 15 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.’”
Mark 11:15-17 |
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In our text, the inside of the temple had become a place where the profit of the temple trumped the purpose of the temple. We see the profit in the text – and you should know something else. Worship, in fact, still went on in the place, along with the hustle and bustle. It literally made for a distracted experience. How many of us combine our time with God with the minutiae of the day? When we sit in church on Sunday, are we completely there? How many of us use the time in worship to jot down our grocery list, go over work issues in our mind, everything else along with the prayers and songs and sermon? Remember God wants time with you and you alone. Our faith grows the more we take time to concentrate on the Lord. Think about it: when Jesus clears the temple, what was the result? Silence and music and prayers replaced animals, traders and moneychangers. There was space to focus on God!
Dear Lord, we glorify your name in everything.. We thank you for the ability to hear your voice and worship you undistracted, and uninhibited. Teach us to set aside a moment this day to concentrate on You. In Jesus name, AMEN
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God bless,
Rev. Jeffrey Brown |
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