty people were doing nasty things. So, He rolled up His sleeves and cleaned house! Little by little a place that was meant to be a place for prayer had become a place for religious racketeers to operate. Christ’s righteous anger against sin—His zeal for His Father’s glory—would not tolerate it.
Today, our body is the house of God—the believers gathered together are the place where Christ dwells and worship occurs. The reality is that we need to take regular trips to the dump. The world’s trash has a way of accumulating in the corners of our mind. The rotting heap of stinky sin piles up in our heart. We ought to be zealous to clean up.
Here’s how:
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)
Sincerely,
Dennis Thurman
No comments:
Post a Comment