Jtv: The Incredible Race #3 Series

This week we continue our message series entitled, “JTV” or Jesus Television. We established last week that the average American watches 29 hours of TV per week according to that source of all knowledge the Starbucks coffee cup. Almost a third of our waking lives are affected or infected vy the TV shows we watch. Thus, TV becomes the perfect medium to share the message of Jesus. However, if you’ve watched any Christian television lately I think you’ll agree much of it is of low quality and some of it just lends itself to turning the channel. Therefore, I purpose that God create a new cable network of shows which mimic current or past hit shows to get people to tune in. That’s why today’s show is called Incredible Home Makeover. It’s another great reality show where this wild guy named TY takes a microphone and a crew of professional volunteer home builders and builds a much needed family a new home where their old home once stood. I like the show for the demolition and the ending, were they bring the family home from an all expense paid vacation to see their new home for the first time as the crowd shouts, “Move that Bus.” Let’s try it as a congregation. Now remember those words because we will be coming back to them at the end of this message. The show itself is a good metaphor for today’s scripture and this Lenten season as we look to cleanse our personal and public temples and get back to the mission of Jesus Christ.

To begin, let’s go to the text. Jesus had just begun his public ministry at the wedding in Cana by turning water into wine three days before. We now meet him as walks into the temple.

When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. 15 So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. 16 To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!” 17 His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me." 18 The Jews then responded to him, “What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?”

19 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” 20 They replied, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?” 21 But the temple he had spoken of was his body. 22 After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.

A side note here to help us all understands – The temple was more than the sanctuary. It included an area outside the sanctuary area where people who believed in God but weren’t yet full members of the temple good congregate and pray to the one God of the Jews. The temple itself was this large walled off area in the city which was separate from the community which surrounded it. In many ways, it was a clubhouse, church and Jewish administration center. During this Passover time, it would have been bustling with people and activity. Jewish people from all over would have been coming in for the Passover celebration. In walks Jesus, He is flabbergasted by what he sees. It’s like the Super bowl without the football. Jesus immediately reacts. In fact, I would venture to say He’s angry. If you don’t like your Jesus “angry,” than go with “passionately disagreeing” with the activities happening all around Him. He drives the animals used in the Jewish sacrifices out of the temple and turns over the tables of the money changers. The money changers were men who swapped Roman money for Temple money. In so doing, they took a premium or a tax for the administration of temple upkeep, the priests and even the Pharisees. I picture Jesus screaming with a megaphone (Verse 16), “Take these things out of here! Stop making my father’s house a marketplace!” Can you see everyone watching in horror? How about the high priest and the Pharisees who were making money off all these activities? They were upset. It’s why John uses the word “Jews” in verse 18. Jews in this part of scripture does not give the best translation from the Greek. While it is accurate it doesn’t provide the meaning from the original. The word actually had disdain attached to it. It also carried the meaning of religious elite. So the powers that be come over to ask, what does he thinks he’s doing? On whose authority is he acting? He’s upsetting the status quo. This is my favorite side of Jesus. It’s the revolutionary Jesus. He is showing the masses and those in positional power, it’s time to get back to the truth. Of course, they ask Him to prove he has the power to correct the people by demonstrating an action that would prove his authority. Jesus then makes them a challenge they can’t believe. It seems even crazy. However in hindsight, it’s absolutely prophetic.