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Matthew 21:12-13
As Jesus came into the city of Jerusalem, He found that animals were being sold in the temple to those who had traveled from afar to take part in the Passover feast (Matthew 21:12). It was burdensome for the travelers to also bring and care for the sacrificial animals along the way, so they would purchase the necessary animals when they arrived in Jerusalem. The issue is that people had set up in the temple area to sell these animals and were selling them at an inflated rate to make a lot of money in the process. Jesus then quotes Jeremiah 7:11 to these people, “It is written, My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of thieves.’”
This is an example of the corruption that can occur in all places, even the Church.
There are many individual churches today that are not following the teachings of the Bible but are conducting religious services with agendas that cater to outside secular sources. This is not the way in which God designed the Church to be as we are all one in Christ Jesus but continue to separate ourselves from our brothers and sisters allowing Satan to infiltrate the Church and bring separation between those who should be gathering together. The Apostle Paul teaches us in Galatians 3:26-29 (NIV), “So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” Jesus was not happy with the changes that man had made to the daily activities of the temple which were not following the will of God. We must also realize and understand that Jesus did not sin in the way that He went about disrupting the money changers activities – He was upset at the sinful ways of man in the temple and He removed the sinful ways from His holy house.
Dear LORD,
Please help us to see that we need to follow Your Word in the Church and that separation in the Church is only allowing Satan to infiltrate Your holy house making it a den of thieves as Jesus quoted from Jeremiah 7:11. Please help us to work together to grow the Church – in Christ Jesus – the gift that You gave to all the world to be saved from sin (John 3:16-17). In Jesus name I pray, amen.