Cleaning House

Dakota Community Church

March 15, 2009

Cleaning House

John 2:13-22

When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple courts he found men selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple area, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves he said, "Get these out of here! How dare you turn my Father’s house into a market!"

His disciples remembered that it is written: "Zeal for your house will consume me."

Then the Jews demanded of him, "What miraculous sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?"

Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days."

The Jews replied, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?" But the temple he had spoken of was his body. 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.

“In the temple courts he found men selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money.”

This was not the first time Jesus had been to the temple in Jerusalem.

Luke 2:21-22

On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived.

When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord.

Luke 2:411-42

Every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover. When he was twelve years old, they went up to the Feast, according to the custom.

Jesus was an observant Jew keeping the Law perfectly on our behalf.

He is now 30 years old and he goes to the temple for the feast as he has done every year of His life until now.

This time though He goes in as a man.

This time He has reached maturity and has the right to speak.

This time we see a side of Jesus the church wants to pretend does not exist; especially when dealing with unbelievers.

1. Jesus reveals His righteous anger.

John 2:15-16

So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple area, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves he said, "Get these out of here! How dare you turn my Father’s house into a market!"

We don’t like to think of this side of Jesus.

Last week we saw him rebuke Peter calling him “Satan” and now we see him literally going postal on these temple workers.

Whether we like it or not God is God and He will judge all men according to His righteous standard without conferring with us for approval.

What about peace though? What happened to:

Luke 2:13-14

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."

Isaiah 9:6

And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

What about His own teaching?

Matthew 5:9

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.

There is a difference between making peace and avoiding conflict.

My natural tendency is toward “playing nice” over enduring strife.

The avoidance of conflict, the ignoring of divisive issues; these do not result in peace.

A cold war stand-off is not peace.

Real peacemakers have to stir up trouble sometimes before peace can be reached.

I am not saying the other end of the spectrum is right either, some people are not looking for peace they just want a fight, but consider this:

Even in our own salvation before we have peace with God we have conviction of sin, repentance, and bowing to Lordship at the cross of Christ.

Galatians 2:11-21

When Peter came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he was clearly in the wrong. Before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group. The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray.

When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter in front of them all, "You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?