Let Pure Worship be Restored

Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.

Tonight we are gonna be talking about Jesus cleansing the temple, and we are gonna apply this principles to us, since we are God’s temple. We do not want to dishonor God as a dirty temple. Also being a clean temple allows us to live out the words of Psalm 69:9

Psalm 69:9 ESV

For zeal for your house has consumed me, and the reproaches of those who reproach you have fallen on me.

A Desire for Pure Worship

Read John 2:13-25

So this passage we just read revolves around Jesus cleansing the temple. Was the temple physically dirty? No. It was spiritually dirty, being hindered by people’s love of money.

Jesus saw these people in the temple selling things and services to make money. These people were not worship minded. Their lives were exemplifying 1 Timothy 6:10

1 Timothy 6:10 ESV

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.

They were no longer set on worshiping God or offering an honest service to those in need. They were no longer about the things of God, but about themselves and what they could get. The worship in the temple was being tainted. Also the outer courts was where gentiles could worship, and this may have been somewhat of a hindrance to them in the only place they had to worship. No matter how deep a hindrance to worship it was, it was still a hindrance and making a place of worship impure.

How did Jesus respond to this?

1. He chased them out with boldness.

Often people picture Jesus as quiet and reserved, but was this a very quiet and reserved action? No. Jesus saw His holiness was not being taken seriously and he got righteously angry. He did not stay quiet about his displeasure. This boldness should inspire us too. now I am not giving you permission to chase people out with whips or flip tables. Because I am 99% sure none of us would probably do it very righteously. But when we see things not of God going on among God’s people we should have boldness to approach this issue and not be scared of hurting peoples feelings who claim to be people of God, but do not take His holiness seriously. We should be bothered when people’s worship is tainted because of the hindrances of others. We should have a strong desire to see all worship God with a pure worship

If you claim to be a Christian you are giving the body of believers permission to hold you accountable.

2. Flipped money tables over and poured the money out

Why did Jesus do these things? He was exposing the root of the problem. Their love of money. Targeting their pocket book Jesus made His statement indisputable. They knew what angered him. So not only do we need to be bold, but also clear about what we are taking a stand against. We have a good bit of bold people, but too many of those bold people are very opinionated people, who make a lot of noise accomplishing nothing. We need to be bold and clear people. Your opinions don’t have to be known on everything. You bark a lot people eventually learn how to tune you out and then when you say things that truly matter they are not gonna be as quick to listen. Choose your battles wisely. When you make your statements in love, but also be straightforward, don’t beat around the bush.

As Christians we need to make bold and clear statements against sin.

3. Jesus said “Take these things away; do not make my Father’s house a house of trade.”

All these actions were boldly and clearly explained in this statement from Jesus to the people. One was saying get these impure things out of here. and secondly hey their is no riding the fence. this temple is for the worship of God and Him alone.

Applying this to our personal lives:

What impurities are in your life that need to be ran out of the temple?__________________

Love of money, lust, addiction, hate, laziness, etc.

How do we run these impurities out? One we must have a relationship with Christ. Second we must be serious about that relationship. We are constantly in a spiritual battles.

How do we battle these impurities?

Sometimes it may mean dropping some “friends”. speaking up among your classmates and saying you don't appreciate certain type of talk. Changing entertainment choices. Prioritize Scripture reading. Prayer. Prioritizing church. Telling the devil he ain’t welcomed anymore. Destroy his footholds (Ephesians 4:26-27). If temptation is bombarding you, get bold. Stop being scared. The victory is already won.

What is the priority's in your life?

Is God number one or is he second or tied for number one? He must be number one in our life’s. What are you letting be the number one shaping force in your life?

To have pure worship you must chase out the impurities and let God be what directs your life.

Don’t be afraid to be an outcast.

If you are the only one who stands for what is right so be it. Worship God how He calls you to and if you are the only one. So be it.

Pure Worship Produces Zeal

What does zeal mean. Oxford dictionaries defines zeal as “great energy or enthusiasm in pursuit of a cause or an objective.” As we chase a pure worship our zeal for the things of God will continuously grow. Our passion to make His glory known will grow. it will be harder and harder to silence us as we speak up for the things of God. I love the words of Jeremiah 20:9

Jeremiah 20:9 ESV

If I say, “I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name,” there is in my heart as it were a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot.

Speaking the words of God will become so much of you, that it will become difficult to not speak out. You will not be able to help but get excited over the things of God. Zeal is contagious. Attitudes can be contagious and inspiring. When people see your excited about something that want on board with it. People sees what gets you excited. Let people see your passion. Don’t be embarrassed.

If you remember at the beginning of class we read all of the verse referenced here.

Reproach falls on the zealous. So be ready when you live a zealous life for Christ you will face opposition.

Reproach means to be approached with disapproval and disappointment. So when you are on fire for Christ the world is not going to be very well receiving as a whole. But they will not be able to quench this zeal. The world is going to tell you: your a bigot, your to close minded, your not woke enough, you a hater, you are crazy religious person, etc.

Pure and Zealous Worship Baffles the World

So Jesus here after making his bold stand makes another bold statement foreshadowing His death. They did not understand Jesus’ statement. They were like you their ain’t no way you can do what you say. But they did not grasp what Jesus was saying and what he can truly do. The world is not capable of fully grasping the things of God. The only reason we are capable of grasping the things of God is the Holy Spirit has transformed us. Romans 12:1-2

Romans 12:1–2 ESV

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

The Holy Spirit helps us comprehend the things of God.

Our minds are holy. Look at the fruit of the spirit verses the fruit of the flesh in Galatians 5. And the things we deem important and not important shape our view on things.

When we talk about our godly beliefs many are going to look at us like we have lost our minds. That is why we must preach the Gospel. The Gospel and the Gospel alone has the power to change. Preaching the Gospel should be our number one priority. Not winning arguments or politics. Now that's not to say we should not vote for and advocate for Godly policies. God’s ways make for a healthier society.

In the end if we ban gay marriage again, is it going to make people any less gay? Are people gonna stop being gay because the law says something. No they will still be in the same spiritual boat they were in. The only way people are gonna leave sexual sin alone is if they have a heart change. And government ain’t in the heart changing business. You can be involved in politics, but do not let it overshadow your faith. Don’t let you voicing your opinions be a hindrance to sharing the gospel. In all honesty if we want government policy to shift in a more godly direction we must have a more gospel minded culture.The culture is what produces the policies.

In the end if i win an argument with someone over rather or not evolution and the big bang are backed up with good science what eternal good have i accomplished. If they have not heard the gospel in that conversation I have failed. Who cares if I am right the science doesn’t back it up. As we have seen people who do not want to believe in God will find a hundred other things to believe instead.