Series: When Jesus Comes To Your Town [#2]
JESUS, IN OUR CHURCH
Mark 11:15-19
Preparation Needed Before Sermon:
1. On the order of service page of the bulletin do not list any songs, Scripture, etc¡K Only have the sermon title and text at the top of the page with blank lines going down the page. At the bottom of the page have a note that says, ¡§The preacher made us do this¡¨. (Love Marie Greer- Secretary & Chris St.Clair II- Associate Pastor, Music Minister, & Education Minister.)[Keep announcement page the same.]
2. Move the ¡§fancy¡¨ desk that is in the foyer to where the Lord¡¦s Supper table usually is- up front in the sanctuary. Put the 2 columns that are usually in the foyer on the stage (1 by the clavinova and 1 by the piano). Move the wooden stand off of the stage and have Chris and singers move their music stands to the side before the preaching.
Introduction:
I¡¦m sure everyone is wandering what is going on this morning with a few things. On your bulletin, you probably noticed that none of the songs were listed. Hopefully you read down far enough to know who is responsible for that.
On the lines provided on your bulletin I would like for you to write the following: Number each of the 1st 3 lines (1, 2, and 3). On those lines list the 3 things that are different about the furniture set up in the sanctuary.
Now skip 1 space and number the next 3 lines (1,2, and 3). List 3 things about last weeks sermon that you remember. If you were not here last week list 3 things about the last sermon you heard preached.
Now skip another space and number the next 3 lines (1,2, and 3). List 3 ways that you applied last weeks sermon (or the last sermon you heard) to your life.
By the way, I do not want to see these so take them with you when you leave.
Last week I asked the question, ¡§How would Jesus react and how would you react if Jesus came to our town¡¨? This morning as we continue in our series ¡§When Jesus Comes To Your Town¡¨, let me get a little more specific. What would Jesus¡¦ reaction and our reactions be if Jesus came to our Church service today here at Bel Aire Baptist Church? (By the way, I do hope that the presence of God is here today. If not, we have huge problems.)
Mark 11:11
First Impressions Of Our Church?
Jesus was ending His ministry in the Temple- His Father¡¦s house of prayer, the place where God¡¦s presence dwelt. He was about to complete His life upon earth. The night before, as He had stood off by Himself in the Temple observing all that was taking place, His thoughts must have been upon His Father, His life now about completed, the great sacrifice He was to pay for man¡¦s sins, the corruption of the Temple taking place all around Him, the worshipping that should be taking place, and so much more. I¡¦m sure his heart was broken. Right before Him was a picture of the terrible sin for which He was to die. The Temple itself, the place where men should be able to draw close to God, was corrupted by men. It had become anything but a house of prayer.
There was much more to the Temple than just a building. The Temple sat on top of Mt. Zion, and it is thought to have covered about thirty acres of land. The Temple consisted of two parts, the Temple building itself and the Temple precincts or courtyards.
The temple building was a small, ornate structure which sat in the center of the Temple property. It was called the Holy Place or Holy of Holies, and only the High Priest could enter its walls; but even he could enter only once during the year, on the Day of Atonement.
The Temple precincts were four courtyards which surrounded the Temple building, each decreasing in their importance to the Jewish mind. It is important to realize that great walls separated the courts from each other.
Court Yard #1:
First there was the Court of the Priests. Only the priests were allowed to enter this court. Within the courtyard stood the great furnishings of worship: the Altar of Burnt Offering, The Brazen Laver, the Seven Branched lamp-stand, the Altar of Incense, and the Table of Showbread.
Court Yard #2:
The Court of the Israelites was next. This was a huge courtyard where Jewish worshippers met together for joint services on the great feast days. It was also where worshippers handed over their sacrifices to the priests.
Court Yard #3:
The Court of the Women was the third courtyard. Women were usually limited to this area except for worship. They could, however, enter the Court of the Israelites when they came to make sacrifice or worship in a joint assembly on a great feast day.
Court Yard #4:
The Court of the Gentiles was the last courtyard. It covered a vast space, surrounding all the other courtyards, and was the place of worship for all Gentile converts to Judaism.
