(John 2:15)
�And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers� money, and overthrew the tables.�
I�ve noticed with my grandson the way that young people will be obsessed with a certain cartoon character one day and then, seemingly just a few days later, will have moved on to another character. The favorite of one day is assigned to the dust bunnies under the bed as a new favorite comes to the fore.
This is just the normal manner of young children and their attention spans.
When my own son was quite young his favorite cartoon character was �He Man and the Master�s of the Universe.� Now, I didn�t watch the show as faithfully as did he. But, I saw some very good things. The hero, He Man, was dedicated to defending the castle against the villain, Skeletor (As I recall his name.) When the time came, as it did every episode, for him to act, He Man would hold his sword aloft.
I liked the idea of what could be used as Christian symbolism. Skeletor was an easy match to play Satan. His ambition was to overthrow the rightful rule and he was more than willing to use evil methods to do so.
Opposing Skeletor, of course, was He Man. I saw him as sort of a figure of Christians. He held high his sword; the sword is the symbol of Scripture. He opposed all evil and would hazard any obstacle to fight for the rightful rule. I saw the rightful rule as a picture of spiritual values.
He Man also had a large �battle cat� that accompanied him on his mission. I considered this �Battle Cat� as symbolic of the Holy Spirit Who fights with us against spiritual principalities.
O. K.; I probably read more �C. S. Lewis� into the cartoon than did the writers. Still, I was happy that such a cartoon was Ethan�s favorite.
As a matter of fact, I was probably a little to happy for Ethan to have this cartoon character in his life. When Christmas time came that year Linda and I spent almost all we had allocated for Ethan�s Christmas presents on He Man and the Master�s of the Universe action figures. We hid them away and waited for Christmas when Ethan would open his horde of figurines and begin to use his own imagination to fight evil.
Then, the Saturday before Christmas, Ethan wasn�t watching his favorite show. I told him that he�d better come to the living room and sit in front of the T. V. It was time for his show. Ethan said, �I don�t like He Man anymore. I like��
To be honest, I don�t remember what it was that he said he liked at that point. All I could think of was his treasure trove of Christmas gifts. Linda and I scurried out and found new toys. Ethan still got the He Man toys. He just wasn�t as excited about them as we had hoped he would be.
In our text verse today we are reading about the real Master of the Universe. He is exercising His authority. Jesus didn�t usually display such emotion. But, this was a case where true worship of His Heavenly Father was being sacrificed to the god of mammon.
Jesus stepped out and was quite militant in the defense of the Gospel of worship.
He was always thus, of course.
Jesus never lashed out at the sinner. Jesus was interested in calling the sinner to salvation rather than in beating him into submission. A person is not ready for salvation until the Spirit calls him. He will resist the calling of the Spirit if he is too busy fighting with us! To win, Jesus wooed.
Jesus did, from time to time, get - it seemed - somewhat exasperated at the disciples seeming inability to grasp the importance of His teaching. He was busy training them to take the message of sin and salvation out into the world. In a short time He would be sacrificed and return to His glory in Heaven. He worked to prepare these disciples for such an event. It would then be their duty to win the lost to Him.
The only times I ever find Jesus, in the entire Gospel accounts, upset with anyone was when He talked to the religious leaders. Quite often it was these very leaders which would keep men and woman from finding salvation through Him.
In today�s text verse we see His actions as He approached some people who had put themselves in the place of religious leadership. Obviously, their concern was not for true worship. Rather than following the lead of the prophets, the sought to be led to the place of profit themselves.
First we see the Preparation. �And when he had made a scourge of small cords��
We first realize that as Jesus confronted all the commercialism going on within the Temple, He gave consideration to the problem at hand. Here were people who were making a mockery of God ordained worship. Worse than this, if it were possible, is that they were not only using the concept of worshiping God as an excuse for making profit, they were doing so outside the known will of God.
If we look back in the New Testament times we will see that the Levites, the priestly caste of the Israelites, were to earn their daily provision from service to the Temple. They were, to use a modern analogy, paid religious workers. There are those who look with disdain upon this model in our day. They should consider the words of Paul. �Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel.� (I Corinthians 9:14)
In the very next verse we see Paul arguing that he had not done this. This was his choice. He had the right to receive his living from the churches; he chose not to do so.
