WHEN JESUS COMES TO YOUR TEMPLE - Trinity Fellowship

WHEN JESUS COMES TO YOUR TEMPLE

Teaching Ministry of Rick Trice

Trinity Fellowship

March 25, 2007

Key verse: “And Jesus went into Jerusalem and into the temple. So when He had looked around at all things, as the hour was already late, He went out to Bethany with the twelve.” Mark 11:11

*THE TEMPLE AT THE END OF MARK’S ACCOUNT OF THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY, WE’RE TOLD THAT AT THE END OF THAT DAY, JESUS WENT INTO THE TEMPLE, LOOKED AROUND CAREFULLY AT EVERYTHING, THEN LEFT AND WENT BACK TO BETHANY TO SPEND THE NIGHT.

SO JUST WHY DID JESUS GO TO THE TEMPLE TO QUIETLY LOOK AROUND? AT JUST WHAT “THINGS” WAS HE LOOKING?

YOU SEE, THE TEMPLE NOW REPRESENTED SEVERAL “THINGS” TO JESUS, IN THIS FINAL WEEK PRIOR TO HIS SACRIFICE ON THE CROSS. AND WE SHOULD BE CURIOUS ABOUT JUST WHAT THESE “THINGS” ARE THAT JESUS IS LOOKING AT IN THE TEMPLE.

1) JESUS IS THE TEMPLE

DESTRUCTION OF THE TEMPLE (READ LUKE 21:5-6; “Then as some spoke of the temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and donations, He said, ‘These things which you see—the days will come in which not one stone shall be left upon another that shall not be thrown down’…)

IN AD 66, JUST ABOUT 30 YEARS FROM WHEN JESUS SPOKE THESE WORDS, THE JEWS REVOLTED AGAINST ROME, AND JERUSALEM HELD OUT UNDER SIEGE FOR 3 ½ YEARS AGAINST THE ROMAN GENERAL TITUS. BUT IN AUGUST OF AD 70, TITUS BROKE THROUGH THE THREE WALLS SURROUNDING THE CITY, BURNED THE TEMPLE, LEVELLED IT, JUST AS JESUS PREDICTED, AND BURNED THE ENTIRE CITY AND ALL ITS FORTIFICATIONS TO THE GROUND.

NOT A STONE LEFT STANDING ON ANOTHER STONE.

(READ JEREMIAH 7:1-7)

BOTH THE JEWS IN JEREMIAH’S TIME AND JESUS’ TIME HELD A SUPERSTITION THAT AS LONG AS THE TEMPLE PHYSICALLY STOOD, GOD’S BLESSINGS WOULD CONTINUE TO COME, NO MATTER WHAT WICKEDNESS EXISTED IN THE PEOPLE.

JESUS IS SAYING THAT THE WAY GOD DOES THINGS WITH HIS PEOPLE IS ABOUT TO RADICALLY CHANGE FOREVER. GOD’S BLESSINGS WILL CONTINUE TO COME, BUT ONLY TO THOSE WHO AMEND THEIR WAYS.

2) WE ARE THE TEMPLE

(I COR. 3:16-17) “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.”

IN THE OLD TESTAMENT, GOD’S PRESENCE IN THE TEMPLE WAS INDICATED BY A CLOUD OF HIS GLORY, SO THICK THAT THE PRIESTS COULDN’T SEE TO CONDUCT THE SERVICES.

THE CLOUD OF GOD’S PRESENCE IN HIS TEMPLE TODAY IS THE HOLY SPIRIT DWELLING INSIDE OF YOU.

SO, IF WE BECOME THE TEMPLE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT WHEN HE MOVES IN, WHAT THINGS DOESN’T HE BEGIN TO DO IN THE NEW TEMPLE?

3) JESUS CLEARS THE TEMPLE (READ MATTHEW 21:12-16)

THE FIRST THING THAT JESUS BEGINS TO DO WHEN HE COMES INTO YOUR TEMPLE IS TO CLEAN HOUSE! AND HE DOES IT A PARTICULAR ORDER:

*HE DRIVES OUT OUR RELIANCE ON SELF (V 12 “MONEYCHANGERS; THOSE THAT BOUGHT AND SOLD”)

*CALLS RENAMES YOUR TEMPLE (V 13 “A DEN OF THIEVES” VS. “A HOUSE OF PRAYER”) (JER. 7:11)

* HE HEALS YOU (V14)

*HE TEACHES YOU TO PRAISE HIM (V15-16)

4) JESUS’ AUTHORITY QUESTIONED

(MATT. 21:23-27)

WHEN THE HOLY SPIRIT TAKES UP RESIDENCE AND STARTS CLEANING UP YOUR TEMPLE, THE SECOND THING THAT HAPPENS IS THE ENEMY SHOWS UP AND BEGINS TO CAST DOUBTS AT YOU REGARDING JESUS’ AUTHORITY!

