On Line Bible Study - For the week August 11-17, 2008

Lesson 348

Matthew 21:12ff . . .
Jesus entered the temple courts . . .

This is the beginning of the end. Matthew 21:12 is a section of the gospel that comes to its conclusion in Matthew 23:39 - . . . . For I tell you (Jerusalem), you will not see me again until . . .

12-14 Jesus went straight to the Temple and threw out everyone who had set up shop, buying and selling. He kicked over the tables of loan sharks and the stalls of dove merchants. He quoted this text:

My house was designated a house of prayer;
You have made it a hangout for thieves. (See Isaiah 56:7.)

Now there was room for the blind and crippled to get in. They came to Jesus and he healed them. (From The Message)

We had an interesting conversation at a recent Men's Breakfast. We were discussing the healing ministry of Jesus when one of the men who attends the breakfast - who happens to be blind - made the comment: The AMA would not be pleased if Jesus were to come around and heal the blind people. As we pursued what he meant by his remark he spoke about the business that has grown and the money that is to be made around various "disabilities". When we translate this to Jesus' day, we ask the question: Was there money to be made in the temple courts? The answer, obviously, is "Yes!"

Today churches receive countless promotions from a myriad of companies all of which know exactly what we need to do in order to grow, to expand ministries, to start new ones. And, for a price, they are happy to share their expertise with us. Does the church need to be "cleaned out"? Has the business of Christianity pushed out what the church is really supposed to be doing - praying, serving, praising? What has to happen in order for there to be room in the church for it to be doing what it has been called to do?

Look at the response of religious leaders to what Jesus was doing in the temple:

Matthew 21:15-16 When the religious leaders saw the outrageous things he was doing, and heard all the children running and shouting through the Temple, "Hosanna to David's Son!" they were up in arms and took him to task. "Do you hear what these children are saying?" Jesus said, "Yes, I hear them. And haven't you read in God's Word, 'From the mouths of children and babies I'll furnish a place of praise'?" 17 Fed up, Jesus turned on his heel and left the city for Bethany, where he spent the night.

This entire episode reminds us of a passage in Malachi 1. God is frustrated in this passage because the people were offering animals that were unfit as sacrifices.

Malachi 1:10 "Oh, that one of you would shut the temple doors, so that you would not light useless fires on my altar! I am not pleased with you," says the Lord Almighty . . ."

Jesus did not exactly shut the temple doors; but he certainly disrupted the status quo.

And then - there are the praises of the children. Some simply cannot abide anyone else other than themselves on the receiving end of praise!

Early the next morning Jesus came back into the city. He was hungry, and he saw a fig tree. Finding nothing but leaves, Jesus said to the tree:

Matthew 21:18-20 "No more figs from this tree—ever!" The fig tree withered on the spot, a dry stick. The disciples saw it happen. They rubbed their eyes, saying, "Did we really see this? A leafy tree one minute, a dry stick the next?"

In his commentary on the Gospel of Matthew, John Nolland suggests the real question here is not: What made the fig tree wither? The real issue is: Why is this happening? Jesus gives us an insight in his answer:

Matthew 21:21 "Truly, I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and it will be done . . .

In other words, the Lord expects the disciples to bear fruit! Their faith has to make a difference! Their preaching has to result in transformed lives. Their fellowship has to inspire others to love God and each other. Put another way - Bear fruit, or you too will wither!

In all of this, I ponder: What would Jesus think of the church today? Is my life bearing good fruit for the kingdom of God? Do I have faith, and am I exercising it?

Jesus (Matthew?) is intensifying the message, turning up the heat. Time is growing short, and we have to "get it". Do you get it?

For next time read Matthew 21:23-32 if you get the chance.