A
Study of the Book of John
“That
You May Believe”
Sermon
# 7
“When God Gets Mad!”
John 2:13-21
John apparently considered the incident
recorded in John 2 beginning in verse thirteen to be one of the more significant actions
of the Lord at the beginning of His earthly ministry. Our task today is to learn why this
is true and what the cleansing of the temple has to teach men and women living in the 21st
century America.
First of all, by way of introduction we need to
understand that the temple in Jerusalem under discussion is not the first temple built by
Solomon (1 Kings 6-7), nor is it the second temple rebuilt by the Jews returning from the
Babylonian captivity (Ezra 6:15), but rather the third temple known as “Herod’s Temple” which has been
under construction for 46 years up to this point.
There are in fact two cleansings of the temple,
the one found here in our text in John which occurred at the beginning of our Lord’s
earthly ministry and the one recorded by the Synoptic gospels (Matt, Mark and Luke) which
occurs at the end of the Lord’s ministry and seems to precipitate His crucifixion!
The cleansing of the temple
does not permanently eliminate the abuses described in our text. The same conditions
existed when Jesus cleanses the temple the second time. I believe that the first cleansing
of the temple was to make a statement about Himself; the temple and the Jewish religious
system – not to permanently solve the problem.
We pick up with the story
in verse thirteen,
Passover is the annual feast commemor-ating
the liberation of the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt, and it is the most important of the
three religious feasts that Israel kept each year. By Jewish law every adult male within
fifteen miles of Jerusalem was required to make the journey to the Temple for the
celebration.
But more than that, Passover was a special
time of worship … both in the temple and in the homes. Passover was the biggest
event of the year. Passover was a time of great expectancy across the land – probably
very much like what we experience during the Christmas season. The entire land bustled
with the spirit of Passover.
But what we see is not what
one would expect …
First,
We See An Expression Of Man’s Irreverence. (2: 14)
Verse fourteen tells us what Jesus found as he entered the temple, “And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business.”
It was at Passover that two important matters
of worship occurred. First, Jews and Gentiles who had converted to the Jewish religion
were required to pay his temple tax as an
offering to the Lord. Every Jew over the age of nineteen years of age had to pay his
yearly half shekel tax, the equivalent of two days’ wages. The problem lay in the
fact that this tax could only be paid in the official acceptable currency. Any other
currency had to be exchanged. The hidden cost of this exchange could equal another two
days wages.
When I went to Mexico
recently I exchanged some dollars into pesos as I entered the country. On my return I
wanted to convert the pesos I had left back into dollars, because I could not spend pesos
in the US. Believe me when I say that I did not get near the amount in dollars when I
changed currencies. That is the situation here as well.
And
secondly, a sacrifice would be offered for the atonement of sin. When it came to the sacrifices each worshipper was
allowed to bring to the temple the animal of his own selection, but just let him try it! Charles Swindoll adds, “Adding
to the corruption was the way sacrifices were approved. A fee was charged to inspect all
the animals brought to the temple for sacrifice. Most of the time, the inspectors found
the animal blemished in some way, disqualifying it as a legitimate offering. This forced
the out-of-town traveler to purchase an ‘approved’ animal at the temple for
often ten to twenty times the fair market value. No wonder Christ was enraged.” (Charles Swindoll. “Exalting Christ ,
The Son of God” Bible Study Guide. A Study of John 1-5. (Fullerton, Calif.:
Insight For Living, 1975) p. 35]
The temple was divided into
four distinct areas; the Court of the Gentiles – covered an area of about
fourteen acres , the court of the Jewish women, the court of Jewish men and the
court of the priest. (Insert
Power Point drawing of Herod’s Temple here)
As Jesus made his way into the Temple the
sights, sounds and smells must have been almost overwhelming. It smelled and sounded more
like a livestock auction than it did a place of worship.
Instead of the court of the Gentiles being a
place where the nation of Israel was a blessing to all peoples, it became a disgrace. What
made this such a shame is that is was the only part of the temple open for Gentiles to
worship God. Yes, it was necessary for animals to be made available for sacrifices, but it
was not necessary for the animals to be located in the temple courtyard.
Underlying all of this activity was a corrupt
system designed by the high priest and his cronies of ripping off the common people and
pilgrims. The family of the high priest had
perverted Temple worship into a means of extortion well known to all. The real shame of
this spiritual robbery was that the Gentiles, and indeed all seeking Israel, were
prevented from true worship. The house of God, intended to be missionary, had
become mercenary.
Not only was he angry at the
noise, smell and confusion, but he was also angry about the extortion and racketeering
that was going on.
They were charging exorbitant prices. Just like
when you go to the theater and a 50 cent bag of popcorn cost you $4.00.
Just for a few moments I want to consider how
this may apply to the church of the 21st century. “Is
it possible that we can turn the church building into (an emporium), a house of
merchandise? Whenever we begin to sell things in the church, the danger exists. At first,
we may do this because we are trying to facilitate the worship of those who come. I think
temple businessmen would have said the same thing about their motivation. Whether it is
songbooks, tapes and video’s being sold by a guest speaker or musician, or candy bars
being sold to pay for a youth retreat, we need to be very careful that it does not turn
the church building into a shopping mall.”