JESUS’ ANSWER, QUOTING FROM PSALM 118, SHOULD ALSO BE OUR ANSWER:

(V42) “The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing. And it is marvelous in our eyes’

IN OTHER WORDS, THE LORD JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF! AND HE HAS HIS AUTHORITY GIVEN TO HIM BY GOD, AND NOT FROM HUMANS!

THE NEXT THING HE TEACHES US TO DO TO PROCLAIM HIS AUTHORITY, IS TO DECLARE THE MIGHTY WORKS HE IS ALREADY DOING THROUGH US (V 43-44)

5) JESUS CLARIFIES OUR DUTIES

(MATT. 22:15-22)

THE PHARISEES SOUGHT TO TRAP JESUS IN HIS OWN WORDS, REGARDING OUR SUBMISSION TO THE GOVERNMENT.

PAUL LATER, STARTING IN ROMANS 13:1, CLARIFIES THAT ALL GOVERNING POWER IS ORDAINED BY GOD. ACTS 18 ALSO DISCUSSES WHERE OUR OBLIGATION ENDS IN FOLLOWING AN AUTHORITY WHO ORDERS US TO DO SOMETHING CONTRARY TO GOD’S WORD.

JESUS IS TELLING US THE SAME THING HERE: “GIVE THE GOVERNMENT WHAT THEY ASK, BECAUSE IT IS USUALLY FOR OUR OWN GOOD, AND THEIR POWER IS, AFTER ALL., FROM GOD. BUT GIVE TO GOD ALL THINGS IN YOUR LIFE.

AND IF ALL COMES FROM GOD, EVERYTHING YOU GIVE BACK, WHETHER TO THE OBEYING THE GOVERNMENT, OR OTHERS, YOU’RE ACTUALLY GIVING IT BACK TO GOD!

6) WE CAN DECLARE WHO WE ARE!

(MATT. 23:16-22)

THIS IS POWERFUL! NOW ELSEWHERE, THE BIBLE TELLS US TO BE CAUTIOUS ABOUT SWEARING BY THE EARTH, OR THE SKY, OR CREATION, OR ANYTHING IN IT. JESUS IS NOT CONTRADICTING HIMSELF THE WORD HERE TRANSLATED “SWEAR” IS A DIFFICULT TRANSLATION FROM GREEK TO ENGLISH. THE CLOSEST MEANING OF IT IS WHEN YOU ARE A CHILD, AND YOU PROMISE SOMETHING, BUT YOU HAVE “KING’S X” BY CROSSING YOUR FINGERS BEHIND YOUR BACK!

JESUS CLARIFIES OUR POSITION HERE, BEGINNING IN VERSE 20 “WHOEVER SWEARS BY THE ALTAR, SWEARS BY IT AND BY ALL THING ON IT. HE WHO SWEARS BY THE TEMPLE, SWEARS BY IT AND BY HIM WHO DWELLS IN IT. AND HE WHO SWEARS BY HEAVEN, SWEARS BY THE THRONE OF GOD AND BY HIM WHO SITS ON IT”

JESUS IS TELLING US THAT, ONCE HIS SPIRIT TAKES UP RESIDENCE IN OUR TEMPLE, WE TOO HAVE HIS AUTHORITY TO DECLARE WHO WE ARE IN HIM!

(ACTS 20:32 “SO NOW BRETHREN, I COMMEND YOU TO GOD AND TO THE WORD OF HIS GRACE, WHICH IS ABLE TO BUILD YOU UP AND GIVE YOU AN INHERITANCE AMONG ALL THOSE WHO ARE SANCTIFIED.”)

(COL 2:5-7 “AS YOU THEREFORE HAVE RECEIVED CHRIST JESUS THE LORD, SO WALK IN HIM, ROOTED AND BUILT UP I HIM AND ESTABLISHED IN THE FAITH, AS YOU HAVE BEEN TAUGHT, ABOUNDING IN IT WITH THANSKGIVNG.”)

IS HE FULLY DWELLING, AND ABLE TO FILL YOUR TEMPLE FULLY?

THE QUESTIONS JESUS ASKS EACH OF US TODAY ARE:

"DO YOU WANT ME TO COME INTO YOUR TEMPLE?

THEN I’M GOING TO CLEAN IT!"

"DO YOU WANT ME TO LIVE IN YOUR TEMPLE? THEN YOU ‘VE GOT TO LET ME DRIVE OUT SELF RELIANCE.

"YOU’VE GOT TO LET ME RENAME IT

YOU’VE GOT TO LET ME HEAL YOU OF SOME THINGS

YOU’VE GOT TO START DECLARING YOUR AUTHORITY IN ME, IN THE FACE OF AN ACCUSING ENEMY

AND YOU’VE GOT TO START PRAISING ME, LIKE A NEWBORN BABE LAUGHING AND CRYING. "