Note: the following is the manuscript the message and will not match exactly the recorded message above.
Introduction
We are continuing our series in John’s Gospel, a series I have titled “The Life of Jesus”.
Last week, John Peacock spoke from the passage where Jesus turned the water into wine.
The author of the Gospel wrote that it was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
John 20:30-31, at the end of the book, states the purpose of John’s Gospel: “Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.”
One of the many unique features of John’s Gospel compared to the other three is that he doesn’t include many signs or miracles that Jesus did throughout his ministry.
But he included the water into wine miracle.
It is symbolic of the transformative power of Jesus, to take something that would not have been useful for the purpose of the wedding feast, and turn it into something useful and enjoyable.
Now, we turn to a very different kind of story.
The story in front of us today is a unique one within the Gospels. It shows the one time when Jesus seems to behave out of character.
He is normally quite calm, compassionate, patient, and forgiving. But, when it comes to those who misrepresent His Heavenly Father, he often has strong words and in this case, strong actions.
The story is also unique because it is out of place compared to the other Gospels. Where the others place it at the end of his ministry, John places it at the beginning.
There is much a person could say about this, but to avoid distracting us from the main purpose of the story, I’ll just offer two possible explanations.
One is that John is doing what he does all throughout the Gospel, and that is to include the story for theological rather than historical purposes.
The other is that Jesus cleansed the temple more than once. While the other Gospels have Jesus only going to Jerusalem at the end of his three years of ministry, John has him going there at least three times.
So, it is quite possible that Jesus performed this action of clearing the temple courts more than once. I don’t have a firm decision on which of the two possibilities is most likely. I’ll let you decide for yourselves.
Going back to the other reason this story is unique, I want to address some questions throughout this message that will help us understand the motive, the nature, and the goal of Jesus cleansing the temple.
Addressing the motive, nature and goal of Jesus requires us to connect this story to the Old Testament.
If you read my letter this week, you will have already had an introduction to this subject.
For the ancient people, not just the Israelites, but any nation, kingdom, or tribe who claims to worship a god, a place of connecting with that god is vital.
Often, people set up their temple or place of worship in a spot that was considered to be special. In the case of Israel, that place of Jerusalem, or specifically, Mount Zion.
But, God’s statements about where and how he dwells on the earth is not limited to a specific location. When King David told Yahweh that he wanted to build a house for the Lord, Yahweh said to him in 2 Samuel 7:5–7 “Go and tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord says: Are you the one to build me a house to dwell in? I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought the Israelites up out of Egypt to this day. I have been moving from place to place with a tent as my dwelling. Wherever I have moved with all the Israelites, did I ever say to any of their rulers whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, “Why have you not built me a house of cedar?”
Yet, he allowed for a house to be built, not by David, but by David’s son, Solomon.
This house, or temple, was to be constructed according to the plans given by God, which we can read about in 1 Chronicles 28-29 and 2 Chronicles 2-4.
Once the temple was completed and dedicated, fire came down from heaven and the glory of Yahweh filled the temple. God then appeared to Solomon and said: (2 Chronicles 7:12-22)
So, God’s desire was to live among the people. He wanted his house to be a centre of worship, open to all who come.
But, if the people turn to other gods, then he will remove them from that land and remove his presence from the temple.
This is what happened. It wasn’t long before Solomon led the people astray. And Solomon was the last king to rule over a united Israel.
But God promised that the day would come when he will return to Zion and will dwell once again in Jerusalem.
But this will be a renewed Jerusalem, one that is known for truth and faithfulness.
This is God’s desire for his dwelling place. And it is why Jesus is so passionate about the temple.
At the end of this message we will participate in communion together. In preparation for communion, let’s consider the following statement about the motive, nature, and goal of Jesus in cleansing the Temple.
The Temple was a place to join in fellowship with God and his people. The measure of success was based on relationship.
But, those who were responsible for the Temple lost sight of that. They became secular in their measure of success.
Success for God has always been about relationship. Holiness and right living is about extending and accepting forgiveness, love, and God’s blessing.
So, as we enter into this story and as it enters into us, let us consider what we might need to change in our lives individually and communally so that we can reflect God’s purpose for his people and his worship.
Motive for the Cleansing
To understand Jesus’ motive, think carefully about what is said in verse 14. What did Jesus find in the temple?
People selling cattle, sheep, and doves and the money changers at their tables. And verse 16, he said, “Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father’s house a marketplace!”
In Mark’s Gospel, he adds (Mark 11:17) “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’”
Perhaps he was upset because the sellers and money changers were taking advantage of people, but that’s not what John is focused on. Jesus is upset that this activity is happening in the temple.
The whole temple environment was turned from an environment of prayer and worship to that of a busy market.
Now, it is easy to draw a parallel from the temple to our church buildings.
But, let’s not forget that it is not our church buildings or places of worship that are God’s dwelling place on earth. It is us, those who have been reborn into new life in Christ.
We are the new temple. Our very hearts, minds, and bodies are the dwelling place of God.
So, if we are to make a connection from what Jesus did in the temple to what he wants to do today, we need to examine our hearts.
