Cleansing Our Temples

 

 Jn 2:13-25

 Jesus Clears the Temple Courts

¹³ When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. ¹⁴ In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. ¹⁵ So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. ¹⁶ To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!” ¹⁷ His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.”

¹⁸ The Jews then responded to him, “What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?”

¹⁹ Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.”

²⁰ They replied, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?” ²¹ But the temple he had spoken of was his body. ²² After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.

²³ Now while he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Festival, many people saw the signs he was performing and believed in his name. ²⁴ But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all people. ²⁵ He did not need any testimony about mankind, for he knew what was in each person

This dramatic scene gives us a glimpse of the zeal for the proper use of the scared place but also gives Jesus a chance to foretell his own resurrection.  People did not understand what he was saying until after the fact.  We are now into our third week of Lent; how are we faring with our Lenten program, the cleansing  of our behaviors, attitudes, our temples?  Are we still faithfully adhering to the sacrifices and extra prayers and penances we  promised on Ash Wednesday? Time is flying, as usual, so let us renew our efforts to cleanse our temples in the good chunk of Lent that remains before us.

Bro. Rene

Dear Jesus, come into my heart; help me to cleanse it and restore it to its proper love of you and service to others. Amen.