MK 11:15 On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple area and began driving out
those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money
changers and the benches of those selling doves, 16 and would not allow anyone to
carry merchandise through the temple courts. 17 And as he taught them, he said, "Is it
not written:
" `My house will be called
a house of prayer for all nations’ ?
But you have made it `a den of robbers.’ "
MK 11:18 The chief priests and the teachers of the law heard this and began looking
for a way to kill him, for they feared him, because the whole crowd was amazed at his
teaching.
Did you just hear what Jesus did in the Temple? Have we ever seen Jesus respond like
this before in Scripture? Actually, this had happened before, a couple of years earlier, we
find the story in John 2, Jesus even made a whip out of cords, and physically thrashed the
people out of the Temple, again driving out those who were buying and selling in the
temple.
I ask you, what in the world has caused God’s Son to get so agitated?
This is what we are going to find out today. When we really discover the answer, we will
have our hands on the answer for our greatest needs..... so don’t miss the answer today.
Can you see the feathers flying, and the coins rolling every direction down the hallways?
Can you hear the businesmen shouting to the top of their lungs for the police, “We have a
madman in here, somebody come and arrest this crazy man.”
Jesus says above the noise of the situation, “This place looks and feels more like a
mall than a temple. Whatever happened to Isaiah’s word about the real point of this
building --- to be a house of prayer for all nations, all nationalities and races?”
The odd thing about this story is that if the Hometown Eyewitness News Crew had
interviewed any of those merchants that day, each one would have very stongly defended
thier right to be there, saying.... “We provide an essential service to the worshipers,”
“How else are the people going to get the required animal to sacrifice? If you live any
distance away, you can’t be herding your sheep and cattle through the streets of
Jerusalem, We’ve got to help the program along...” Of coarse, what they wouldn’t tell
Hometown News is that they were adding huge surcharges to their price... they were
making a huge profit.
Friends, I don’t think God is too pleased when we turn our places of worship into a
commercial enterprize...... On TV today you can buy a prayer cloth, you can buy holy
water, you can purchase all kinds of things that suppossedly will enhance your religious
experience.
Can I tell you a secret. God is not impressed. For those who are leading God’s Church,
God is not only concerned whether we’re doing God’s work, but also How and Why
we’re doing it.
When I stand before the Judgement seat of Christ, his main questions for me will
not have to do with the growth or the budget of New Hope Church of the Nazarene, but
with Why I pastored this church, and in what Spirit.
If your teaching a Sunday School class, God will not be asking you If you taught a classs,
but instead the question will be Did you teach that class with a heart that radiated God’s
love for the students? Are you teaching for the right reasons?
If your serving in the church, whether on the board, on the cleaning team, on the calling
team, on the Worship team, no matter the position..... The question is not so much that
you are serving, but instead, How are you serving? With a good spirit, for the right
reasons? Or maybe your serving for some other reason.
Friends, I’m sure the money changers would tell you that they were providing a
ministry.... but as we can see, God wasn’t pleased with their motive, He wasn’t impressed
with their service.
Back in the Campmeeting days their used to be a saying that if people left a meeting
talking about what a wonderful sermon the preacher gave or how beautifully the singers
sang, the meeting had failed. But if the people went home saying things like, “Isn’t God
good?” He met me tonight in such a wonderful way,” then it was a good meeting. There
was to be no sharing the stage with the Lord.
This morning friends, it’s not about the music, it’s not about how well the sermon is
delivered, but instead it’s “Did you have an encounter with the Living God?” Did God
come and speak to your heart?” Did you come into His House today with the mindset of
“God has something He wants me to hear today, and I’m not leaving until I hear it?”
Friends, when we will come in to our worship time expecting God to visit us, and
through prayer, we seek Him with all our heart, through Prayer we call out to Him,
through Prayer we admit our need for Him.... Don’t you know, He will answer us!
How did you come into the service today? I know you didn’t bring in your animals this
morning for sacrifice, because we understand that we are not required to bring those kind
of sacrifices. But I wonder if we don’t come into worship with the same kind of mindset.
God, here I am. It’s Sunday morning, God instead of my sheep or cows, Here’s
my two hours of time, I could be in bed, but God I want to give this time to you, so here
you go.... Now, please bless me, and please answer all my prayers.........
Now, I know none of you actually thought that way when you walked in, but my question,
is that what our attitude is about our Sunday worship? Are we coming in to punch our
spiritual ticket..... Or have you come today knowing and expecting that God wants to have
a personal encounter with you...... and encounter that will affect your life, an encounter
that will transform your life..... when we encounter the Lord..... It changes us, Amen?
