January 1, 2025 • 24 mins
What makes God angry? What would it take for the Prince of Peace, Jesus, to act out in rage?
Jesus bursts into the temple with passion and boldness, flipping tables and driving out the greedy moneychangers. People stand in awe as Jesus delivers a harsh rebuke to the religious elite.
Today's Bible verse is Isaiah 16:3,5, from the King James Version.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Give counsel, execute justice. Make your shade like the night
in the middle of the noonday, Hide the outcasts, don't
betray the fugitive Isaiah sixteen three to five. Dear Lord,
you are my source of strength, comfort and joy. When
(00:22):
I think about your life, death and resurrection, I am
filled with hope, for you proved yourself as my deliverer.
Because of your goodness, I cannot help but shout for joy.
Because of your faithfulness, I will raise my hands and
praise and proclaim your name from the roof tops. My
(00:44):
hope in you will never end because your love endures forever.
Empower me to day, to march forward with light hearted joy,
even when life gets heavy in Jesus name. Amen, Thank
you for praying with me to day. You're listening to
(01:06):
the Jesus podcast Sagas from the Gospel told like never before.
Remain here to immerse yourself in the drama and wonder
of Christ's road to the Cross and out of the grave.
Follow this podcast on whatever platform you're listening to. Doing
so will keep you updated, but also help us get
(01:29):
discovered by more people. We want the story of Jesus
to be known throughout the world. Thanks for making that possible.
The gentle touch of the sun softened the morning's cool bite.
Rays of light paved the road between Bethany and Jerusalem.
(01:49):
Splashes of orange and hues of muted pink arrayed the countryside.
The pathway Jesus and his companions traveled ascended and deca
scented with the hills. The tall grasp beside them bent
toward the city as if pointing the way forward. Standing
(02:09):
proudly atop a cliff to their left was a solitary
fig tree. Its leaves were a deep shade of green.
Jesus paused and peered at the fig tree with an
intense gaze. He climbed the slight slope to the tree
and scanned it up and down. He surveyed its branches
(02:30):
for fruit, but it hadn't none. It was not the
season for figs. Yet this tree, with its vibrant leaves
and colorful complexion, touted itself differently. The disciples watched Jesus
place a hand on the tree trunk. They looked at
his hand. It was the hand of a craftsman, calloused
(02:53):
from decades of labor. For the entire time they knew him,
they had watched those hands heal lepers, give sight to
the blind, and comfort the outcast. They were the hands
of restoration, blessing, and providence. However, as Jesus extended his
(03:13):
right hand and placed it upon the tree, they felt
a different power emanating from him. He grasped it firmly
and spoke a curse that sent chills down their spines.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
May no one need fruit from you ever.
Speaker 1 (03:28):
Again, he growled. Everyone looked at the tree, back at him,
then at the tree again. The fig tree stood unperturbed,
leaves rustling only slightly in the breeze.
Speaker 3 (03:44):
What makes God angry? And what would it take for
the Prince of peace Jesus to act out in rage?
Micah six ' eight says this. He has shown you,
o man, what is good? And what does the Lord
require of you? To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God. God has told
us what he's required. He wants justice and mercy to
(04:05):
be balanced with humility. What happens when an entire religious
system forgets justice, ignores mercy, and puffs themselves up with pride.
Welcome to the Jesus Podcast. Stories about triumph, love and
the passion of Jesus. I'm pastor zachwpray dot com, and
I want to invite you to follow this podcast. We're
going to be going through hundreds of gospel stories all
(04:28):
throughout the year, told in a way to awaken your
imagination and challenge your faith. It's Holy Week, the time
between the triumphal entry and the resurrection from the grave.
Jesus's last few days before his crucifixion were filled with
tense moments that inspire both reflection and praise. Today we
focus on the intensity of Jesus. We just listened to
(04:48):
him curse a fig tree, and now we're going to
hear him proclaim woes over the city of Jerusalem and
storm the temple courtyards picking a fight. While you listen
to this story, I want you to look closely for
parallels between the fig tree and the religious leaders Jesus
is about to challenge. There are many parallels between them.
Jesus despises vapid and empty religion. Jesus knows the end
(05:12):
is near and he's turning up the temperature here. He's
not running away from conflict, and he's not running away
from the trials that await him. Each act is deliberate
and purposeful. His feet are pointed like arrows towards the destination,
the place called Calvary, the place of the skull, Golgatha,
the Cross. Jesus isn't going to do anything by accident.
(05:34):
Everything right now is purposeful. Do you think Jesus is tame?
Do you think Jesus is a passive spectator of corruption?
Think again.
Speaker 1 (05:45):
Jesus' shoulders relaxed as he released his grip on the tree.
