Sermon Tone Analysis

A Skeptical Crowd

key verses

Intro and background

In verses 12 to 17 and that’s with the Temple forces, the masses, tens of thousands, upon thousands gathered in the Temple at the Passover time and we have already looked at that, how that Jesus confronted what He saw, the desecration of His Father’s house, turning it into a place of business.

And He made a whip and He threw everyone, including all the animals, out of the Temple.

This...this is a very, very powerful expression of the deity of Jesus Christ, His super-human powers.

There would have been resistance from the crowd in the tens of thousands, multiples of tens of thousands of people there.

There would have been resistance from the Temple police.

The minimum number would be three hundred and there would probably be more for the Passover.

There would have been, in the event there was any reaction by the crowd, and a conflict generated, immediate invasion by the forces of the Romans who were sitting next door watching all of this and ready to quell any disturbance.

John Mc auther - “And yet, with all of those forces set against one man, not with a repeating rifle, but with a little cord, there was no resistance.”

And He evacuated that Temple in a matter of brief time.

No man could have pulled that off.

The tables had been overturned

Their financial livelihood was run off

A major disruption was not in place

No one stood up to Christ - not one

In our text today:

We do not find after all the dust is settled:

repentance

Bowing as confessing of abuse of God’s House or authority

Reconciling with those that were taken advantage of

Nope we find:

Arrogance and elitism

Self proclaimed authority

How do you handle the turning over the tables in your life?

You been confronted with a sin;

You have been challenged on a bad habit

You have been caught red handed

Your children know

Your parents know

Your friends know

You back is against the wall …

just lie

change the story

challenge the facts

say it really was not wrong

it culturally acceptable

Confess and give in to God or come out fighting ...

Illustration

Philippian Jailer

A Skeptical Crowd will:

I. Ask for a Sign

Jesus faces the Jewish leaders and their queries about why He had the right, or thought He had the right to do that.

After He had done what He had done to the Temple; they were infuriated, to put it mildly.

“What sign do you show us as Your authority for doing these things.”

They’re outraged.

“Who do you think you are?” That’s the question.

The “Who do You think You are” question which they frequently will ask Jesus because He takes power and authority over things that they think belong to them.

Now they know He’s claiming to be from God because He says,

“You’ve turned My Father’s house into a business.”

Vs 18 They want a sign - So they want a sign.

If you’re acting for God, if you’re protecting God, and God is Your Father and You’re the Son of God, well give us a sign, some sign to indicate that You have a valid authority for doing this.

By the way, there’s no repentance on their part.

There’s no sorrow.

There’s no bowing down and saying you’re right, we desecrated the place, this is absolutely true.

We need to repent.

They demand, then, one thing--that is that Jesus give them some sign so that they can validate His right to do this.

That’s what they want.

Some people seek after signs and wonders because they do not believe the signs and wonders which have already been performed.

The Pharisees of Matthew 12 were just such a lot.

Jesus had been performing miracles for quite some time when a group of scribes and Pharisees came to Him with an insolent demand to see another sign.

In response, Jesus condemned them as “wicked and adulterous” (Matthew 12:38-39).

They were “wicked” in that they refused to believe the signs and wonders Christ had already performed.

“In spite of his wonders, they did not believe” (Psalm 78:32).

Their hearts were hardened towards the truth, even after numerous public miracles.

Nothing would make them believe; their hearts were as pharaoh’s, hardened after witnessing so many of Moses’ miracles in Egypt (Exodus 9:34-35).

They were “adulterous” in the spiritual sense, having left the true worship of God to follow a man-made set of rules and traditions.

Not satisfied with the miracles Jesus was doing, they demanded something even greater.

As commentator Matthew Barnes puts it, “They looked for signs of their own devising.”

So entrenched was their rejection of Christ that, when later presented with the “sign of the prophet Jonah” (Christ’s resurrection, Matthew 12:39-40), they still would not believe.

What they are basically saying is what gives yo the right to cleanse the temple?

What we say when we are caught red handed in a sin :

Is it really a sin - what give you the right to call it that - show me a sign its wrong....

Does the Bible really address that - show me a sign

The tables have been turned over By God you sin is excused and now you ask God what right do you have?

prove it to me - what arrogance ...

Asking for a sign could be seen as Justifying the sin by comparing ourselves to others

Justifying the sin by our situation

Stop saying what right do you have ?

God to call out my sin and turn over the tables in my life?

You interrupted my life

A Skeptical Crowd will:

II.

Lack Understanding

This is best understood as a statement of future fact

It’s not a command.

He’s not commanding them to destroy Him.

He’s not commanding them to destroy Him; He’s simply making a statement of future fact.

Well, of course, they didn’t understand what He meant by what He said, but they also misrepresented what He said.

He never said “I will destroy it.”

What He said was, “You will.”

Verse 20, this is mockery, just sheer mockery:

So they’re looking at Jesus and this is a joke.

This thing is 46 years in the building and you’re going to destroy it and put it back up in three days.

Verse 21, “But He was speaking of the Temple of His body.”

“He was speaking of the Temple of His body.”

Isn’t it interesting that He didn’t explain that to them?

Why?

Because of Matthew 13, “He’s hidden these things from the wise and the prudent and revealed them to babes.”