Mark 11:15 – 17 15 Then they *came to Jerusalem. And He entered the temple and began to drive out those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves; 16 and He would not permit anyone to carry merchandise through the temple.17 And He began to teach and say to them, “Is it not written, ‘MY HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED A HOUSE OF PRAYER FOR ALL THE NATIONS’? But you have made it a ROBBERS’ DEN.”

There is no greater period in all of humanity other than the seven-day period of creation, that has impacted the destiny of mankind like Holy Week. From Sunday to Sunday, these eight days shook the core of humanity and changed the course of eternity for all who trust in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ! On the first Sunday, known as Palm Sunday, Jesus made His triumphal entrance into Jerusalem to inaugurate this week and to symbolize His reign as the King of kings and the Lord of lords! The text states that as He entered the city, people began to lay their coats and palm branches on the road and cry out, “Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”

Our text for today takes us to Monday. As was His custom, Jesus and His disciples made their way from Bethany to Jerusalem, to go to the temple, about a two-mile journey. When they entered the temple, Jesus became irate because of what He discovered. The irony is that Jesus has entered the temple on Sunday and observed the activity taking place and returned to Bethany. Something on Monday, however, caused Him to become indignant: He discovered that the house had become desecrated.

It was customary for commerce to take place outside of the temple, through the selling of animals for the sacrifice, but the events of Monday were different. They had begun to buy and sell inside the temple: they had exchanged the holy for the secular. Jesus, filled with righteous indignation, drove the moneychangers out of the temple, saying: “Is it not written, ‘MY HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED A HOUSE OF PRAYER FOR ALL THE NATIONS’? But you have made it a ROBBERS’ DEN.” They had caused the holy temple to become a desecrated house.

The revelation in the text is that Jesus won’t abide in a desecrated house. Our soul is the temple (house or dwelling place) of the Holy Spirit. Have we allowed secular things to occupy the place where only holy things should abide? Have we settled for things, such as secular music, unholy conversations, thoughts, and actions, to occupy the place where holy things such as prayer, the ministry of the Word and righteous living should abide? If we have, then we have desecrated the house and Jesus will not live in such places. We must first allow Him to drive out everything that is unholy in order that our temples be made ready for Him to come in.

On this Monday of Holy Week, l challenge you to allow the Holy Spirit to check your spiritual house. If there is anything in it that causes it to be desecrated. allow Him free reign to cleanse the temple. Once clean, He will enter in and fellowship with you and allow you to fellowship with Him!

Prayer: Father, I repent of allowing anything into my temple that has caused it to be desecrated. I give You full reign to cleanse my temple that it will be a prepared place for Your Spirit to enter and live. I love You Lord. Amen.

Rev. Dr. J. Elvin Sadler

“I knew that You always hear me. . .”     John 11:42  (NIV)

I recall as a young girl, the tone of voice my mother had when she thought we were not listening to her while she was speaking to us.  She would speak in such a stern voice asking “Do you hear me?”  It is very troubling and disheartening when you are talking to someone and it is as if they are not listening to you.  Especially in those times when you need a listening ear or a shoulder to cry on, it is disturbing to know that you have poured out your heart unto someone and they have not heard a word you have said.  But I thank God He hears us when we call upon Him.  Jesus, speaking to His Father, said in John 11:42, “I knew that You always hear me.”  It is reassuring to know that when you as God’s children call upon Him, you have his undivided attention.  You can pour out your heart to Him, make known your deepest desires and secrets.  God knows the voice of his children and hears their every cry.  Jesus said “You always. . .” there is not a time when we call upon the Father that he does not hear us.  He may not answer as quickly as we would want Him to but we can do as Jesus did and thank God in advance for hearing our call.  So as His child when you pray, believe He hears me and He will answer.

. . . because you have no room for my word.      John 8:37

Have you ever heard of or encountered a hoarder?  A hoarder is one who accumulates stuff with no intention of getting rid of it.  They have no problem piling things up, whether they need them or not.  Oftentimes, it is difficult to maneuver around within their dwelling because of the enormous intake of objects they have retained.  The effects of hoarding can extend beyond an overstuffed home. It can put people’s health at risk. It can damage families. It can affect surrounding neighborhoods.  And treating it requires more than a big box of trash bags.  Similarly, we as Christians sometimes allow stuff, particularly junk to overcrowd our minds. We take in so much gossip and negative comments.  We have become addicted to certain television shows that feed our spirit a lot of junk. Attitudes like hatred, jealousy, greed, and malice also clutter our spiritual sense.  Jesus’ words in John 8:37 “because you have no room for my word” tells me we must make room.  With intentionality, we are to “make room” for the Word of God.  During this season of Lent, let us concentrate on those things in our lives (the junk) that have cluttered our minds causing spiritual decay.  Get rid of the junk. Make Room for the Word and the Word will make room for you.  Take time to read God’s word and allow the Word to speak to your situations.  God’s word will cleanse us, bring healing, strength and joy into our lives if we would only “Make Room” for it.  Make Room!

1 Peter 1:9  The reward for trusting him (the Lord) will be the salvation of your souls. (NLT)

It is not unusual for people to find it difficult to trust others.  People will let you down when you need them the most.  Many people put their trust in politicians for help.  Many people put their trust in their finances.  Often, people will put their trust in pastors and/or preachers.  When you put your trust in humans, you can expect to be let down because humans aren’t perfect.  Psalm 118:8 tells us It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.  To trust someone is to be confident that they will do what they say they will do.  It is believing in their ability to do what they say.  There is one we all can trust.  We can trust Him to forever do what he says.  He is able to save our souls and provide our needs.  1 Peter 1:9 states; The reward for trusting him (the Lord) will be the salvation of your souls.  The Greek word translated souls is often a reference to the whole person.  When we trust the Lord with our lives (whole heart) we can expect to receive the reward of salvation.  By putting our trust in the LORD there is no danger in being let down.  A reward is something given in recognition of one’s service, effort, or achievement.  Trust God and your reward will be the salvation of your soul which is our greatest benefit.

