"Not in My House"

"Not in My House"

"And as He taught them, he said, "Is it not written: My
house will be called a house of prayer for all nations."
Mark 11:17

Right after the story in Mark 11 where Jesus cursed the fig tree which had no fruit, we see Him entering the temple and getting really, really angry, overthrowing tables and benches, and then driving people out who were buying and selling and turning God's house into something He never intended. Jesus was so passionate, so consumed about what was going on in God's house, that it makes you wonder if there's anything going on in the church today that would equally upset Him.

If we look at what was mattered most to Jesus, it might give us some clues:

* First of all, Jesus did not take kindly to hypocrites. A whole chapter of "woes" is devoted to those religious people who said one thing, claimed a certain spiritual state, but did another. If you are in the church but the example of your life would turn others away from Christ, you would have been on His hit list. Our lives are to radiate love, thankfulness, joy and mercy; anything less will have a negative effect on those we are hoping to see drawn to the Lord.

* Jesus cared about the poor, the lonely, the sick and the hurting. It is incredible to me that just before Jesus headed off to the last supper and the final hours of His life, He gave the teaching on "I was in prison and you visited me, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, and I was hungry and you fed me". At a time when most of us would be focused on ourselves, He gave a powerful teaching on caring for others. If people are coming to church with needs, lonely, hurting and going without, and leaving with those same needs, we
can be sure that Jesus would have been upset.

* Jesus believed in second chances. The woman caught in the act of adultery was told to "go and sin no more", after Jesus had fended off the would-be stone throwers. Peter went from being someone who denied the Lord repeatedly to the leader of the early church and their spokesman on the day of Pentecost. Another was Zacchaeus, the tax collector, taken from a life of cheating and greed, to one who gave half his possessions to the poor. Now that is a turnaround! I wouldn't
want to be the one who wrote any of these off - I don't think it would have sat too well with the Lord. He majors on restoration (remember the prodigal son) and He expects us to too.

It is safe to say that Jesus cares intensely about what goes on in His church, the values that are taught, the Christ-likeness that is practiced, and especially the way people are treated. We, as Christians, as literally little-Christs, are to model forgiveness and love, mercy and acceptance, faith and faithfulness. Let it be said that each of our churches are places that the Lord would be pleased to send the needy to, like spiritual hospitals, to be ministered to and cared for in the love of Christ.

God Bless
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church