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THE GOSPEL OF MARK – THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS

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THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS

5 On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, 16 and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. 17 And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’”
18 The chief priests and the teachers of the law heard this and began looking for a way to kill him, for they feared him, because the whole crowd was amazed at his teaching.
19 When evening came, Jesus and his disciples went out of the city. Mark 11:15-19

Jerusalem! It was early morning but Jesus and His men were already in the city. He headed straight for the temple. The disciples were apprehensive. They were familiar with that look, that gleam in His eye, that determined step. The Master was on a mission and they smelt trouble. He obviously knew exactly what He was going to do, but they had no part in it.

He strode into the outer court where He had observed the evidence of the sheep and cattle market and the money racketeering the day before. With swift action, He overturned the entire enterprise, sending birds, animals and money scattering in all directions. Outraged stall owners and bankers dived after their goods but to no avail. The whole place was in an uproar. Loosed from their prisons, terrified birds and animals flapped and fled to freedom. Coins littered the floor; upturned furniture blocked the path of the angry merchants. The noise and smell were overwhelming. Jesus stood back and watched while His disciples whispered among them, “Now He’s done it! Where will it all end?”

Jesus was a provocative figure. He was undaunted in His confrontation with lies, wrong and evil. He was not afraid to offend people to expose what was in their hearts. This was not an act of mindless rage or personal affront. He was ruthlessly exposing the selfish greed of opportunistic businessmen who saw an opportunity to exploit innocent worshippers to line their own pockets.

It was obvious that the religious leaders were in on the deal because they loudly protested Jesus’ action and planned to do away with Him because His ways and His words were too intrusive of their hypocritical religiosity for comfort. They were losing their grip on the people who were beginning to see through their sham.

Jesus was never afraid of the consequences of His words or actions because He stood for the truth which would always prevail. Not even the threat of death put Him off His avowed purpose of revealing the true nature of the Father.

A Well-planned Raid!

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A WELL-PLANNED RAID!

Jesus entered Jerusalem and went into the temple courts. He looked around at everything but, since it was already late, He went out to Bethany with the Twelve . . .

On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. And as He taught them, He said, ‘Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it “a den of robbers”.’

The chief priests and the teachers of the law heard this and began looking for a way to kill Him, for they feared Him, because the whole crowd was amazed at His teaching. When evening came, Jesus and His disciples went out of the city (Mark 11: 11; 15-19).

Did you notice how Jesus had checked out the whole situation the evening before? When He rode into the city on the donkey, He was making a powerful prophetic statement.

“Rejoice greatly, Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey (Zech. 9: 9).  

The crowd expected His to turn towards Pilate’s residence, to confront Pilate and throw down His challenge. But He didn’t. Instead, He headed for the temple and went inside. They crowd was puzzled. He was their king. He had fulfilled Zechariah’s prophecy to the letter. Why did He go to the temple?

There was one thing they did not understand. In order to take His rightful place on the throne of the universe, there was an enemy far more sinister and powerful to conquer than Rome. Rome was only a puppet of this rival to the throne of God – Satan. The temple represented the presence of God among His people, but the usurper had invaded the hearts of those who had power over the temple – the religious leaders.

What Jesus saw in the temple was evidence of that invasion – evil and corruption going on inside the temple courts with the blessing and sanction of the religious hierarchy. They were the ones who should have disallowed anything contrary to the ways of Yahweh but instead, they were benefitting from the illegal trading and dishonesty which the merchants and money changers were perpetrating against His people.

Jesus’s anger festered all night, and with purposeful stride, He led His disciples back to Jerusalem and up the temple mount in the early morning. Was His little interlude with the fig tree also a prophetic visual aid for His disciples that Israel as it was under the leadership of a corrupt priesthood was also cursed and doomed to die, just as the fig tree, symbolic of God’s people, was about to wither and die at His word?

