Monday of Holy Week
The excitement of Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem has subsided. The religious leaders are on alert, having been greatly concerned by the crowd’s fervor in welcoming Jesus to the city. The events that will lead to Friday have started to unfold.
You can almost imagine the disciples, aware of mounting tension and danger in the city, quietly hoping Jesus will keep to himself and not cause too much of a stir. That’s not what happens, not by a long shot, as all three Synoptic gospels go on to tell:
“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 11:15-19 (NIV)
The people coming to Jerusalem for the Passover need animals for the sacrifice, and out of that need it seems the merchants and money changers see an opportunity for profit, even here at the temple. It seems the laws of supply and demand have overshadowed the Law of God.
What’s worse is that their tables of exchange and sale are set up in the Court of the Gentiles, a large space set aside for worship that is the only place in the temple where non-Jews are allowed. The Gentile converts to Judaism would have found no place to worship or pray in all of the chaos.
Jesus is rightfully upset, and it shows. He throws the money changers out, blocks their way, and begins to teach the crowd, who stand amazed at what he says. And the religious leaders take note. They perceive a threat.
Jesus is a threat. That’s not a word we necessarily want to associate with Jesus, but it’s an accurate one. In Jerusalem that first Holy Week Jesus is a threat to entrenched systems of religious abuse and hypocrisy. And as the week plays out, he will show himself to be a threat to the entrenched powers of sin and death, which will tremble and fall in defeat as he fulfills God’s plan of salvation.
To anything that sets itself up against God, Jesus will always be a threat, especially when those things are found in the very places that should be set apart for worship. He still moves through temples, and he still overturns those practices and idols that do not belong there. The temples he cleanses today can be churches, but they are also the hearts of those who desire to follow him. Especially during Lent, we invite Jesus into our hearts and lives and give him permission to do what he did that day in the temple. We invite him to cleanse us of anything that is not of him. And like that day so long ago, his motivation is zeal. It is his fervent desire to see us free of those things that have become entrenched in our lives, the things that keep us back from being the people we were created to be.
As we find ourselves closer each day to the cross of Calvary, and as our Lenten journey draws to a close, let us not forget the call that set us on this path so many weeks ago: the call to self-examination, confession, and repentance. He stands at the entrance to the temple that is your life. Will you let him in?
We bow our hearts,
we bend our knees
Oh Spirit come and make us humble
We turn our eyes
from evil things
Oh Lord we cast down our idols
Read the rest of the lyrics here.
Questions for Reflection:
1) How do you respond to the idea that Jesus is a “threat” to the things in our lives that are not of God? What would it look like for you to accept him in that way, while always remembering his motivation is love?
2) Here is the text of an ancient prayer of confession. Offer it to God, substituting “I” for “we,” and watch for the movement of your soul as you pray. Is there any part of this prayer that signals something in your life that needs attention, maybe even needs to be overturned?
Merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed. We have not loved you with our whole heart and mind and strength; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. In your mercy, forgive what we have been, help us amend what we are, and direct what we shall be, so that we may delight in your will and walk in your ways, to the glory of your holy name. Amen.
3) When you ponder the song lyrics, “Let us not lift our souls to another,” what is that “other” in your life? What desires, forces, habits, or entities can often replace God in your life as an object or worship?
4) Read and reflect on this verse. Let it lead you into prayerful worship and gratitude:
“Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”—Matthew 9:13 (ESV)