Clear The Temple!

Jesus entered the Temple and began to drive out all the people buying and selling animals for sacrifice. He knocked over the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those selling doves. He said to them, "The Scriptures declare, "My Temple will be called a house of prayer,' but you have turned it into a den of thieves!" -- Matthew 21: 12-13 (NLT)

Continuing on the march to the cross, the Gospel of Matthew tells the story of how Jesus clears the temple. Now we must realize that the people who were selling doves were not only defiling God's house but they would routinely significantly over charge visitors who came from foreign lands. Imagine the righteous anger Jesus must have felt here. He knows that in less than one week He will endure the cross -- one of the most horrific forms of capital punishment the depraved mind of man has ever devised and take upon Him all of the sins of mankind. Yet, here in the very house of God, people were seeking elicit dirty profit and gain in the name of His Father. As it was, so it can still be today"

How many of our churches today need the tables overturned? What do people see when they walk into our churches? What have we allowed on the holy altar of God almighty? I have heard the cries of "take it easy"you're too serious." I will take it easy when I stand before Christ and He says "well done good and faithful servant." Until then the job is not done and the enemy will seek any little crack in our personal and corporate integrity to damage our witness for Christ and our effectiveness in bringing people to the cross for the repentance of their sins.

What are the doves we sell to our congregants? What have we allowed into our churches under the guise of "serving the Lord?" In Micah 3 we see the leaders of Israel falsely believing they were serving God:

You rulers make decisions based on bribes; you priests teach God's laws only for a price; you prophets won't prophesy unless you are paid. Yet all of you claim to depend on the Lord . "No harm can come to us," you say, "for the Lord is here among us." -- Micah 3: 11 (NLT)

No He is not. The issue is not the building you are standing in. The issue is not that you believe you are doing it for God in your heart because your heart is wickedly deceitful above all things according to Jeremiah. The only thing that is the issue; the only thing that truly matters, is if what we do lines up with Scripture -- period. Whatever does not needs to be cleared from the temple today.