The distinguishing Feature of the Christian Church, of Christian People, of Christian
Gatherings is the aroma of prayer. Jesus didn’t say, “My house shall be called the house
of Preaching.” Did he?
Does it ever say, “My house shall be called a house of music?” I don’t think so.
The Word of God does say, “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations.”
Preaching, Music, the Reading of God’s Word, obviously things we must
incorporate into our lives, and in our worship, but the overrideing, defining mark of God’s
dwelling is prayer.
The honest truth is that God can do more in people’s lives during ten minutes of prayer,
real prayer, than in ten of my sermons.
What does it say about our churches today that God birthed the church in a prayer
meeting, in the upper room on Pentcost, but today, the prayer meetings in our churches
are almost extinct?
Do we need to ask why our churches aren’t growing? Do we need to ask why we aren’t
seeing people being saved? Do we need to ask why marriages and families in the church
are just at risk as those who don’t even attend church?
In March, 2003 we have more nice buildings to worship in than ever before, we have been
trained more extensively than at any time in our history for ministry, we have more books,
better education on how to save our marriages and families than ever before, we have
more money coming into the church than ever before..... But even with all this...... Over
95% of all Christian churches in America and Canada are either in decline or are platued in
their growth......
Church....... We’ve got to go back to where we started, We’ve got to look at the early
church and understand what they were doing that allowed these untrained, these
uneducated, these untested disciples to start a revolution for Jesus Christ.
In Acts 4, when the apostles were unjustly arrested, imprisoned, and threatned, they didn’t
call for a protest; they didn’t reach for some political leverage, they didn’t call a lawyer,
Instead.... they headed to a prayer meeting...... And soon the place was vibrating with the
power of the Holy Spirit..... listen to the words found in Acts 4:31
AC 4:31 After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they
were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.
The early church had this instinct: When in trouble, pray. When intimidated, pray.
When challenged, pray. When persecuted, pray.
We need to understand the real force for the Christian in our Prayer life. Satan’s main
strategy with God’s people has always been to whisper, “Don’t call, don’t ask, don’t
depend on God to do great things. You’ll get along fine if you just rely on your own
cleverness and energy.”
The truth of the matter is that the devil is not terribly frightened of our human efforts and
credentials.. Be he knows his kingdom will be damaged when we lift up our hearts to God
in prayer.
Friends..... Do you have some heavy burdens today that your tired of trying to carry
around all by yourself?
Do you have an unsaved family member that your heart aches for......?
Do you have a neighbor, a friend that you know needs to find Jesus as Lord?
Are you in a financial fix, where there seems like there is no way out, and you feel like
your drowning?
Do you have a big descision to make, and your torn, you don’t really know what
your suppossed to do?
Friends, whatever the need is today...... the answer can be found through Prayer.... Crying
out to God...... Friends, the truth is we need to make this place a House of Prayer, not just
on the Sunday when the Pastor preaches on Prayer, but everytime we come here,
everytime the doors are open, we need to realize that the real reason we come is to Find
God through prayer..... You do believe in Prayer don’t you?
Jim Cymballa, pastor of the Brooklyn Tabernacle, who has written the book,
“Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire” tells a personal story of the power of prayer.
He said, “I was alone in Florida when I recieved a call from a minister whom I had
persuaded Chrissy (Jim’s daughter) to talk to.
“Jim’, he said, “I love you and your wife, but truth of the matter is, Chrissy’s going
to do what Chrissy’s going to do. You really don’t have much choice, now that she’s 18.
She’s determined. Your going to have to accept whatever she decides.”
I hung up the phone. Something very deep within me began to cry out. “Never”.
I will never accept Chrissy being away from the Lord!” I knew that if she continued on
the present path, there would be nothing but destruction awaiting her.
There came a divine showdown. God strongly impressed me to stop crying,
screaming, or talking to anyone else about Chrissy. I was to converse with no one but
God. In fact, I knew I should have no further contact with Chrissy --- Until God acted. I
was just to believe and obey what I had preached so often----
“Call upon me in the day of trouble, and I will answer you.”
Jim said, I dissolved in a flood of tears, I knew I had to let go of this situation.
Back home in New York, I began to pray with an intensity and growing faith as never
before. Whatever bad news I would recieve about Chrissy, I kept interceding and actually
began praising God for what I knew he would do soon. I made no attempts to see her.