He turned back and saw the city of Jerusalem shining
brilliantly in the light. Its glory was vibrant, beautiful, like
the trees leaves. His jaw clenched and his bottom lip
began to quiver. Jesus looked at Jerusalem with disappointment in
(06:09):
his eyes. The disciples drew back and gave him space.
There was tension in the atmosphere, like a shifting wind
before a storm. The dam in Jesus's soul broke, and
a flood of rushing emotions poured out of him. A
mixture of anger, sorrow, and love poured out of him.
(06:34):
As he bellowed, His cries echoed down the hills. He
fell to his knees and wept with a ferocity, like
a mother bear roaring over her lost cup.
Speaker 2 (06:47):
My youre, how I wish to tell you would understand
the path to peace.
Speaker 1 (06:52):
He gripped his chest, as if pleading with the city
and his own soul. But it's too late. It's too late.
Speaker 2 (07:00):
Peace is hidden from your eyes.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
There was a momentary pause, a break in the tears
as he closed his eyes. The wind continued its descent
toward the city, carrying his heartfelt message with it.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
It won't be long now before your enemies build ramparts
against your walls and surround you from every side. They
will crush you, Jerusalem. They will bury you into the ground,
you and your children with you. Your enemies won't leave
a single stone in place, and all if it could
have been saved, if you just seemed God in your midst.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
His followers remained at a healthy distance, allowing space for
his prophetic weepings. They had assumed their journey with their
master would ultimately end with a provisional rise to power. However,
at this moment, on the hill overlooking the Holy City,
they sent something else was in store for them. The
(07:59):
passion of the prophet King was awakened, and Jerusalem was
about to be shaken. Jesus disciples stayed a few paces
behind him, trying to discern what would happen next. Their
teacher's demeanor had shifted since his triumphal entry. He wasn't
(08:20):
anxious or hurried, but there was an urgency in his
stride they hadn't seen before. Jesus entered the city with intention.
Every step was aimed at the Temple like an arrow.
They arrived at the temple courtyard, a space set aside
(08:41):
for gentiles and foreigners to worship God. The intentions for
the outer Yard were explicit in God's word. The outer
squares were designed to be a refuge for the alien
and onlooker to experience the love of God. However, what
the group stepped into was some else Entirely. Money changers
(09:02):
and merchants occupied the courtyard, peddling animals for sacrifice and
exchanging foreign currency at an unfair rate. The outer courtyard
had ceased being a place for outcasts to worship God
and had become a place to milk the foreigners for
all they were worth. The poor were now unable to
(09:25):
make sacrifices at the Temple. The middle class was forced
to exchange their modest sacrifice for a more expensive and
temple approved sacrifice. Tables arrayed the courtyard, holding weights and
scales to balance silver and gold. Yet for all the
scales there was no fairness. For all the guards, there
(09:49):
was no justice. Jesus peered up at the temple's leaders
and snarled. He could smell their greed from a mile away.
They had been fattening themselves off the exploitation of non
Jewish worshipers. He looked upon the sea of innocent faces
desperate to access God. He saw poor families walking away
(10:13):
because they could not afford the temples approved animals. They
wanted to be near to God. They wanted God to
redeem them. God was near and he would redeem. The
words of Isaiah reverberated in his mind. Give wisdom, grant
them justice. Make your shadow like night at the height
(10:36):
of noon, shelter the outcasts. A large stone table was
in the center of the courtyard. Scales with gold and
silver weights were placed on them to measure against the
foreigner's coin. God's passionate prophet took a decisive step forward.
He was about to balance the scales. He placed his
(10:59):
work worn hands underneath the large stone table, gripped its
edges tightly, and swung his whole body upward, flipping it
into the air. The stone cracked as it hit the ground,
and coins scattered along the cobbled floor. The same power
that sent fire down from heaven and split the earth
(11:20):
in days of old coursed through his soul. One by one.
Jesus flipped every table in the courtyard that had been
hewn as an altar of greed. He shattered the crates
of the animals, sent sheep running from their owners, and
halted anyone from carrying anything into the temple. His strong
(11:41):
legs marched up the steps to where the temple leaders
remained in shock. He stood inches from them and stared
into their very souls. Jesus saw pass their ceremonial robes
and religious medallions. Outwardly, they appeared to have life. Jesus
could see the void within them. Jesus turned to the crowd.
(12:05):
The chaos he had caused paused momentarily, and all were
silent as he spoke. He spoke was a glorious authority.
His voice boomed and reverberated across the courtyard as he said.
Speaker 2 (12:20):
It is written, my house shall be called a house
of prayer for all the nations. Look what you've made it.
You've turned this refuge for prayer into a den of thieves.
