Introduction
Hello all! My name is Seth and this is your daily devotion. We should all know well the scriptures that mention Jesus running merchants out of the temple of God. If you don’t, allow me to quickly fill you in.
This is a momumental moment in the life of Christ on Earth, and it’s the only instance we know of Him becoming icredibly angry and lashing out. Condider these questions as we go through the story. Why was this so important to Jesus? What is the lesson we need to learn from it?
The Story
John 2:13-16-13 Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business. 15 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. 16 And He said to those who sold doves, “Take these things away! Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise!”
Matthew 21:12-13-12 Then Jesus went into the temple of God and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers
and the seats of those who sold doves. 13 And He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a ‘den of thieves.’ ”
So, let’s talk about Jesus’ actions in these scriptures. As I said already, there is not another recorded instance of violence and aggression from Him while He was on Earth. Jesus had seen plenty of evil done already. Why is this scenario different?
The Significance of God’s House
To understand why this happened, you have to understand the significance of the temple. You see, Jesus wasn’t so offended when evil was happening in the world. The world is where greed, treachery and all other evils belong.
The temple, however, was a sacred place. It was chosen and designed by God to be a dwelling place for God. This is why Jesus called it His house and His Father’s house. He was furious because a sacred place was being used for evil deeds. It was turned into a den of theives.
What’s intersting is that the gospels are not the only scriptures where this ia mentioned. It’s actually brought up well before this time, as a prophecy.
Prophetic Meaning
Jeremiah 7:11-11Has this house, which is called by My name, become a den of thieves in your eyes? Behold, I, even I, have seen it,” says the Lord.
Jeremiah was a prophet, which means that while this has a definite literal meaning, there’s a deeper meaning here. Certainly, the people of Israel were quite literally using temples for sin, but this prophecy has more to it. Nowadays, after the death and ressurection of Christ, we know that the temple has become the body of believers and that Jesus dwells in our hearts. A physical temple is no longer the appointed dwelling place for God. We have become the sacred place.
Cleaning the House/Prayer
Let’s get down to brass tacks. Jesus knocked on my heart, politely seeking entrance, but when I decided to invite Him in and make my heart His home, he did not wipe his feet on the welcome mat and enter silently. He fashioned a whip, rolled up His sleeves, kicked the door in and began to drive out every blasphemy, abomination, falsehood and selfish desire.
My heart was a den of thieves until Christ moved in and made it His temple. To this day, I still fight with Him to keep evil out, because Satan likes my heart. It’s prime real estate. Jesus and the Devil can’t dwell in the same place together. God refuses to make friends with evil. So, what about your heart? Who’s dwelling inside of you? Let’s pray on this.
Lord Jesus, if there’s a temple in any person that’s been dedicated to you, but has been worn down and is now the home of thieves, I pray that you purge those hearts of evil and take back what is yours. Liberate and restore with your mighty power. Take no prisoners. Destroy all that is evil and free your children. We ask this in your name. Amen.
That’s all I’ve got for you. Go in peace.