Zeal For The House

His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.”  John 2:17 (NIV)

Jesus has gone up to Jerusalem.  He goes into the temple and finds all kinds of buying and selling going on.  His Father´s house is being turned into a place of business.  It is a place where people go for all kinds of reasons other than to approach the Lord our God.  So Jesus gets upset.  He can´t take this affront to God.  He cannot stand to see mankind removing the reverence and respect for the sacred place.  It is a place to come before the Lord.  He takes matters into His Own hands.  He makes a whip.  He starts cleaning house.  He starts driving all this filth out of the temple.  He breaks down the tables.  He throws the money on the floor.  He chases out the animals they are selling.  He runs off the shady characters who are mocking God´s name by turning the House of Prayer into a lucrative game.  He zealously takes it upon Himself to personally clean and restore God´s temple.

Do we find this attitude Jesus has of caring for the temple of God to be comforting?  Does it bring us a sensation of security to know that the Son of God is moved into action when He sees the temple being degraded?  Should we think that this story holds importance only for that day in which He cleaned house?  Or could we say that a description like this would be part of His nature?  Is this a little window into the Spiritual Wonder which Is our Lord?  Are we seeing something important about our Saviour?  If we truly want to find Jesus in any real sense, should we look to see what He is like?  Should we think that our Saviour always protects the house of worship?  Whether God´s temple is here or there, will Jesus try to clean it up?  Is He doing this right now?  Is He working in our churches?  What about the temple of our hearts?  Is He working inside of each of us to clean that house or temple for God?

Could now be a very good moment for us to have a look with Him?  Could we ask Jesus to come into our lives in a very real sense?  What if we asked Him to take a little walk with us today?  Could we stroll through the corridors of our soul with Him?  What would He find?  Would He find a perfectly clean house of worship?  Would He find a neat and tidy place of prayer?  Would He find a warm and friendly place where we often meet with God?  Or would He find all kinds of personal business there?  Would there be a busy hubbub of ulterior motives?  Are we hiding from ourselves what we have made of our own hearts?  Have we cluttered the temple of our souls with less than honorable intentions and private personal endeavors?

Dear Jesus, please come into the halls of our hearts today.  Have zeal for the House of worship there.  Feel free to get worked up if You find shady personal intentions there.  Open our eyes to what we let ourselves become.  Turn over tables if You must.  Drive our all other business.  Make our hearts into temples for the Lord!  Make them into a House of Prayer!  Clean our souls so they can be a good place to worship God above!  We need You and Your zeal to restore our hearts today!  Come dear Lord, come in to us we pray!

Amen