Speaker 1 (12:31):
Everyone in the courtyard heard him, but only his students
truly listened. They watched his chest rise and fall with
every emboldened breath. He was more than a passionate prophet
like Elijah or John the Baptist. He was the voice
that once boomed from Mount Sinai. None could fathom the
(12:54):
depth of what was happening at the moment. The tables
and temple currency represented the walls of separation between God
and humanity. The connection between them had been lost, but
his chosen hero stood before them on the steps to
restore what had been lost. The broken tables and spilled
(13:17):
coins represented the toppling of a religious system that kept
people far from their creator's heart. All would be restored soon,
but not without a sacrifice. His battle was not ultimately
against the priests of the money changers, but against the
(13:38):
sin that ensnared their souls.
Speaker 3 (13:47):
What makes us angry often reveals what we cherish most.
If someone ever disrespects my wife, I'm stirred to anger.
If my kids are threatened in any way, I begin
to boil with fury. The same can be said for
not so righteous things in my life. I enjoy food,
probably more than I should, so I get irritated when
somebody interrupts me during a meal. What angers us most
(14:09):
reveals what we love most, or at least reveals a
crucial part of our character. So what angered Jesus the most?
What stirred him to action? This episode showed us a
few scenes of Jesus being moved to outrage. First, we
saw him lash out at a fig tree that wasn't
bearing fruit. Does that reveal Jesus's deep and passionate hatred
(14:30):
for figs? Of course not. In our next episode, we're
going to get into more detail about the fig tree,
but here's a teaser. The fig tree is a metaphor.
It's a metaphor for the priests, the Pharisees, and the
religious system. The tree showed vibrant leaves as if it
was the season for figs, but upon further inspection, no
fruit was found in the tree. Jesus hates spiritual false advertising. Next,
(14:54):
Jesus turns his face to the city and laments he
talks about how they've missed it. They've met this incredible
work of the Messiah that they'd been pining after for
so long. Peace with God was right in front of them,
but they were blind to it all. Jesus is angry
with their willing ignorance. He revealed himself to the Pharisees.
He revealed himself to the religious leaders. They saw all
(15:17):
the signs, they heard his preaching, and they beheld the
glorious work of Jesus. But still, because of their pride,
they ignored him. You see, pride blinds Us. When he
looked back at the city draped in splendor, he couldn't
help but weep. For all its beauty, it was dead inside,
just like the fig tree. Why was it dead? Because
(15:38):
they had strayed from the heart of God and were
unprepared for the struggles ahead. Jesus was emotional at the
thought of his people suffering. As a parent mourns over
a child who is strayed. God is passionate about you,
and he mourns when you've strayed or when pride has
blinded you. But Jesus is anger didn't stop there. In
this episode, what else stirs Jesus to indignation. Well, when
(16:01):
God's people are being kept from intimacy with him. Remember
how I said that what angers us most reveals what
we love most. If we look at the story of
God in the Bible, it becomes very clear as to
what God loves most. He loves to dwell with his
people and bless them. God loves to dwell with his
people and bless them. We first see this in the
Garden of Eden. In Genesis one twenty seven, it says this,
(16:24):
so God created man in his own image, in the
image of God. He created him male and female. He
created them, then God bless them. After the Garden of Eden,
God chose a family to dwell with. He shows Abraham, Isaac,
and Jacob. In Genesis seventeen, he makes a promise to Abraham,
and he says, i will establish my covenant between me
and you and all of your descendants and all the
(16:46):
generations after them. I'm going to make an everlasting covenant
to be God to you and your descendants after you.
And Genesis twenty two it says in your seed all
the nations of the earth shall be blessed. So God
has this divine plan to bring all of the nations
into intimacy and unity with Him. It starts with Him
establishing a nation through Abraham's descendants, a people group, a
(17:08):
nation whose history would be centered around a holy God
pursuing them at all costs, a God that would send plagues,
part sees, and shatter the earth and demolish walls to
get them and bless them. As a symbol of this unity,
he established the Ark of the Covenant and the Tabernacle.
God wanted to dwell with his traveling people. Then, once
the nation of Israel was established, God dwelled in the Temple,
(17:32):
a place where people could travel thousands of miles to
visit and commune with God. Here they would pray and
make sacrifices and seek intimacy with God. Sacrifices would be
made and offered up to God. In these sacrifices, the
innocent blood of animals shed were a picture of the
consequence of sin on humanity, and ultimately they were pointing
(17:53):
towards a greater sacrifice that Jesus would make just a
week after this. This temple is where the peace people's
sins would be brought before God and to implore of
God to forgive them bless them and embolden them. It
was a place of worship and repentance. And this was
not just a practice for the people of Israel, you
know that, right, people from all nations would flock to
(18:15):
the Temple, not just Jews, but gentiles too. In fact,
there was an entire outer section of the temple dedicated
for gentiles to come and commune with God. This is
so crazy because that was God's desire all along. Remember
the promise he made to Abraham. He wanted all the
nations to be blessed. In Genesis twenty two, he made
a promise that through the seed of Abraham, every single
(18:38):
nation would be blessed. So that's why there was a
special section of the temple dedicated to gentiles, but it
was also dedicated to the outcasts, the poor, those who
really desperately needed God can come and commune with Him.