But, this verse in First Corinthians was speaking, as was the instruction of the Levites from the Old Testament, of the right of those who are in the Lord�s service to commit themselves wholly to His service to the extent that they not seek other employment but to dedicate their entire lives to the Lord.
This wasn�t the case with these �vendors� at the Temple. They were earning money from �seasonal employment� and taking advantage of the traveler. They were not serving the Lord; they were seeking to line their own pockets at the expense of the pilgrims.
Their endeavor was nearly teaching a �works� salvation, or a salvation that could be purchased. They were providing, for a price, the �worship element� for the pilgrims to the Temple.
I would expect that this custom began as a service to the traveler. The traveler would not have to bring of the flocks of his own; he could buy what he needed when he arrived. Then, of course, there were those who had no flocks of their own.
The problem was two fold. First, the sacrifice was now supplied by a vendor. Second, the perception became that the price of the sacrifice was the price of salvation.
Jesus also gave a construction to make the solution. He began a work of His own. He began to take small cords and prepare a scourge - a whip, if you will, to be used to drive out the false even as He, the Truth, entered into the Temple.
The driving out of the purveyors of the animals might have worried some of the pilgrims. They must have thought, �Now what can I sacrifice?�
Jesus, however, was teaching the truth, even as taught by the life of Abraham, �Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.� (Galatians 3:6)
A new day, of a New Testament of the Blood of Jesus was on the horizon. No more was the shadow of a sacrificial system of bulls and lambs to be considered, Jesus, the final fulfillment of what the sacrificial system had only been a picture, was soon to be offered as the perfect Sacrifice. It was nearing the time for the people to look past, in faith - as faith had always been the medium of salvation as faith was based in the Words of God, the sacrifice of the creature and contemplate the fact that the Creator, Himself, was become the sacrifice for sin.
Jesus drove out the animals because He was come to replace them!
This was a picture of the completed work of the Savior.
The scourge, a whip, was used to dispel the vendors of the works of the creature. Soon a scourge would whip the back of the Creator, in the Person of Jesus, as He became the effective Sacrifice for the sins of those who would accept Him as their Savior.
Now we look at the presentation. ��he drove them all out of the Temple��
The presentation described here is the presentation of the Rightful Ruler of the Temple. Although the Bible teaches that God is Omnipresent, everywhere at all times, in the Old Testament times the place that was especially regarded as His dwelling place was at the Temple in Jerusalem. It was here that the pious Jew of those days was expected to attend the various festivals and feast times which were considered as sacred in their calendar.
Surely God could have been worshipped anywhere. We see instances of people who interacted with Him at various locations both in, and out of, Jerusalem. Elijah had a special place of communion with God near a brook at the ravens brought him his meals.
But, there was one special place, the Temple, where the sacrifices were to be performed.
When Jesus, the Rightful Master of the Temple, came, those symbols were relieved of their duties. These things had been but shadows and types of the True Lamb of God which should come. Now that He was on the scene, there was no more need for sacrifice at this Temple.
Jesus, indeed, took upon Him a new temple in which to abide. �What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God�s.� (I Corinthians 6:19-20)
The �special place of residence� of the God Who inhabits the entire universe, is within the bodies of the believer. We are His.
In this holy Temple in Jerusalem, Jesus cleansed those elements which did not belong in the worship of the people. He relived them of their duties. No more should they offer the sacrifice of a lamb because The Lamb was offered once to atone for the sins of the world.
Those animals which had been slated for sacrifice were now reassigned in their directions. Whereas they had walked toward death, they now were freed unto life. Where they were once bought and sold as sin bearing objects by the means of silver and gold, they were now free from this fate. The True Sin Bearer had come. He was sold for thirty pieces of silver but His sacrifice for us is free.
Now we are the ones who are to be redirected into sacrifice. We are His. We are objects which are to be used to His glory. As the temporal objects were cleansed from the Temple so must we be cleansed of those things in our lives which would inhibit true worship of the Lord. �Wherefore come out from among the, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.� (II Corinthians 6:17)
As the objects which would foster irreligion in the Temple, a place for religion, were swept from her halls and porches, so are we to sweep from our lives those things which would stand between us and the holy God.
