Restoring True Corporate Worship-1

RESTORING TRUE CORPORATE(Collective) WORSHIP-I—Mark 11:15-19

Attention:

Need:

The need for current (temple) worship to be cleansed/readied/restored/renovated

Recovery/restoration of worship assumes that there was a time when worship was truly worship. A need for ‘Revival’ is a statement that true worship has been lost.

*Jn..4:23-24—““But the hour is coming, & now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit & truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, & those who worship Him must worship in spirit & truth.””

Jesus showed us the importance of recovering true corporate worship.

*Jesus took it upon Himself to remove the hindrances to true corporate worship.

True corporate worship can be restored/recovered.

How is true corporate worship to be restored/recovered?

6 landmarks toward recovering true corporate worship.

Jesus’ ‘Triumphal Entry’ into Jerusalem had taken place the day before(11:1-11) which was a Monday(MacArthur Matthew 16-23 pg. 265-266). He & the 12 had then retreated to Bethany for the night(:11). The temple cleansing takes place “the next day”(:12) on a Tuesday. The Passover/Lord’s Supper would be celebrated on Thursday evening(or early Friday by Jewish reckoning).

1—True corporate worship is Restored/Recovered thru...

PHYSICAL CONFRONTATION(:15a)

Explanation:(:15a)Angered to action

:15—“So they came to Jerusalem. Then Jesus went into the temple & began to drive out those who bought & sold in the temple, & overturned the tables of the money changers & the seats of those who sold doves.”

The “Temple”(ieron) referred to here includes the entire complex of buildings, the outer courts of the temple. The Holy Place, inclusive of the Holy of Holies, is signified by naos. The Temple grounds consisted of 4 outer courts designated to separate according to association as God’s people & per gender—....

1)‘Court of Gentiles’(General Public)—Largest open area & surrounded the 3 other courts & Temple proper.

2)‘Court of Women’—Smaller(square) area situated before the eastern(main) entrance to the temple but separated from direct contact with the Temple proper as wel as from the Court of Gentiles by walls with at least 3 entrances—to the east, north & south.

3)‘Court of Israel’(men)—This still smaller court was rectangular & was sandwiched between the Court of Women (to the west) & the Court of Priests (to the east). It was connected to the Court of Women by the western exit(Nicanor Gate) from the Court of Women.

4)‘Court of Priests’—Surrounded the Temple proper(Holy Place) & secured from the Court of Gentiles by a wall with 6 gates(3 north & 3 south).

The Herodian Temple was enclosed by walls ~1000 ft. X 1600 ft. & contained roughly 35 acres—James Brooks(NAC—Mark).

When no other means(His preaching & miracles) had sufficiently accomplished restoration.

Some things just produce anger when they are neglected so that you have to effectively ‘take the bull by the horns,’ in order to restore it to its original glory!

Jn. 2:13-17—“Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, & Jesus went up to Jerusalem. And He found in the temple those who sold oxen & sheep & doves, & the moneychangers doing business. When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep & the oxen, & poured out the changers’ money & overturned the tables. And He said to those who sold doves, “Take these things away! Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise!” Then His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up.””

The populace generally expected the Messiah to right all wrongs & injustices, which they perceived to be present due to the Roman occupiers. But they never considered the wrongs & injustices to be centered in themselves & exemplified in their worship!

No one could rightly raise a hand to stop Jesus’ intervention because all knew that the bazaar was ironically a blasphemous practice.

By His actions Jesus was ensuring a place for Gentiles in the Temple.—James Brooks(NAC—Mark).

Argumentation:

Ps. 4:4-5—“Be angry, & do not sin. Meditate within your heart on your bed, & be still. Selah. Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, And put your trust in the LORD.”

Eph. 4:26-27—““Be angry, & do not sin”: do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil.”

Eccl. 7:9—“Do not hasten in your spirit to be angry, For anger rests in the bosom of fools.”

Thus Anger is not bad in-&-of itself. Any passion is correct if rightly ordered. It is the cause of the anger which can taint the response. If it is driven by flesh, the anger is sinful. If it is driven by God it is commendable.

*1Tim. 3:14-15—“These things I write to you, though I hope to come to you shortly; but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar & ground of the truth.”