Have We Had Enough?

Intro:

Matthew 21:13

The title of my message is, [Have We Had Enough?]

Who has ever had a point in your life where you had enough? You know what I mean? Where something happens and you are just done? Or as one person said, done, done.

Sometimes that happens. A conversation can last forever and we think, okay, I’ve had enough.

A situation continues to get worse and we think, okay, I don’t know how much more I can handle, I have had enough?

Maybe it has been a long hard day of work and someone comes up with another project, and you’ve thought, I have had enough.

Or, who has ever had a disagreement where finally you wanted to exclaim, OKAY, I am done talking about this, I HAVE HAD ENOUGH?

We’ve all been there and we all react in a different way. Some people shut down and stop talking while others might raise their voice a little to let everyone know, I’ve had enough.

One friend of mine had a person try to push his buttons, and he finally answered, you have pushed and pushed, you finally found the button, I’ve had enough.

In our text, we read of a time when Jesus had enough. By this point in His life, He is less than a week from the cross and the resurrection.

He lived on earth for over thirty-three years and had been in public ministry for three years. Imagine how hard that was for Him.

Remember the nature of Jesus, He was 100% God and 100% Man. He was fully human and fully divine.

His life on earth began in Bethlehem, but He was there at creation.

He experienced growing pains, living life from infancy to adulthood, but at the same time He was from everlasting to everlasting.

He had an earthly mother and father, but He was the only begotten Son of the Father.

He lived a life with two perspectives. The eternal lived in the temporal.

He was the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy, but He had a hand in what the prophets prophesied.

Therefore, His life on earth was viewed from a human perspective, but He did things that confused the disciples and the religious leaders and scholars.

Think of the mental energy that took. He was surrounded by people who questioned His every move and never fully understood why He did what He did and why He said what He said.

Now, by the time we read Matthew 21, He is one week from fulfilling His earthly mission. He was a few days from:

The Last Supper

His betrayal

Peter’s denial

His beatings

the cross

and death

Imagine, the giver of life would have to die. Furthermore, those He came to save were so trapped in a lifeless religious system, they did not even recognize that their Savior and Messiah walked among them. Finally, it was too much and Jesus had enough.

I always love preaching the first Sunday of the year. It is a day of new hope and possibility, but for some reason this year is different.

I told Bekah a few nights ago, this time of year is normally exciting, but for some reason it feels different. I can say with absolute certainty, I have had enough of 2020.

But if we look through a natural lens, it doesn’t seem like 2021 will get better very soon.

However, as followers of Christ, we do not look at the things which are seen, for they are temporary. Instead, we look through the eyes of the Spirit, for spiritual matters are eternal.

Sometimes God allows us to get to the point where we’ve had enough so that we will desire something new, different, and better.

I feel it safe to say that most of us have had enough, but the question is, what will we do with that? What is our response to the confusion and questions about the future?

Jesus knew everything would change in a few short days, but first, He had enough. I want to look at three parts to this story. Pay attention to, [What Jesus Saw], [What Jesus Did], and [What Jesus Expects].

Let’s begin

1. What Jesus Saw

Matthew 21:9-12

On the final week of His life, Jesus went to Jerusalem, again. He had been there many times. If He went three times a year, He had been there more than 100 times.

But this time was different. He rode on a donkey with His disciples. As He neared Jerusalem, a crowd formed. They lined the streets with their coats.

Then they took up palm branches in their hands and began to cry out, Hosanna. Their actions signified they viewed Jesus as their King.

Remember what the Jewish people wanted. For centuries they had been under control of a foreign empire. First it was the Babylonians, then the Persians, then the Greeks, and now the Romans.

They longed for their own King to restore their nation to greatness. They did right by acknowledging and worshipping Jesus as King.

However, they were mistaken if they thought Jesus came to institute a political revolution. We see that by His actions when He arrived to the Temple.

At this point, Passover was less than a week away. As I mentioned last Sunday, Jewish men were required to go to Jerusalem to celebrate.

When Jesus arrived in Jerusalem, He made a stop by the Temple. Once again He witnessed the misuse and abuse of God’s house.