We, who were bound in sin, are now freed in grace. We, who were on the broad road to destruction, are now on the narrow path that leads to life eternal. We, who were once enemies of God, are now adopted into the family of God by the grace of Jesus Christ our Savior.
The sacrificial animals were refused in their distractions. They had led the eyes and hearts of men to the creature. They had led to a religion that was rooted in works and sacrifice. They had led to a building of stone which would crumble in time.
We, now, are also to refuse the distractions of time as we worship the Lord of Eternity. As we consider this great salvation we are often tempted to follow men and movements; instead we need to follow on the Lord. We must realize that we do not follow a religion that is rooted in any work, or even in any sacrifice, which we might accomplish. We follow a Christianity which is rooted and grounded in the One Sacrifice of the One Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We may meet, as a body of believers, in a building of stone, but we worship the Lord Who will never depart from our side. He is the God of Eternity.
We look, also, and see the promotion. ��and the sheep, and the oxen��
When we discuss this incident in our Sunday School lessons, someone will invariably bring up, �But, didn�t anyone get upset with Jesus doing all this vandalism?�
We are generally told that it wasn�t vandalism because Jesus is the Rightful Owner and Ruler of the Temple. While that is true, I don�t believe that the Romans, or the Jewish for that matter, authorities would have recognized His right to rule in this manner.
Not a few have suggested that the entire incident was a spur of the moment temper tantrum. They say that Jesus just �lost His cool� when He saw what was going on.
Rubbish!
First, as God, Jesus already knew what was going on even as He knew that it had been going on for some time. His actions were not borne of anger. At least they were not borne of anger as we understand anger. I believe that Jesus was upset. He was upset that the worship of the devout was being cheapened in this manner. He saw the spectacle of the day as an affront both to God and to Godly men and women.
He was not happy with the proceeding. But this was not the reasons for His actions. His actions were both calculated and symbolic. He did what He did, here, for a purpose.
First of all, these animals had been seen as the sin bearer for the sins of the people. That was never, really, the case. The animals were simply, in their sacrifice, a picture of what He was about to do in actuality. They were a picture of His Own passion on the Cross. For this reason the supposed sin bearer was replaced when the Actual Sin Bearer came upon the scene.
There was no more reason for the animal to die. Jesus, Himself, was about to die as the only real, and the only effective, sacrifice for sin. By letting go these animals Jesus was prophesying of His Own death.
The supposed sin bearer, the animals, was also released. This was another prophecy of the death of Jesus Christ.
We, as a race of humanity, are bound by the taskmaster of sin. Jesus came to release us from that master. Jesus came to do this because it was His right to do so. His Own death, on the Cross of Calvary, freed all who would accept Him as Savior. We no longer are in slavery to sin. The leash has been removed from our necks.
In this the supposed sin bearer, the animals, was set free. Now, I don�t for a minute suggest that these animals were left free to roam as they might just because their stalls were overturned and their handlers were chased off. I am fairly certain that these same animals were later �rounded up� and sent to some other fate.
So, also, are we freed from sin. But, we are still chased by the adversary. He, sin and Satan, has no further right to us. We are freed from sin and his infernal hands upon our lives. But, we do tend to still be oppressed by him. We allow him to remind us of our past sins and make life harder for us than it need be.
At some point we need to realize that we have been set eternally free. The noose of sin is no longer over our heads and about our necks. When Satan comes by to tempt and oppress we need to flee to the Savior. We need to confess our shortcomings and sin. We need to plead the Blood of Christ which has set us free.
Satan, we know but too often fail to realize, is a defeated foe. He has no right to put his brimstone stained hands upon our lives. We have the right, the high privilege, to approach the Throne of Grace and claim our Father�s protection.
Jesus also set a prohibition on the �selling� of religion. ��and poured out the changer�s money��
Jesus overturned the money changer�s tables. The gold was discarded. I spoke to a lady some years ago who had sent some money to a �big name� television preacher. Along with her gift, she asked that this �preacher� pray for a problem she was having. His reply was that she hadn�t sent enough money to cover the cost of his praying for her.
