Holy Week Monday “cleansing”

Yesterday we left seeing Jesus enter the city with people laying palm (Victory) branches on the ground. shouts of Hosanna, Hosanna echoing throughout the city. I believe the roar of the crowds was deafening. Remember gang, throngs of people were coming to Jerusalem to participate in the Passover festivities, animals by the scores were being brought in to be offered as sacrifices. For the individuals and families that didn’t want to travel with animals, they could purchase the animals on the outer corridors of the Temple. The atmosphere is festive, money exchanging hands, people coming in to be “cleansed” and remain in good standing with God as they would watch the priest place the sins of the nation on the ‘scape goat’…..

 People throughout the city are talking,  the city is a buzz of who He (Jesus) is and could this really be the much awaited Messiah. The boys controlling the money were doing everything they could to squash the hint of a once for all time sacrifice.  If Jesus really was the promised Messiah, that would be the end of selling animals for sacrifice each year.  As you and I now know they will need “going out of business signs.”

 Jesus then does a bit of cleansing himself. Jesus is knocking tables over, the tables scattered around the temple where the money changers were stationed, the money changers who year after year at the permission of the high priest would take advantage of those coming in who really didn’t understand how the currency exchange worked. The men selling doves would experience the same fury from Jesus as he would literally run them out of the Temple area and hear Him quoting Isaiah 56:7 “My Temple will be called a house of prayer for ALL (emphasis mine) nations. but you have turned into a den of thieves” (Matthew 21:13; Mark 11:17; Luke 19:46)

 Jesus is ushering in a new covenant with us, one that is everlasting through his atonement that will be a once for ALL time sacrifice to cleanse forever. (Hebrews 9:12; Hebrews 9:26-28; Hebrews 10:10; 1 Peter 3:18)

 With this new covenant also brings with it a change in house of prayer.

1Cr 6:19         Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself,

1Cr 6:20 for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body