Carol and I endured the Christmas season with real sadness. I was pathetic, sitting around
trying to open presents with our other two children, without Chrissy.
February came. One cold Teusday night during the prayer meeting, I talked from
Acts 4 about the church boldly calling on God in the face of persecution. We entered into
a time of prayer, everyone reaching out to the Lord in concert together.
An usher handed me a note. A young women whom I felt to be spiritually
sensitive had written: “Pastor Cymbala, I feel impressed that we should stop the meeting
and all pray for your daughter.”
I hesitated. Was it right to change to flow of the service and focus on my personal
need?
Yet something in the note seemed to ring true. In a few minutes I picked up the
microphone and told the congregation what had just happened. “The truth of the matter,”
I said, “although I haven’t talked much about it, is that my daughter is very far from God
these days. She thinks up is down, and down is up; dark is light, and light is dark. But I
know God can break through to her, and so I’m going to ask Pastor Boekstaaf to lead us
in praying for Chrissy. Let’s all join hands across the sanctuary.”
As my associate began to lead the people, I stood behind him with my hand on his
back. My tear ducts had run dry, but I prayed as best I knew.
To describe what happened in the next minutes, I can only employ a metaphor:
The church turned into a labor room. The sounds of women giving birth are not pleasant,
but the results are wonderful. Paul knew this when he wrote, “My dear children, for
whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you....”
There arose a groaning... a sense of desparate determination, as if to say, “Satan,
you will not have this girl. Take your hands off her ... she’s coming back!” I was
overwhelmed. The force of that vast throng calling on God almost literally knocked me
over.
When I got home that night, Carol was waiting up for me. We sat at the kitchen
table drinking coffee, and I said, “It’s over.”
What’s over?” she wondered.
“It’s over with Chrissy. You would have had to be in the prayer meeting tonight.
I tell you, if there’s a God in heaven, this whole nightmare is finally over.” I described
what had taken place.
32 hours later, on Thursday morning, as I was shaving, Carol suddenly burst
through the door, her eyes wide. “Go downstairs!” she blurted. “Chrissy’s here.”
“Chrissy’s here?” “Yes, Go down!” “Just God down, she urged, “It’s you she
wants to see.”
I wiped off the shaving cream and headed down the stairs, my heart pounding.. As
I came around the corner, I saw my daughter on the kitchen floor, rocking on her hands
and knees, sobbing. Cautiously I spoke to her name:
“Chrissy?”
She grabbed my pant leg and began pouring out her anguish..... “Daddy... Daddy.... I’ve
sinned against God. I’ve sinned against myself. I’ve sinned against you and Mommy.
Please forgive me...”
My vision was clouded by tears .... I pulled her up from the floor and held her close as we
cried together.
“Suddenly she drew back. Daddy, Who was praying for me? Who was praying
for me? Her voice was like that of a cross-examining attorney.
“What do you mean, Chrissy?”
ON TUESDAY NIGHT, DADDY -- WHO WAS PRAYING FOR ME?” I didn’t say
anything, so she went on.
“In the middle of the night, God woke me up and showed me I was heading
toward this abyss. There was no bottom to it.... it scared me to death. I was so
frightened. I realized how hard I’ve been, how wrong, who rebellious.
“But at the same time, it was like God wrapped his arms around me and held me
tight. He kept me from sliding any farther as he said, “I still love you.”
“Daddy, tell me the truth -- who was praying for me Tuesday night?”
Jim Cymbala said, I looked into her bloodshot eyes, and once again I recognized the
daughter we had raised.
Chrissy’s return to the Lord became evident immediately. By that fall, God had
opened a miraculous door for her to enroll at a Bible college, today she’s a Pastor’s wife
in the midwest with three wonderful children
" `My house will be called
a house of prayer for all nations’ ?
Will this be a house of Prayer?
Will we be a people of Prayer?
Will we cry out to God until we hear from Him?
Do you have a Chrissy in your life? We will call upon the Lord in this place, every Lord’s
Day, We have a Prayer meeting every Wednesday Night.... If your serious about seeing
God’s Hand work in your own life, and in the life of the church.... it will come through
consitent and persistent prayer....... I can’t think of anything more important, can you?
We will close this service with a concert of prayer...... If you have come here today with a
need, come and pray, if God has put something, someone on your heart today, come and
let’s lift our voices to God in prayer..... I’m guessing this morning that everyone of us has
something that we need to take to the Lord.
As we lift our voices together..... The God of Heaven will hear us...