We know from a comment that Jesus makes later on concerning the physical beauty and awesome size of the Temple that He was not impressed by physical appearances.
If Jesus would have been in our building last night or saw what sort of ¡§Church¡¨ things were going on during the week, what would be His 1st impression? I¡¦m sure He wouldn¡¦t care that we have a beautiful sanctuary or a projector system, etc¡K He wouldn¡¦t care that the songs weren¡¦t listed in the bulletin or that the furniture was rearranged.
Mark 11:15-17
First Priority Of Our Church¡¦s Ministry?
Jesus was revealing who He was by cleansing the Temple. He was proclaiming to all generations that He had the right to determine how the Temple was to be used, and to clean it of corruptions. As God¡¦s Son, the Temple was His dwelling place, the place where the worship of God was to be especially known. In cleansing the Temple, Jesus was revealing how men were to treat and use the Temple of God.
The Temple, a place meant for worship and prayer, is no different than Bel Aire Baptist Church. This place was built in 1960 for the purpose of worship and prayer. A place where people could come and grow stronger in the Lord so they could go into a community that needed the light of Jesus to shine brightly. Jesus has the right to determine how our services are designed. Jesus has the right to be worshipped.
Jesus began and ended His ministry by cleansing the Temple. The two cleansings were separate events which marked the opening and closing of His ministry. This is an example of the importance to God of the Temple as God¡¦s house of prayer and worship.
I want you to notice that 3 years before, Jesus found the same problem. Although Jesus had been teaching for 3 years what God really wanted from them, they had not changed.
Bel Aire let me ask you an important question, ¡§Have we grown spiritually in the last 3 years¡¨? ¡§Have we listened to what God has given us in the sermons, Bible studies, etc¡K; and applied them¡¨? Let me give you a reminder of what was preached in the month of January in 2005- 3 years ago.
¡§Taking Care Of Business¡¨ (Rich young ruler. A message of salvation and following Christ.)
¡§Meeting With The Boss¡¨ (Prayer.)
¡§Notice: Urgent Message Inside¡¨ (Bible reading and study.)
¡§Not That!¡¨ (Tithing.)
Just in case you think that it is just me, let me take you back to January 1999. The Church had called me as pastor, but I was not officially on ¡§the field¡¨ until February 1, 1999. Here is the sermons and who preached them.
¡§God Can Use You In 1999¡¨ [Shawn Drake] (Allowing God to change you and start the New Year for Jesus.)
¡§Call From God¡¨ [Randy Evans] (Present your bodies as living sacrifices to God.)
¡§Stories About Jesus¡¨ [Monty Elam] (The story of the men who cared enough about their paralyzed friend that they lowered him through the roof.)
¡§The 7 I Wills Of Jesus¡¨ [Monty Elam] (Jesus¡¦ purpose of coming, ¡§To seek and save that which was lost¡¨.)
¡§The Church¡¨ [Randy Evans] (Our main task and not forgetting what matters.)
Ask yourself, ¡§How many of these sermons have I applied to my life? Look at your bulletin where you were to write 3 things about last Sunday¡¦s sermon. Many of you probably didn¡¦t even remember what last Sunday¡¦s sermon was about. If you did remember, how many things did you apply?
As my mother would always say, ¡§I don¡¦t say all of these things because I like to hear myself talk. I want you to change. I want you to learn from your mistakes and fix them.¡¨ So does Jesus!
What is our priority at Bel Aire Baptist Church?
First To Be Cast Out By Jesus?
Mark 11:18
When Jesus entered the temple, it was the Court of the Gentiles that He entered. It is this court, the outer court, that is the center of Jesus¡¦ anger.
Great barriers were built between people in their worship. Imagine the huge walls (barriers) separating people from God, and the various courtyards favoring Jewish men before women and all Jews before any Gentile. Imagine the self-righteousness, pride, self-centeredness, prejudice, envy, and jealousy. Where is love, care, ministry, evangelism, social consciousness, and a sense of human need in such a scheme of religion? Every generation of believers must search their hearts for any sign of prejudice and division, and cleanse their hearts of such sins.