Remember, Jewish men had two responsibilities at the Temple:

Pay a temple tax

Have an animal to sacrifice

The problem was, the Jewish leaders turned the temple from a place of worship to a place of extortion.

They refused to take Roman money and required the men to pay their tax with shekels. So they would exchange money at a high rate.

They would also sell doves to the poor and other animals to the wealthy, so that they might have a sacrifice. But they overpriced all the animals!

One author described it this way, “merchants shouted from their stalls to the customers, and noisy, haggling, pushy pilgrims jostled one another for position… The aroma of the livestock, accentuated by the enclosure made it like a county fair and the Stock Exchange all rolled into one.” (Swindoll, Matthew, p. 149).

This is what Jesus saw. He first saw people worship Him. Then He saw the house of worship desecrated and misused for personal gain.

2. What Jesus Did

Matthew 21:12-13

At first, people might have thought Jesus tripped over His robe and knocked over a table. But one table led to another He started flipping tables, releasing doves, and drove out the people who had turned God’s house into a Flea Market.

No doubt the crowed was stunned by Jesus’ actions. With all eyes on Him, He had had enough. He declared to them, MY TEMPLE, MY HOUSE, will be a house of prayer. Instead you’ve made into a hangout for thieves.

Notice how Jesus called it MY house/temple. Only a King or Messiah could take such liberty with the Temple. This small description did not go unnoticed to the leaders.

They despised Jesus. They couldn’t stand that people in the street worshipped Him as King. Now, He is cleansing the Temple, removing activity that does not create spiritual productivity.

Then, Jesus did the unthinkable, He invited the blind and lame into the Temple. If we read the gospels, we will notice that the blind and lame are always on the outside of the Temple.

The reason is simple, the relgiious leaders despised them and would not allow them to come inside.

When people witnessed Jesus’ healing power, they began to praise God. Children began to cry out, Hosanna, praise God for the Son of David.

The leaders angrily questioned Jesus, how can you allow these children to talk about you and praise you like that?

I love how Jesus asked the Jewish leaders, have you never read?

He does not ask this because He is unsure if they knew. The religious leaders prided themselves in having the Old Testament committed to memory.

Jesus’ question is more of a statement, you think you know everything, why don’t you remember Psalms 8:2, that the children will give perfect praise?

Jesus had a different vision. He longed for a place where people would pray and with prayer would come miraculous and supernatural experiences!

Jesus showed that He was not the kind of Savior the religious crowd wanted. They were content with maintaining their political power.

Jesus knew this and was not interested in debating the leaders. Instead, He left, He made His point. The religious leaders abused the temple and extorted people for personal gain.

Remember what Jesus saw and notice what He did. But what about...

3. What Jesus Expects

The next morning Jesus returned to Jerusalem from Bethany. On the side of the road was a fig tree. Jesus went to the tree for a snack and there was no fruit.

Jesus does something peculiar. He curses the tree. Supernaturally, the tree died. The disciples were amazed and what Jesus did.

Interestingly, they were less concerned with WHY Jesus cursed the fig tree and more curious as to HOW He made it whither.

By itself this story makes little sense, but Matthew and Mark place it in the context of Jesus’ cleansing the Temple.

What we read here is an acted out parable or an object lesson. Jesus wanted to show the danger of possessing a religion, but not having any substance.

The fig tree looked healthy and strong, it was covered with leaves. From a distance, it appeared fruitful. However, upon further examination, it had no fruit. It was fruitful in appearance, but barren, providing nothing.

Now, think back to Jesus’ encounter in the Temple. From the outside looking in, Judaism looked great. The temple had money, crowds, and the appearance of wealth and success.

But the truth is, the leaders in Israel instituted a religious system that was spiritually barren, fruitless.

They knew scripture, but did not believe in its power.

They knew about God, but did not include Him in everyday life.

They had the form of Godliness, but denied His power.

Therefore, Jesus shows what God expects. Fig tree were a common example of Israel in the Old Testament. When Jesus cursed the fig tree, He revealed what He expects from us.

Matthew 21:21-22

He wanted the disciples to have faith in the Kingdom He would establish. However, the Kingdom of God is unlike any Kingdom on earth.