We need to hear Jesus’ words, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!” as speaking to us as his people. Our minds, hearts, and bodies.
And yes, our fellowship, worship, and prayer together, no matter where or how it happens.
I’ll come back to this at the end. Let’s look now at the nature of the cleansing, which includes a statement that sort of bridges the motive and the nature.
“Zeal for your house will consume me.”
Nature of the Cleansing
The zeal of Jesus was about the relationship God wants to have with his people. And it was so powerful, this zeal, that it would literally consume, or destroy him.
The nature of the cleansing is that of holy passion. We need to be careful with how we think about the actions of Jesus in this story.
It can quickly turn into an excuse for us to behave with anger when someone is behaving differently than we think is right.
Unfortunately, many pastors have used this story as justification for yelling at their congregations for anything from wearing certain clothes, having certain hairstyles, or not giving to or serving the church enough.
That is so far from what Jesus was doing. If we were to express the nature of Jesus’ zeal into our contemporary context, we would need to go to the places and people who are using their power and wealth only for their own advantage.
One commentator says that if we applied it today, it would be “the lawcourts and legislative assemblies, the royal palaces and banking centres, the places where power is so often wielded to the benefit of the already powerful and the downtreading of the already powerless, the places where people with power or wealth turn in on themselves instead of outwards in generosity towards the world.”
Yet, we must be wise in how we apply this story in our context. The first application is for us to ask how we are guilty of making God’s dwelling place a marketplace.
If we think about where the money changing and selling was happening, which was mainly inside the temple courts, it is the court of the Gentiles.
The Gentiles were not allowed to go further into the temple. So, those who wanted to come and see, to pray, to perhaps convert to Judaism, were bombarded with market activity.
The rulers of the temple lost sight of the purpose of the temple, the purpose of God’s dwelling place.
And this upset Jesus. He made a whip out of some rope and used it to drive the animals out.
He scattered the tables and disrupted the entire market. This would have drawn a lot of attention. So, what was his goal?
Goal of the Cleansing
The short answer was to send a message. It was a prophetic and messianic act. In other words, As a prophet and messiah, Jesus was acting and speaking on behalf of God.
He wanted people to wake up to what God was doing among them. When the Jews asked him to show them a sign to prove that he had authority to cause such a disturbance, Jesus said, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”
He was saying that even if the temple was destroyed, the presence of God would still be among them because God’s presence was there right in front of them in the form of Jesus.
I imagine Jesus looking at them with eyes of fire, challenging them to abandon the centre of their identity, to give up the temple structure in exchange for the true presence of God.
John makes the comment that Jesus was speaking of the temple of his body. Whether or not he was making a prediction that they would kill him and he would rise from the dead within three days, the point was to speak prophetically about the true nature of God’s presence.
The temple had long been a sign for the Jews of Yahweh being their God and living in their midst.
But, instead of the temple being a place where they go to meet with God, the temple became the object of their worship.
We can do a similar thing today. Whether it be a certain style of music, or church liturgy, or even the Bible itself. We can turn what is meant to be a way to connect with God and worship him, to the object of worship.
Conclusion
To properly learn from this story, we need to examine not just how we perform our worship services or maintain our building. Or get out to the public spaces and protest against corruption.
God may lead some people to do these things. But that’s not where we start.
We start by examining our hearts, minds, and behaviours.
This needs to be embodied and enacted, not just understood.
The concern of Jesus was that the people turned God’s dwelling place into a marketplace.
I am tempted, by way of application, to give you examples of how we might do the same thing with God’s dwelling place, which is simultaneously our individual hearts and also the relationships we have with one another.
Instead, what we will do for the next several minutes is take time to reflect in preparation for communion.
If you are unfamiliar with this practice and unsure if you should participate, you are welcome to simply observe.
But, if you are a follower of Jesus or would like to be one, then you’re invited to come.
I will read a guided prayer to help direct our thoughts toward reflection.
Once I am done, you are welcome to come to the table and we will serve one another. And, instead of taking the elements to our seats, we will consume them up here as we are served.
I would like you all to try and serve at least one other person. The last person to be served will serve me.
Let’s pray…
O Saviour of the world, Lord of lords, light of light, you who are the brightness of your Father’s glory, the express image of his person; you who has destroyed the power of evil, who has overcome death, “who sits at the right hand of the Father”; you will soon come in glory to judge all and set all things right. Be my light and my peace; destroy the power of evil in me, and make me a new creature.You who cleansed the temple, cleanse my heart all corruption.You who rose from the dead, raise me from the death of sin. You who cleansed the lepers, healed the sick, and gave sight to the blind, heal the diseases of my soul; open my eyes to see your purity, and cleanse my heart from every desire that diminishes your glory and love. And now, O Lord our God, the heavenly bread, the life of all creation, hear my prayer. I have sinned against others and before you, and am not worthy to take part in your pure fellowship; but as a merciful God, make me worthy by your grace, without condemnation, to take your holy body and precious blood, for the forgiveness of sins, and life everlasting.
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