by Pastor Afolabi Oladele

And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. Matthew 21:12-13 

And they come to Jerusalem: and Jesus went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves; And would not suffer that any man should carry any vessel through the temple. And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves. And the scribes and chief priests heard it, and sought how they might destroy him: for they feared him, because all the people was astonished at his doctrine. And when even was come, he went out of the city. And in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. And Peter calling to remembrance saith unto him, Master, behold, the fig tree which thou cursedst is withered away. And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses. And they come again to Jerusalem: and as he was walking in the temple, there come to him the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders, And say unto him, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority to do these things? Mark 11:15-28 (see also John 2:12-22).

Our texts show us a number of things:

1. Close examination of Mark 11:15-28 shows us that the event described simply in Matthew 21:12-13, actually took place over two days, starting first with an inspection. Mark 11:11 shows that an inspection of the scene of traffic and disorder took place. In the place where for convenience, commercialization took place, and can you imagine the foul language and cursing that comes with the haggling over prices of doves and sheep needed for sacrifice on one hand, and the currency trading for foreign worshippers who had to pay the mandatory temple tax! Like Peter recorded in 1 Peter 4:17, those of us who claim to be the temple or household of God will undergo an inspection, a searching investigation to see if we are fit. Have you ever gone to the wholesale fruits market to purchase fresh fruits? You do a careful inspection of each fruit you pick to be sure it has neither blemish nor propensity to rot! It’s exactly what will happen to each of us; and
2. Comparing the records of John in John 2:12-22, it would appear that these events of temple inspection and overthrow happened twice. The first at the beginning of the ministry of the Lord and the second at the end of His ministry. The climax of each inspection was judgment. Seeing that the end of this dispensation of grace is upon us, ought we not to search ourselves?

Beloved, true freedom comes from confronting and relinquishing all the unhealthy attachments present in our individual lives as well as in the assemblies of believers. Such necessities we allow for convenience or facilitation of worship must not desecrate our temple. Selah.

Photo by Beth Macdonald on Unsplash