It does not have physical borders, palaces, or a capital. Instead, Jesus came to build a spiritual Kingdom. His vision for the Kingdom is that He would live in the hearts of people, enabling them to do what they otherwise could not.

So Jesus told them, if you have FAITH, you can speak to this mountain and it will be moved. What did Jesus mean?

You will face opposition, but through faith, you can speak to any mountain that stands in your path, and I will make a way!

Jesus had enough of empty religion with recited prayer. Instead, He looked for people who had faith and would pray in faith believing we can receive what He wants for us!

Close:

Jesus saw a religious system that talked about God, but did not live for or experience Him.

He did what necessary, He cleansed the temple to reveal the Father’s plan for humanity.

God is interested in people who pray. For when we pray, we open the door for supernatural experiences with God. When we pray in faith, nothing can stand against us or stop us.

But, if we live a life void of prayer, we will become like the fig tree. We might build a life of success, but upon further examination we will not bear fruit.

Since the fall of humanity, God created a way where He could help His people. However, humanity consistently disappointed and disobeyed God.

Eventually God had enough and sent His Son. Jesus knew His purpose, live a life that modeled the plan God has for humanity. Part of that plan is to communicate with God.

Therefore, when Jesus went to the temple on that day, he had enough. The time was right for Him to fulfill the plan of the Father.

God’s plan is simple:

Send Jesus to die in our place

Raise Jesus from the dead through the power of the Holy Spirit

Create a way for humanity to receive salvation

Empower His people with the same power that raised Christ from the dead

Work with His church

Come back to get us to rule and reign with Him forever

However, the problem we see is our world is not any fault on God’s end. Instead, we live in a society similar to what Jesus witnessed in the first century.

Our nation uses God when His name is convenient, but is not really interested in His influence on our society.

Sadly, many churches have adopted the mindset of our culture, They know about God, but have not experienced His power and work in a long time!

And I cannot speak for any other church, but I can for this house because God has placed me as the spiritual authority and leader of Vulcan Assembly of God.

As we move forward into 2021, we must BE A HOUSE OF PRAYER!

We must commit to pray with fervency and expectation. For a church void of prayer is like the fig tree on the side of the road. We might have a nice building, a good crowd, and healthy finances, but without prayer we will become spiritually barren and fruitless.

God is calling us to pray. But the need for prayer will never become a reality UNTIL WE HAVE HAD ENOUGH!

We have develop a holy dissatisfaction with the way things are before we will do what is necessary through prayer and fasting to see God take us deeper.

So my question today is simple: have we had enough?

Have we had enough of facing the same trials.

Have we had enough of struggling with the same temptations

Have we had enough of dealing with the same difficulties

Have we had enough of seeing drugs and alcohol reach its grip into our community

Have we had enough of witnessing children raised in broken marriages

Have we had enough of watching God take a backseat to our schedule

Have we had enough of living in a culture that will prioritize everything their wants and include God in the schedule, if and only if there is time

Have we had enough of family members who are not saved

Have we had enough knowing there is more God has for us, but not attaining it yet

Have we had enough of reading about miracles, signs, and wonders, but not having them on a consistent basis

I can say with absolute certainty, for my life, I have had enough.

There is such a hunger and a desire for God.

On December 18, 2020, I was praying in my office and I wrote down how I felt on a post-it,

“I feel full and empty at the same time. I feel full of God’s presence, but empty knowing there is so much available and so much to do for Him.”

Please hear my heart, God is not finished with us or our church. But now is the hour to become spiritually dissatisfied. We cannot believe the lie of the enemy that whispers,

You will always struggle, your kids or family will never get right with God, your finances will never flourish.

Satan will tell us, your parents dealt with this, your grandparents dealt with this, and you and your kids will too.

I say no way devil, for if I have faith and do not doubt, and I can say to this mountain that stands in my way, BE REMOVED AND BE CAST INTO THE SEA, and it will be done. For whatever I ask in prayer, in faith believing, I will receive!

God has so much in store for us, but we will never walk in His promises until WE HAVE HAD ENOUGH of our spiritual condition and become so hungry for Him we will pray, pray, pray!