What!
Peter had said, �Silver and gold, have I none.� This �preacher� had amended his Bible to read, �Silver and gold, I want to get some!�
I preached over television, a local station, for about ten years. People were so conditioned to sending in money to those who use this venue that I had to take time each week to tell them not to send any money into me. I didn�t need it to cover the expenses of the program. I am fairly certain that their local churches, which they attended each week, needed the money more than did I.
It is amazing to listen to some of these media preachers and see just how much time, and how much effort, is put into greasing the offering plates. Some have even begun to accept credit cards!
I firmly believe that God�s plan is for the Christian to send his offering and gifts to the local assembly he attends every week. These local assemblies can then, in turn, sent offerings to these Para church agencies which are doing the Lord�s work. That would put more control over these media �preachers.� They wouldn�t be able to �scare� little old ladies living on their Social Security checks. They wouldn�t be able to �con� little old men into believing that the preacher must have a mansion on earth is the hearers can ever expect to have a mansion in heaven.
Jesus Christ established local churches. He did not establish a television, or a radio, network. The true purpose of real evangelists, and real Para church agencies, is to support the local churches. They are not to siphon off support from the local churches which were Jesus established.
The rolling money from the money changer�s overturned tables was God directed. That money had been directed, in a usurious manner, toward the pocket of a vendor.
I have been told the story of a certain evangelist who would go to his motel room after services to distribute the money he had collected from the offering. He would toss the money up in the air. �God keeps what he wants. Whatever comes down is mine.�
Sadly, too many operate on that principle.
Now, not every evangelist, or television preacher, is like this. But, I believe a deacon board, discussing the request in a spirit of prayer to the Spirit, is more likely to make the decision as to who is, and who isn�t, than is a single person with a check book in his hand who has just heard and emotional appeal from a professional money gatherer.
The goal, you see, is defined when one is approaching God in worship. The goal is fellowship with God. Until this, not a cultural revolution, not an emotional appeal to help the �victims,� not a request to �keep the Word on the air,� we are not worshipping. Helping others is a good thing. It is not, necessarily spreading the Gospel that Jesus Christ died in time so that others could live in eternity.
Keeping a preacher on the radio is a good goal, if he is preaching the gospel. But, keeping your local church spreading the gospel in your own location is a better goal. Of course, this means that your local church must be spreading that gospel message.
By the way, this also means that YOU must be spreading that gospel message. You are part of the local church, aren�t you?
It is God�s plan that you be a member of a local assembly. Find one, or start one if there are none in your area. But, be in one!
We look, finally, and see the position of those tables and of Jesus. ��and overthrew the tables.�
The tables were brought low. They had been in a place of prominence. People were not allowed to worship until they had paid the price at these tables. Jesus came to offer a better way; He paid the price for us.
Rather than coming to a table where we could talk to another man and �buy� our right to worship, we now come to Jesus. We find that He offers us a free salvation. At Calvary He paid the entire price. We couldn�t have paid this price. Our own sins would have kept us from being able to pay the price.
Jesus just gives us a �ticket� that says �paid in full.� We approach Him in faith, believing that He is the Master of our salvation. We simply accept what He has given to us. We gain salvation, a home in Heaven, and peace with God. Our own merits could never have made this transaction. It is all based on faith that Jesus has done all the work. He has the right to make this offer because He is, Himself, divine.
He grants forgiveness and salvation based on His merits.
What a wonder it is to even consider this! What a comfort it is to realize this. What a gift it is for us to receive this free, full and complete pardon from the Master of the Universe.
The original target, the tables of man, has been refused. Jesus does not accept the works of man. To even offer such work is to say that His work was not enough. What an insult this is to the Holy One of God.
Jesus refuses our works simply because, in offering them, we have refused His work.
The tangible, the tables of man, has been replaced. Jesus now stands ready to accept us fully on His Own account. What about you? Have you accepted Jesus as your own Savior? Do so right now. The Spirit is calling.