What The Church Is All About
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Matthew 21 is an amazing chapter. It's unusual because we find Jesus performing two acts of judgement!
He cleanses the temple.
He curses the fig tree.
The reason this is unusual is because Jesus did not come to earth the first time to judge, but to save!
For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
It's amazing that even in the midst of wrath , our Lord remembers mercy!
He drove out moneychangers ; but healed the needy !
He refused the services of the priest; but accepted the praise of the children!
He left the complaining Scribes; but went to his friends in Bethany!
He Who is our God and Saviour is together furious in wrath and glorious in goodness!
This morning, I want to focus on attention on the cleansing of the temple, because this judgement teaches two important principles about the Church.
It teaches what the church is, and what the Church is not and for a little while this morning,
I want to preach on the thought of "What The Church is All About”…
Now, I'm well aware some of you may be thinking, preacher, everyone knows what church is about , but I don't believe they do.
I’m convinced that there are several today that are described in ...
Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
They have a form but it's not the real thing and when you get down to it, what they have is very, very different.
The crowd in our text didn't have a clue what church was about, even though they had been raised in Church!
Just because you've been in Church all your life doesn't mean you have a clear understanding of what church is all about…
Thankfully, our precious Savior clears things up for us in this passage.
First off - Let's look at what Church is NOT about:
The crowd we find here thought church was all about:
Financial Gain
Financial Gain
And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves,
Church is not a business, but it's a body!
Church is not an organization, but an organism!
These people had turned the Church into a lucrative business! The were really nothing more than con-men and extortioners!
They wouldn't allow people to bring their own animals for sacrifice ; they weren't good enough, but they would sell you a very expensive animal they classified as clean and the animal that wasn't good enough? They'd take it and sell it later on to another person!
The Lord didn’t have time for this garbage in His house! There still a lot of this garbage that goes on today believe it or not; it took me 2.5 seconds of searching online the other night to find an apostolic prophetic teacher that says the most important thing in life is to Pray, Hear, and Obey, after all, it’s the Christian way, but you need to pay him at the minimum $247 a month to become a member of his online church so he can give you a prophetic word from Jesus about your life!
We are commanded to give in the Bible, we are commanded to tithe in the Bible, and we have to keep the lights on, and keep things going for the glory of God, but the Church is not all about financial gain!
This crowd thought church was all about:
Fame and Glory
Fame and Glory
And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna to the Son of David; they were sore displeased,
When Jesus started getting the glory these people got mad.
The hypocrisy of the religious leaders is evident. Greed and theft in the temple didn’t bother them, but praise to Jesus did.
You know why they got mad? Because they weren't getting all the attention anymore!
Every eye was now on Jesus! And that’s where the eyes should be!
This crowd thought church was all about:
Fussing and Grumbling
Fussing and Grumbling
And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna to the Son of David; they were sore displeased,
And said unto him, Hearest thou what these say? And Jesus saith unto them, Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?
It’s like they were saying, you need to stop this praise of yourself. People who get upset when Jesus is praised are bad people. And these people were bad people, for they plotted to kill Christ.
Now that we know what church is NOT about; we also see here in this same text what church IS all about...
Church is About Exposing Sin
Church is About Exposing Sin
And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves,
Jesus, here in verse 12, walks right in and unapologetically exposes what these people are doing. He calls them out, he exposed them!
I think it’s amazing how that some preachers today can talk around sin for 45 minutes without ever talking about sin...
Nowhere in the Bible are we told to tolerate sin, and to be quiet and allow it to continue unopposed. We are in a battle, and it’s certainly is not easy.
Church is About Expounding the Scriptures
Church is About Expounding the Scriptures
And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.
“It is written” - Jesus is referring to the Scripture here - He’s quoting from:
Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.
Church is about expounding the Scriptures...
The word expound means:
To explain in detail.
To make known or set forth; present.
To make a detailed statement.
It’s a sad day when you walk into the church and all you hear in pulpits is a bunch of politics, or a bunch of opinion, or just a bunch of nothing-at-all.
We’ve got a Word from the Lord today and it ought to be expounded in the pulpits of the church!
We have a Word that is powerful!
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
We have a Word that is prophetic!
We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:
Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
We have a Word that will preach!
I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;
Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.
But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.
We have a Word that is permanent!
LAMED. For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven.
We have a Word that is pure!
Thy word is very pure: therefore thy servant loveth it.
Something is wrong when the Word is not expounded in the House of the Lord! Thank God today for His precious Word!
Church is About Expressing Supplication
Church is About Expressing Supplication
And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.
Prayer is preached more and practiced less than any other subject in all the Bible.
What does God want in His house? God wants prayer among His people,
I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;
True prayer is an evidence of our dependence on God and our faith in His Word.
Jesus’ very ministry today is in Heaven making intercession for us…You know what that means? That means His ministry even today is a ministry of prayer, and we should have one too!
Church is About Evangelizing Sinners
Church is About Evangelizing Sinners
And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple; and he healed them.
I want you to notice something here…The sinners didn’t come until the sin issue had been dealt with…Once Jesus exposed the sin, and took care of that, then the blind and lame we able to come to him. Why couldn’t they come before? Because the religious people wouldn’t let them in!
When it comes to evangelism. It’s the great commission, not the great option. He’s told us to go.
And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
Church is About Experiencing Salvation
Church is About Experiencing Salvation
And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple; and he healed them.
We can evangelize, but we can’t save…This is a work for the Holy Spirit. I want you to notice something I just love right here…Notice it says “…and he healed them.” Who healed them?
Jesus wasn’t charging! Jesus’ services are always free! Salvation is always free! Mankind and religion puts a price tag on things, but not Jesus! Man will put all sorts of rules and stipulation to salvation, but not Jesus, man will tell you you’re not good enough to be saved, or you did this in the past or that in the past and you can’t be forgiven, but Jesus says,
And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.
All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
Church is About Exalting the Saviour
Church is About Exalting the Saviour
And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna to the Son of David; they were sore displeased,
It was the young people in this verse that started praising the Lord!
The children were doing better than the adults in this matter of praising Christ. The big shots in religion would not honor Christ; but the children, whom the religious leaders looked down upon, acted better.
Here’s the thing…These children learned how to praise Him from somewhere; the Bible tells us:
And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest.
They were doing what they saw they mommas and their daddies do! Church is about exalting the Saviour!
Conclusion
Conclusion
And he left them, and went out of the city into Bethany; and he lodged there.
What a contrast there is here! The Lord Jesus left these complaining religionists to themselves, and went to Bethany.
No greater judgment can come upon human beings on this earth than for the Lord of Glory to leave them to themselves!
Spurgeon wrote, “A day of excitement was followed by an evening of retirement in a country home. He spent the night of that most eventful day with his faithful friends. What a contrast between his entry into Jerusalem and his visit to his friends at Bethany! Lord, lodge with me! Make my house thine abode.” Let us pray the same.