The Servant Arrives - He Is Judge Series

#5 A House of Supplication: I love what Dr. Wiersbe said, "The Court of The Gentiles should have been a place for praying, but it was instead a place for preying and paying." I mean of ALL the things Jesus could have said about the purpose of God's House does it shock you that He said it was first and foremost to be a house of prayer? You want to know how important prayer was to the early church? Read Acts! Read Acts 2:42; 4:31; 12:5; 16:25. Are you tired of hearing me say nothing has changed in 2000 years, God's House should be a house of supplication. Is Crossway that sort of house? Is prayer a priority for it and its members? If so, why do professing Christians refuse to pray? Why will a church meal be well attended while a prayer meeting is deserted?

#6 A House of Salvation: You've heard the expression it's not about religion it's about relationship? There was a WHOLE LOT of religion going on in the Temple. And it was robbing people blind! The religious leaders of Jesus' day weren't just robbing people of their money, they also were robbing them of potential salvation and a relationship with the One, True God. Once again, nothing has changed in 2000 years, God's House should be a house of salvation. Jesus said we "are the salt of the earth." What do you know about salt? Preservative...healing properties. THAT'S what Crossway is to be! A house in which people's lives are preserved, for all eternity, thanks to the coming to the knowledge of Jesus as their Lord and Savior. A house of healing in which people's lives can be restored to the health of a relationship with God and a group of fellow believers who love them, encourage them and build them up.

VI. He Is Judge: The Leader's Animosity (Read and explain 11:17-19)

A. Jesus' actions and words as Judge of Israel, while met with astonishment from the crowd, was met with animosity and hatred by the religious leaders, the chief priests and the scribes. These men were among those who comprised the principal leadership in the Sanhedrin. They were the ones benefiting the most by the 3 ring circus that God's House had become. They feared Jesus' popularity, they feared losing power (social, economic, political), they feared a public uprising (in which Rome would intervene).

B. Threatened, they were seeking a way to destroy him. All the verbs in Mark 11:18 are imperfects, they were continuously looking for a way to kill Jesus this last week of His life. His actions and words as Judge that fateful Monday sealed His doom, as He knew it would! Gundry: "He will be crucified, then, not because of any weakness in him. Quite oppositely, because of His power! Furthermore, the power for which he will be crucified is a power that he exerts for the benefit of all the nations, Gentiles as well as Jews...So for his crucifixion, Jesus deserves honor and worship, not scorn and ridicule."

C. It would scarcely have been safe for Jesus to have spent the night in the city now, with so many foes actively plotting his death; but Bethany was still safe, and so there he returned as was his custom during these first days of the Passion Week.