Clear the Court

Jesus was no stranger to conflict with the Jewish leadership. On more than one occasion His response to their challenges and accusations had left them speechless and fuming. When He entered the Temple and began to drive out those who were buying and selling animals for sacrifice, though, that was the last straw.

 After that, he taught daily in the Temple, but the leading priests, the teachers of religious law, and the other leaders of the people began planning how to kill him. (Luke 19:47, NLT)

Why did this make them so mad?

Jesus Himself tells us His objection to what was going on in the Temple – but He does it in a very Jewish way.

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)

Jesus is using a rabbinic teaching technique called remez. Remez uses part of a passage to refer to the whole passage.

Remember, the Jewish people of this time know their Bibles inside and out. In quoting just a single line from a passage, everyone would understand the whole of what Jesus was saying.

The first line Jesus quotes comes from the book of Isaiah.

“I will also bless the foreigners who commit themselves to the Lord,
    who serve him and love his name,
who worship him and do not desecrate the Sabbath day of rest,
    and who hold fast to my covenant.

I will bring them to my holy mountain of Jerusalem
    and will fill them with joy in my house of prayer.
I will accept their burnt offerings and sacrifices,
    because my Temple will be called a house of prayer for all nations.” (Isaiah 56:6-7, NLT)

The key word here is foreigners.

This story takes place in the Court of the Gentiles (a Gentile is anyone that isn’t Jewish). Gentiles were not allowed to enter certain parts of the Temple. To our ears that sounds like racism, but it wasn’t at all. It’s just that certain right and responsibilities were reserved for those who had entered into a covenant with the God of Israel. If a Gentile were to convert Judaism, he would be able to participate as any ethnic Jew could.

However, just because Gentiles were restricted in certain ways doesn’t mean they weren’t welcome. The Court of the Gentiles was intended to be a place where they could come and hear about the God of the Jews.

Yet when Jesus arrives at the Temple, he finds that the Court of the Gentiles is crowded with merchants.

There was nothing inherently wrong with the selling of sacrificial animals. Not all those who sojourned in Jerusalem had animals of their own to offer. They had to buy them if they were to offer a sacrifice.

I think Jesus was angry – righteously angry – that the one space in the Temple devoted to those that did not yet know the God of Israel had been converted into a marketplace.

The only space left was for the already convinced.

So often the only space left in the Church is for the already convinced.

So often we are more concerned with coddling “insiders” than we are with welcoming “outsiders.”

So often we use language – in our worship, in our messages, and even in our daily conversation – that make no sense to those that don’t know Jesus. I had been a Christian for seven years before anyone explained to me that the “ebenezer” in “Come Thou Fount” refers to a memorial of God’s protection and not to the Scrooge of Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol.” I had to go to seminary to learn what “propitiation” meant.

Here’s the point.

Let’s make space for those that do not yet know Jesus.

You may not plan worship sets or write messages, but you do have a role to play. You can support every effort your church makes to create that space. You can embrace changes made to that end, even if you’d prefer to keep things the same. You can refuse to participate in “holy huddles” and be a welcoming presence to others.

Because it’s not about you. And it’s not about me. It’s about the mission that God has given us.

Let’s make space in our churches and in our homes and in our lives. Let’s not exchange convenience and comfort for the cause of Christ. Let’s clear the Court.

Read Mark 11:15-18. What would it look like to make space for those that don’t know Jesus in the church? What would it look like to make space for those that don’t know Jesus in our lives?

Faithful Servants

Yesterday was an important day.

Billy Graham celebrated his first day in Heaven.

Graham was (and now is more than ever) totally devoted to Jesus.

He gave his life to spreading the message that in Jesus – and only in Jesus – we can be forgiven of our sins and enjoy a reconciled relationship with the God of the universe.

The impact Graham had on our world is nearly impossible to overstate. Through his preaching and teaching, God changed the hearts and lives of countless men and women.

He wasn’t a perfect man, by any means. But, he was a man committed to his Savior. When I heard that he had passed away, could almost hear Jesus saying, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

Our loss is his gain.

Yesterday was important for another reason, though.

It was a celebration of a different sort.

It was my Mama’s birthday.

Most of the world has never heard her name. She has never preached before millions or written a best-seller or met with international leaders.

But as I thought about the impact that Billy Graham has had on the world, I thought also about the impact she has had on my world.

I’ve watched her begin every day by spending time with Jesus – listening to Him and talking with Him as with her best friend.

I’ve watched her open her home to hundreds of people.

I’ve watched her prepare thousands of meals (and batches of cookies) for family and friends and neighbors and just about anyone else that God allowed to cross her path.

I’ve watched her go through cancer with gratitude for each day and then seek out other women going through that same hell, so she could encourage them and pray for them.

I’ve watched her give generously of herself and whatever else she had to those in need.

I’ve watched her humbly serve without complaining even when those of us she serves fail to serve her in return – or, often, to even thank her.

To have a heart like that.

She teaches me more about the love of Jesus every single day.

She makes me want to know Him more and love Him better every single day.

I’m less like Jesus than I want to be, but more like Him than I would have been without her.

Here’s the point.

There is more than one way to be a good and faithful servant of Jesus.

Billy Graham was faithful to the call God made on his life and, as a result, God used him powerfully. My Mama – Chrissy – has been faithful to the call of God on her life and, as a result, God has used her and is using her powerfully.

We need the Billys. We also need the Chrissys.

I, for one, am grateful for both.

You will be missed, Billy.

Happy Birthday, Mama.