4 Minute Read

Prepare Your Heart

To the best of your ability, get rid of all distractions. Take a few minutes to breathe deeply and quiet yourself in the Lord’s presence. Then, ask the Lord to speak to you in this time. Let Him know that you will listen and make whatever adjustments He will reveal to you.

Read God’s Word

Exodus 20-21
Matthew 21:12-32

A Verse for Today

Slowly and reflectively read the following verse(s) and listen to what God will say to you through His written Word. Consider writing down any insights He reveals to you.

Matthew 21:12-13 (CSB): “Jesus went into the temple and threw out all those buying and selling. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those selling doves. He said to them, ‘It is written, my house will be called a house of prayer, but you are making it a den of thieves!'”

Reflecting on God’s Word

I grew up in a home and going to churches where the Bible was highly valued. It was seen as God’s perfect Word without any error. I no longer hold those views because my parents believe them. Instead, I hold unshakeably to those views because I believe them. I am fully persuaded that the Bible is God’s divinely inspired Words to us without any error.

However, holding to such a high view of Scripture does not make us immune to misunderstanding God’s Word. I have discovered that someone who believes in the inerrancy of Scripture can study it and still come away with some crazy, unbiblical ideas.

One case in point is the words that I have chosen for today.

There are so many Christians, particularly the older generation, that believe that Matthew 21:12-13 forbids selling products in the church building. I’ve watched good-hearted Christians pull money out of their wallets and drop it in the offering plate, but who would become irate if you pulled money out of your wallet to purchase cookies from a Girl Scout who attended the church, or purchased a cassette tape or CD from a singing group who was visiting the church. As a child, the principle that I developed from watching this play out was: “Capitalism is good for outside church. But it has no place inside the sanctuary.”

As I grew up and developed a better handle on how to study God’s Word to understand what it actually means by what it says, I realized that I was completely misunderstanding what Jesus said in Matthew 21:12-13.

Jesus wasn’t forbidding making purchases in the place of worship. Instead, He was expressing His anger at sellers who were taking advantage of worshippers. Items that were needed for worship (sheep, doves, etc.) were being sold for unjustly high prices. The sellers were, as Jesus called them, “thieves.” That would leave the worshipper, who may have shown up with a heart prepared to worship, with an empty wallet and an angry heart. Heart-felt worship was the last thing on anyone’s mind after the costly purchase(s). Further, all of the animals and things created such a chaotic scene or horrible stench that no worshipper was moved to prayer. He just wanted to get in, do his “worshipping,” and get out.

The Temple was no longer a place of heartfelt worship; it was a place of thievery, anger, frustration, and so much more. No wonder Jesus got angry!!!

According to Matthew 21:13, Jesus forbids anything that would distract from worship. Anything that would hinder a worshipper’s desire to enjoy communing with God should go.

But, as New Testament believers, we should take this application further.

Jesus said: “My house shall be called a house of prayer.” He was clearly referring to the Jerusalem Temple, the place where people showed up to do their worshipping. However, the Jerusalem Temple was destroyed in 70 A.D. when the Roman general, Titus, completely dismantled it so that no stone remained upon another (Matthew 24:1-2).

But, if you look at 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, you realize that the Temple still exists! It’s just not in Jerusalem … unless we happen to be there. Our body is the Temple in which God’s Holy Spirit now dwells if we are trusting in Jesus Christ for eternal life. That means that we are a Temple, a place of worship where God dwells! So, Jesus’ words in Matthew 21:13 tell us that we should eliminate any distractions that would keep us from enjoying a moment-by-moment relationship with God that includes prayer.

Are you worshipping God in the Temple right now? Is your body, God’s house/Temple, a house of prayer? Are there any distractions that are keeping you from being a “house of prayer?”

Spend Time in Prayer

  • Ask God to point out any hindrances in your life that are keeping your heart from worshipping Him.
  • Ask God to forgive you of any sin, and work to get rid of those distractions.
  • Ask God to help you experience the joy that comes from realizing you are His Temple, a place of worship, and you are to enjoy Him every moment of every day.

Going Deeper

If you want to dig a little deeper into what the Bible means by “house of prayer,” consider reading the following GotQuestions article:

“What does it mean that the house of prayer had been turned into a den of thieves?”

“Why does God call His house a house of prayer (Isaiah 56:7)?”

Sharing

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Matt Ellis is the pastor of First Baptist Church in Polk City, Florida (fbcpolkcity.com)