Jesus’ anger was not an outburst of uncontrolled emotion but a purposeful expression of His outrage against the wickedness of greedy men. And even worse, what they were doing was being carried out in the name of God! They were saying in effect, with the full sanction of the religious leaders, that God was like that – greedy and corrupt. What they were actually representing was the very reason why Jesus could not take His place as king to rule over His kingdom until He had dealt with the sin that ruled in men’s hearts.

Let’s examine the reasons for Jesus’ action in the temple. First of all, where was the trading going on? In the court of the Gentiles. This was the only place in the temple where Gentiles were permitted to go. It was intended to be a place of prayer for them, but how could anyone pray in the midst of a corrupt bazaar? Jesus made it clear that God had a place for Gentiles in His kingdom, but the Jews ignored, even despised God’s provision for them. ‘Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’?

Secondly, what the merchants were doing was blatantly evil. The priests would examine for defects the lamb brought by a family of worshippers for their sacrifice. He would declare it unfit for sacrifice, sell them another lamb and then promptly sell their lamb to the following worshipping family. What a sly and lucrative way to conduct business – in the temple precincts! But you have made it “a den of robbers”.’

In his swift and decisive action, Jesus unmasked their thieving scheme and the religious hierarchy behind it – and they were not pleased. Unfortunately for them, they had no answer for His action. So what did they do?

Watch this space!

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

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More Than

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MORE THAN 

“After this He went down to Capernaum with His mother and brothers and His disciples. There they stayed for a few days.

“When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple courts He found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So He made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; He scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves He said, ‘Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!’

His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.” John 2:12-17 (NIV).

Really, Jesus! Was He just having “a bad hair day” or was there something more significant going on here?

The other gospels place this incident towards the end of His ministry; John puts it at the beginning. Did it happen twice — not likely? Was John  mistaken? or was there a reason why he deliberately altered the chronology? It seems that chronology was less important to him than purpose.

There is no doubt in John’s mind that it happened but, once again, he interpreted this incident as much more that ridding the temple of greedy opportunists. Just as Jesus turned water into wine, symbolising the new life that would come to those who believe in Him in the wake of His death and resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit, so He would purify His temple of greed and sickness and make it fit to be a dwelling place for the Father.

“The Jews responded to Him, ‘What sign do you show us to prove your authority to do this?’

“Jesus answered them, ‘Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.’ They replied, ‘It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?’ But the temple He had spoken of was His body. After He was raised from the dead, His disciples recalled what He had said. Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.” John 2:18-22 (NIV).

Jesus’ response to the Jews’ demand was not a fabrication of John. Some of the false witnesses at His trial before the Sanhedrin referred to His words as a possible reason to crucify Him! “We heard Him say, ‘I will destroy this temple made with human hands and in three days will build another, not made with hands.’ Yet even their testimony did not agree.” Mark 14:58, 59 (NIV). Of course they misquoted what He had actually said!

His retort was a veiled reference to what they, His interrogators, would do to Him but they would not succeed. He almost threw it out as a challenge. ‘You destroy this temple — me — but you won’t get it right. In three days I’ll be back, and my very death and resurrection will give me the authority to do in the hearts of people what I am doing in the temple right now.’

John was careful to let his readers know that, at the time, not even His disciples understood what was going on. It was only with hindsight, after the resurrection, that all of this made sense to them. In contrast to the Jewish leaders, who persistently repudiated Jesus and His claims in spite of all the evidence that pointed to the truth of what He was saying, His disciples believed in Him.

Time and again, as we travel through John’s record of this man’s extraordinary life, we are confronted with his challenge: ‘These people believed in Jesus. Will you?’ What Jesus did was much more than intervention to save the day. They were signs — pointers to His identity and His mission — to reveal the Father and to take us to the Father.

On the eve of His death, in the final tender moments with them before His arrest, He clarified for His mystified disciples what He was all about. ‘Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father,’ He told Philip, and ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me,’ He assured them.

Have you come to the Father yet?