“Take these things away! Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise!” (John 2:16)
Over time, unholy things creep into our “temples” and need to be removed.
When Jesus cleansed the Temple at the beginning of His public ministry, we find several fascinating lessons we can apply to our lives.
Irreverence and Materialism in Worship
There were businesses in the Temple area that exchanged money and sold the animals necessary for the traditional sacrifices of the Passover. As a reminder, the Passover was a standard annual observance. It commemorated the deliverance of the Israelites from Egyptian slavery when the death angel “passed over” Jewish homes that had blood sprinkled on their doorposts (Exodus 12:23-27). However, these opportunistic businessmen (Jesus called them “thieves” in Matthew 21:13) turned what once was sacred and reverent into a lucrative business. On top of that, they overcharged people who came from long distances and who couldn’t bring their own animals due to the inconvenience of the journey. They must have thought, “Why not make a profit off their worship and sacrifices?”
But when Jesus arrived on the scene, He physically drove out the money changers, the sheep, and the oxen. But interestingly, He didn’t drive out the doves. Instead, Jesus told those who sold them to remove them. A possible reason for this is because He didn’t want the doves to fly off, resulting in loss of property for their owners. The sheep and oxen could be rounded up. But the doves undoubtedly would be a loss.
As Christ followers, we are His temple (1 Corinthians 6:19; Ephesians 2:19-22). But if we do not properly maintain the holiness and reverence of our temple (our hearts, minds, and lifestyles), many things creep in and defile it. In Jesus’ day, what was traditionally good and sacred for worship had become commercialized and irreverent.
Maintaining our Holy Temple
But there’s another lesson here. One that correlates with the new spiritual birth and increasing spiritual maturity.
Upon being “born from above” (John 3:3), the Holy Spirit takes up residence within a genuine believer (1 Corinthians 3:16). His role and responsibility is to transform a person, from the inside out, into Christlikeness (Romans 8:29). He does this supernatural work, mostly unseen to the human eye, in the spiritual realm. We may not see the actual work being accomplished but we see its evidence in the fruit of the Spirit in our lives (Galatians 5:22-23).
But along with this inner effort, there is also external work each Christ follower must do. As Jesus instructed the dove sellers to remove them from the Temple premises, there is also work for us as we grow in our faith.
In partnership with the Holy Spirit, we are compelled to “go on unto perfection” or spiritual maturity (Hebrews 6:1). This “dove removal” involves the “putting off, on, and away” of Ephesians 4:20-25. It is the “laying aside” of every sinful hinderance and “the sin which so easily ensnares us” (Hebrews 12:1). The removal of such “things” goes hand in hand with our instruction not to “love the world or the things in the world” (1 John 2:15). These are all part and parcel of dying to self daily, taking up our cross, and following Jesus (Matthew 16:24).
What Would Jesus Find in Our Temple?
If Jesus came to our individual temples, what would He find? Would they be noisy, distracting, cluttered places of business? Or would He find them calm, peaceful houses of prayer? Would the oxen mooing, sheep bleating, dove cooing, and coin clanking drown out His still small voice? Or would He find still, quiet, undistracted hearts receptive to His whisper?
I pray our hearts’ desire is to surrender to the Holy Spirit’s removal and transformation. May we never quench or resist His holy work. In partnership with His unseen, supernatural work, may we also aggressively and constantly take away all unholy “things” that prevent our spiritual maturity. May we put off and put away anything that distracts us from putting on every spiritual blessing available to us.
Heavenly Father, please create in us holy and reverent temples. Remove whatever hinders our transformation into Christlikeness. May we worship you wholeheartedly and undistractedly as we grow closer to You each day. Amen.
Purchase Nate’s book, Called to Christlikeness, not Christianity here.
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Nate Stevens.
Featured Image by vargazs from Pixabay
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