Jesus cast some out of the Temple. This whole scene took place in the court of the Gentiles. There were five offenses or corruptions that caused Jesus to cast men out of the Temple. As we look at these 5, would Jesus cast you out of Church for one of these corruptions?
Jesus cast out those who¡K
Changed His Plan Of Worship
The outer court of the Temple, the court of the Gentiles, was the place where Gentiles worshipped; but it was tragically abused. It had become nothing more than a commercial marketplace owned, and in many cases operated, by the priests. It was used for the selling and buying of sacrificial animals which included oxen and sheep as well as smaller doves and pigeons. It was used for the inspection of the animals¡¦ purity, and it was also used for the exchanging of foreign currencies. Every Passover season found thousands of pilgrims from all nations traveling great distances to come to the Temple. It was usually impossible for a person to bring his own animal for sacrifice; but if he did, he had to get it by the inspector, which often cost a fee. The bickering back and forth created an atmosphere of utter chaos that apparently gave off the sound of a large shopping mall.
Jesus cast out those who¡K
Changed His Desire For The Temple
Notice in verse 16 that people were using the Temple grounds as a thoroughfare. The Temple and its grounds were so large that the entrances had become a short-cut from one section of town to another, especially if one was carrying a heavy load. The Temple wasn¡¦t to be used as an avenue for ¡§the easy road¡¨. It wasn¡¦t suppose to be like everywhere else. Jesus desired that the Temple be a place of prayer and worship.
Jesus cast out those who¡K
Changed His Desired Atmosphere
Jesus cast out those who affected the atmosphere of prayer within the Temple. The Temple was more than just a building and grounds. It was a ¡§house of prayer.¡¨ In fact, note Jesus¡¦ exact words. He said three things about the Temple.
The Temple is ¡§My house.¡¨ ¡§My¡¨ is possessive. Christ possesses the Temple. He is the Lord, the Owner of it. Any who are within its walls are either His guests or His servants. No one has the right to mistreat someone else¡¦s house. The guest and servant are to respect the property of the Owner.
¡§My house shall be called...the house of prayer.¡¨ The purpose of the Lord¡¦s house is prayer. It is to be used for prayer so much that it becomes known and called ¡§the house of prayer.¡¨
¡§My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer.¡¨ The Temple is to be the same in all nations: a house of prayer. No nation, no people is to use it for any other purpose.
The atmosphere for prayer is hindered by...
„« Noise
„« Personal barriers
„« Disturbed spirits
„« Divisive spirits
„« Spiritual un-preparedness
„« Traditional religious barriers
Jesus cast out those who¡K
Changed His Target Group
The Temple was to be a house of prayer for all nations. Neither the Gentiles nor anyone else were to be excluded. The women and Gentiles were to have as much access to the inner court of worship as the Jewish men.
The Court of the Gentiles was to have an atmosphere of prayer as much as any other court of the Temple. There were no sections for worship within the Temple, not in the Lord¡¦s mind. All the Temple and its courtyards were for prayer and worship.
Jesus cast out those who¡K
Changed The Purpose Of The Temple
Unfortunately, it was the priests themselves who changed the purpose of the Temple. It is not known just when, but at some point in history the priests decided to take advantage of the worshippers¡¦ need for sacrificial animals and supplies. The priests saw how they could reap some of the profit for the welfare of the Temple and for themselves. They began to set up booths within the Court of the Gentiles for the convenience of the pilgrims and to help defray the cost of the Temple and to meet their own needs.
Conclusion:
Jesus caused a reaction when the truth of the Temple was proclaimed. Some were so mad that they wanted to kill Jesus. They didn¡¦t care about what Jesus wanted. All they knew was they did not like how Jesus made them feel.
Some were astonished at Jesus¡¦ teaching and by His actions.
Mark 11:19
Jesus left when the truth was rejected by the leaders.
Would Jesus leave our Church because we continue to reject His teaching?