[Bob Deffinbaugh.
“The Cleansing of the Temple” John 2:12-22 – www.bible.org]
I sometimes wonder what God
thinks of His church in the 21st century. Have we gotten off the path that He
wants us to follow? Have we turned his house into a social club….just another place
to make business contacts? Are we just going through the motions of worship? Have we lost
focus on true worship of our Heavenly Father?
Our hearts can become like the outer court of
the temple in Jerusalem. Even while we sit in church, the marketplaces of this world can
be spinning through our heads. When we settle into our pew, what is our mind focused on?
Are we thinking of God or are we thinking about the things we need to get done at home or
at work? After we return from church do we say, “I
didn’t like that service. None of the hymns were my favorites. The musicians played
too slow…or too fast. The pastor’s sermon was too long.” The question
is, “Who is at the center of
that view of worship” Certainly
not God. This “what is in it for me”
attitude is what Jesus is condemning in our text.
The way we worship reflects what we think about
God. Just going through the rituals of a dry orthodoxy indicates that our God is far away
and all but dead to us. Joyless performance reveals a dry lifeless relationship.
We
Not Only See An Expression Of Man’s Irreverence but…
Secondly,
We See An Example of Divine Displeasure. (2:15-16)
Have you ever considered, “What makes
God angry?” In verse fifteen we see Jesus in an uncommon light, the light
of burning white anger.
“When He had made a whip of
cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out
the changers’ money and overturned the tables. (16) And He said to those who sold
doves, “Take
these things away! Do not make My Father’s house a house of
merchandise!”
R. Kent Hughes in his commentary on these
verses states, “Some people have tried to water down Christ’s
intensity. For instance, one man said, ‘Catching up some of the reeds that served as
bedding for the cattle, he twisted them into the semblance of a scourge, which could hurt
neither man nor beast. He did not use it.’ Frankly, Scripture does not say who felt
the sting of Jesus’ whip. But when the accounts of the second cleansing of the temple
are considered along with the drama of this situation, it is unthinkable that our Lord did
not use the whip.” [R. Kent Hughes. “Preaching the Word:
John –That You May Believe.” (Wheaton: Ill.: Crossway Books, 1999) p. 67]
Christ’s anger is rooted in his reaction
to the irreverence the he sees toward the worship of God.
We have a rather anemic picture of Jesus for
the most part. I don’t like most of the pictures depicting Jesus. Perhaps I am wrong
but I don’t see Jesus that way. I don’t believe that you work in a carpenters
shop using hand tools everyday of your adult life until age thirty and not develop some
muscles. I picture Jesus as a rather robust individual and when he took up a whip in his
hands and had fire in his eyes, people noticed and people moved.
Even
so, obviously one man with a whip made of cord could not have prevailed physically over a
vast crowd of traders. Yet no one opposed Him in His action. It may have been his
demeanor, or the authority of His words. Perhaps Jesus had an ally in the consciences of
the traders. They had to know in their hearts that whether it what they were doing was
legal or not they should not have been there.
Not Only See A Display Of Divine Displeasure but…
Third, We See
A Demand For Jesus’ Authority (vv.
18-21)
Yet the actions of Jesus
would not go completely unchallenged eventually the religious leaders show up and in verse
eighteen they say,
“…What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?”
The issue is not what has been done but who has done it. It is ultimately a
question of authority. For someone to cleanse the temple and correct the wrongdoing
found there implies having the authority to do so. They think that If Jesus is acting on
God’s behalf, then He should be willing to establish His credentials by exercise of
divine power. If He is acting on God’s authority then let Him give a sign to prove
it! What they are looking for is evidence that Jesus has the authority to disrupt and
condemn their religious practices. If He is going to act like the Messiah, let Him produce
a sign that would show Him to be the Messiah. They are asking “Who are you to cleanse the temple? What gives
you the right.”
Not only does Jesus not
provide any evidence of His authority, he confuses the leaders by his response in verse
nineteen, “…
Instead of doing what they asked He speaks to
them of the ultimate “sign” – the sign of his resurrection. Jesus did not
prove that He was the Son of God by his perfect life, nor by His great miracles, or by His
unsurpassed teaching, He proved it by rising from the dead.
The religious leaders think He is referring to
Herod’s Temple, a temple which we have already seen has been under construction for
46 years. Does Jesus really think that he can build a temple in three days that already
has been under construction for 46 years?
Application
I think that it is a mistake to only view what
happened here as pertaining to the temple in Jerusalem or of the church building in our
day. The New Testament teaches us that we are the temple of the Holy Spirit. The Old
Testament temple has been replaced by the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in the
hearts of believers. The Apostle Paul states in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 “or do not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who
is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? (20) For you were bought at a
price; therefore glorify God in you body and in your spirit which are God’s.”
Just
as the Temple in Jerusalem could be polluted so can the temple of our lives. We can and do
contaminate it by allowing sin in our hearts. And just as Jesus cleansed the Jerusalem
temple, he also wants to cleanse us from sin.
1 John 1:9
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”