Scripture
Matthew 21:12-17
 
Jesus at the Temple
 
12 Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. 13  " It is written," he said to them, "'My house will be called a house of prayer, 'but you are making it 'a den of robbers."
 
14 The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, "Hosanna to the Son of David," they were indignant.
 
16  " Do you hear what these children are saying?" they asked him. "Yes," replied Jesus, "have you never read,
 
"'From the lips of children and infants
  you, Lord, have called forth your praise.'"
 
17 And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany, where he spent the night .

Meditation
 

Extreme Home Makeover - Roxanne Baggott

 

 

Throughout John's Gospel we  see plainly how anyone can come to Christ, no matter what his background, no matter how far he has gone wrong, no matter how evil he has been-murderers, prostitutes, swindlers, liars, drunkards, self-righteous people, bitter, hard-hearted cynics, religious hypocrites, proud self-sufficient snobs--anyone who realizes there is something wrong in his life. Anyone who wants to be free can come to Jesus. "Come unto me all you that are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28-29).

 

But, if we do come, be assured that Jesus is not going to leave us the way we were. He is not going to settle for clutter or mess, whatever may be defiling and corrupting the temple courts. He may leave us alone for a while. Oftentimes we misunderstand this. Because he brings us in love and he deals with us in patience, we think that he is going to let us get by with some of the comfortable but wrongful habits we have built into our lives. But he will not. God does not compromise with evil. If we mistake that delay for acceptance, we are in for a surprise. If we refuse to deal with what he puts his finger on, one day we will find him coming in overturning the tables of our lives.

Reflection
Our lives are a temple. A home. God's home. A gift given to us for the purpose of worshiping Him. If Jesus were to walk into your home today, stand before you and look straight into your heart, would He be angry enough to overturn tables? What things would He see that are keeping you from true worship? Jealousy, hypocrisy, hard-hearted cynicism, judgementalism, failing to trust His plan for your life, idolatry, gossip, anger, bitterness, unforgiveness.
 
What is it in your life that keeps your godly home a mess?
 
God loves us so much that He is angered when we clutter the temple with things that keep us from Him. But, by His grace, He sweeps clean the mess we have made, and gives us a chance to start fresh with a clean home.
Prayer
Lord I confess that at times I need a complete extreme home makeover. The mess I have made is just too much for me to clean up alone. Lord, cleanse my heart of all that defiles so that it may be a true house of worship that is pleasing to you.
Amen
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