Matthew 15:8  “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. . . “

“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt.”  This is something I often heard as a young girl.  I’ve learned better over the years.  Words are powerful.  Words carry a lot of weight.  Sticks and stones may cause broken bones however, they can be repaired with medical attention.  On the other hand, harsh words can break a spirit which is difficult to repair.  In the same way, words that are spoken in pretense and conceit can wound deeply.  In addressing the Pharisees and teachers of the law in Matthew 15:8 Jesus said “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Jesus referred to them as hypocrites.  A hypocrite is someone “who acts in contradiction to his or her stated beliefs or feelings.” Their verbal message does not reflect their real identity. Their words are misleading and are a misrepresentation of who they claim to be.  As Christians, we are to speak truth and words of encouragement.  We are to be careful what and how we speak as we represent Christ and the gospel. Proverbs 10:11 says “The mouth of a righteous man is a well of life:. . .”  Our behavior and words are to be a sincere reflection of our heart’s desire.  Speak truth!

Hebrews 12:2  Let us fix our eyes on Jesus. . .

I can remember when I received my last pair of new glasses.  I was excited.  For the first time, I had ordered my prescription glasses online to save money.  I could hardly wait to get them opened and try them on.  I expected them to greatly improve my vision.  But much to my amazement, when I got them opened, I immediately felt a sense of disappointment.  They were not at all what I thought I had ordered.  They had a much darker tint than I expected.  Upon putting them on I could barely focus and I found the glasses to be more of a distraction than a help to my vision.  A lesson to take from this.  We can become excited about new things coming our way but we must be careful not to allow the new things to be a distraction from what is most important.  The author of Hebrews wrote Let us fix our eyes on Jesus. . . As we walk this Christian journey, our focus must be on Jesus.  We can anticipate new things to come into our lives.  Some new things prove to be good for us.  Yet, others easily become distractions and hinderances.  New relationships, material possessions, positions, and ventures can be distractions.  They can sometimes cause us to take our eyes off of Jesus. We may fall victim to the excitement of new things and become more focused on them than on Jesus.  To fix our eyes on Jesus requires staying focused on who and what is most important so that we do not stumble or fall.  It wasn’t until Peter took his eyes off Jesus that he began to sink in the water (Matt. 14:30).  Let’s keep our eyes on Jesus!

John 3:30 (NIV) He must become greater; I must become less.

John the Baptist went about preaching and calling people to repentance; prepare ye the way of the Lord.  He was able to persuade many to follow the way of Christ.  Yet, there were many who did not believe or receive what he preached.  When John was approached about people going to Jesus to be baptized, he emphatically conveyed to them who he represented.  John declared, “He must become greater; I must become less.”  John would not allow himself or his ministry to be viewed as more important than Christ.  Instead, John was willing to show forth humility and exalt Christ before the people.  John said I am not the light, but I came to testify about the Light (John 1:8).  Often times, the desire to become successful in our ministry causes us to lose focus of what is most important.  We sometimes become proudful and arrogant even feeling as though we have done great things.  But we must be reminded to do as John the Baptist did.  We must become less.  To become less is to humble yourself.  We must not forget to point people to Christ in all we do.  No matter how successful our lives may be, it is God who has blessed us to be who we are.  God is greater and we need more of Him and less of us.

Proverbs 13:15a:  Good understanding giveth favour:. . .

Seeking the favor of God begins with knowing who God is and being acquainted with the character of God.  The Holy Spirit gives revelation of God.  The more we apply ourselves to read and study God’s Word the better our understanding of who God is and His love for us.  It is human nature to want to be accepted.  It is human nature to desire the approval of others.  Favor is defined as approval, support or liking for someone or something.  It is also defined as an act of kindness beyond what is due or usual.  The favor of God is not something that can be manipulated.  When we hunger and thirst after God’s Word, we establish a relationship with God.  We gain an earnest understanding of the will of God.  It is through our obedience to God and our willingness to please God that we gain good understanding.  When Esther sought the favor of God to save the lives of her people, she fasted for three days (Esther 4:15-16).  She was granted favor from God and the king.  Esther understood they were in need of God’s help to rescue them from danger.  Many confess to being blessed and highly favored.  The truth is good understanding gives favor.  In all your getting, get understanding (Proverbs 7b).

Lamentations 3:22 (ESV) The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end.

Have you ever stopped to take a moment and consider how much God loves you? When we truly examine our own hearts and our sinfulness, we cannot help but to ascribe to the Lord his unfailing love for us. If we were to be treated as our sin deserves, we would not have had a Savior who died for our unrighteousness. God’s love for us is unwavering. Although, we may face hardships in life, we have not been dealt with as our sins deserve. Because of the steadfast love of God, we are yet alive. We read in Romans 6:23 “The wages of sin is death. . .” We have all sinned and we live in a fallen world but God continues to grant us new mercies each day. We often struggle with loving ourselves because of sin, guilt, shame and a lack of self-worth. Others may turn their backs on you and refuse to help you. Family, friends, co-workers and acquaintances may disappoint you when you need them the most. Yet God loves us unconditionally. Yes, we may have to deal with some consequences of our sinful actions. But consider how God’s love for us never ceases. In spite of our sins, God offers forgiveness to all. Remember, the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. God’s love never fails.