This Week is unlike other Weeks – without parallel – because of the uncommon things Jesus, the Son of Man did during these 7+ 1 days.
On His arrival in Jerusalem He went directly to the City Center – The Temple – and created a scene. Matthew describes it. “He drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves.” He drastically understates the stir Jesus' actions had to have caused. Passover was just days away. Thousands of pilgrims were arriving. The Temple was far more than a big Church. It was a religious center certainly. But it was also a marketplace where people could buy the various things required by Jewish Law for the special observances that took place within its confines. Historians have noted that, on occasion, there were thousands of sheep, as well as other creatures within the Temple area. It was also a Financial Institution. One marauder, who ransacked Jerusalem Centuries before Jesus was born reported carrying away from the temple millions of dollars in gold and silver coins of the variety prescribed for Temple use. Pilgrims had to exchange their money for Temple currency. This was a Currency Exchange far larger than any Airport kiosk. Many of the faithful bought their sacrificial creatures or dry goods in the Temple. The cacophony of countless traders advertising their wares was deafening and disorienting. Many people resented the exploitation that had become common in this Holy place. It was no longer “Holy.” It had been usurped by the religious leaders of the Nation and was now the seat of power and prosperity for the Priests and their cronies.
When Jesus disrupted commerce on this day His actions were not immediately met with armed police action. The powerful were unquestionably incensed over what He’d done. But they knew the populace welcomed His actions. Matthew tells us, “They looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet.” Jesus words had left no doubt about His anger. Borrowing from Isaiah and Jeremiah He said, “My house is to be called a house of prayer, but you’re making it into a den of robbers.” This was a bold, “in your face” indictment of the Priests and lawyers. And many people knew it was true.
What a dramatic move for this “uncommonly humble, gentle King,” who had just entered the City on the back of a Donkey! His words clearly reveal the motivation for his aggressive actions. These trustees of the Jewish faith had made a travesty of the House of God – His House – and were plundering it and its rituals and ceremonies to line their own pockets. Prosperity had displaced prayer as the reason for its existence and He would have none of it. His decision to overthrow their enterprise would forever mark this Week as like no other. And today, as then, He calls all who will listen to review how they might be abusing things God intended for higher purposes.
“Prayer,” Jesus said, is the raison d’être of the House of the Lord. “Prayer?” Isn’t that conversation with God; the connecting point for people seeking to cultivate a relationship with God? Simply put, “Yes!” Later this Week Jesus would eat the Seder with His Friends. During that meal He would pray. In His prayer He would talk with God intimately, addressing Him as Father. Among other important things He would say to His Father would be the following declaration. “This is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” That dreadful night when He would begin the journey to a horrible death Jesus unequivocally declared what His ultimate purpose was. He had come to make it possible for His followers, and any others who would join them, to “know” God, and Himself. “Know” God? Yes!” Just as the Temple existed as a place of prayer – meeting and conversing with God – so the Life Christ has come to give us is the gateway into an intimate, personal relationship with God. Everything Jesus practiced during His life on earth was done for one purpose and one purpose alone. He did what He did out of devotion to His Father and a tireless love for Him.
Is this true of us? Is the Father the first person in our lives? Do we do everything we do with a loving awareness of His presence and day-to-day interest in us? Do we pray because we want to know Him better? Are the activities we call “worship” designed to arrange our lives so that He has greater access to the deepest places in us? Do we read the Bible to know Him or things about Him? Have we misappropriated His blessings for our own benefit?
Jesus courageously overthrew the symbols of power and prestige in unparalleled fashion so that people looking on at the time, and reading about it later, would understand that whatever God does is done out of determination to know and be known. This Week is a cataclysmic Week. Things in us will be overthrown. God loves us that much!
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