And guess what section the priests and the temple leaders
used to start making money. That's right, the place where
(19:01):
the gentiles and the outcasts were supposed to be able
to come in commune with God was the same place
people were using to make a prophet. So not only
were all the gentiles now not able to come and
worship God, but the poor were unable to worship God too,
because the temple currency had a super crazy exchange rate.
These people were inhibiting the outcasts and the poor from
(19:22):
worshiping God, and that's what stirred Jesus to anger. The
temple was where God decided to make himself present, but
greed was keeping the poor and needy from accessing him.
The priests and the Pharisees were making the poor and
dispossessed by their atonement. But only the blood of Christ
can do that. So Jesus got mad. He flipped the
(19:44):
tables over because the heart of God is to be
with his children, and he'll do anything it takes to
be with them. When we get angry, it's always because
we're supposed to protect something. So when it comes to
God displaying anger, he is protecting something to his glory,
his purpose for humanity. That is what made Jesus angry.
It was undermining his plan for the Gospel. Listen to
(20:07):
these words from Isaiah fifty six and let me know
if they sound familiar. Do not let the son of
the foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord speak
saying the Lord has utterly separated me from his people.
Nor let the eunuchs say here I am a dry tree.
For thus says the Lord to the eunuchs, who keep
my sabbaths and choose what pleases me, and hold fast
(20:29):
my covenant. Even to them, I will give my house
and within my walls a place and a name better
than that of the sons and daughters. I will give
them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off.
Also the sons of the foreigner, who join themselves to
the Lord to serve him and to love the name
of the Lord, to be his servants. Everyone who keeps
from defiling the Sabbath and holds fast my covenant, even them,
(20:51):
I will bring to my holy mountain and make them
joyful in my house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and
their sacrifices will be excp did on my altar. From
my house shall be called a house of prayer for
all the nations. The words of Isaiah revealed the heart
of God. He wanted his house to be a house
of prayer, a house where the foreigner, the gentile, and
(21:14):
the poor could come and connect with God. It has
always been God's desire to bring all the nations to himself,
and it has always been his desire to create avenues
for people to speak with him, to worship him, and
to be with him and to walk with him. Before
the veil was torn, this is where people would go
before the crucifixion of Jesus and the resurrection. This was
(21:35):
the place for worship. What we see Jesus doing here
in this episode is violently driving out that which is
separating people from experiencing intimacy with God. It's a picture
of what Jesus would eventually do on the cross. You see,
the Cross was the most violent upheaval of sin and
separation this world has ever seen. And just as Jesus
(21:57):
violently flipped the tables that were separating people from experiencing
unity with God, he violently crucified the very sins keeping
you from Him. These gentiles were hopeless to come before
God and to ask forgiveness in the temple, so Jesus
made away he flipped the tables. He does this with
us in Ephesians chapter two. Paul tells us that those
(22:18):
who are far from God, the gentiles in the flesh,
have now been brought in. We strangers to God have
now been called his children. The entire narrative of scripture
is that we have so many barriers keeping us from
a life of peace with God, and that God will
stop at nothing until all of those barriers are flipped
over and done away with. Romans eight thirty eight says this,
(22:41):
for I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels,
nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers,
nor height, nor death, nor anything else in all creation
will be able to separate us from the love of Christ. Jesus,
our Lord. Jesus removed all the barriers between us and
God on the cross. He flipped our tables, if you
want to use that metaphor, for the temple was a
place for reconciling, atoning, and the healing work of God.
(23:05):
After Jesus flipped the tables, people flock to him, and
he ministered to them. It says in Hebrews four sixteen.
Let us, then, with confidence, draw near to the throne
of Grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace
to help in our time of need. I think having
confidence that God wants to hear from us and speak
to us changes our perspective on prayer, doesn't it. He
(23:25):
bends his ear to hear us. He makes avenues for
us to pray to him. The grand table flipping work
Christ did on the cross and rising again from the
grave allows for prayer to have a full and unhindered
effect in our lives. We have access to God, Jesus said,
Ask and it will be given to you. Seek and
you will find. Knock and the door will be open
to you. Jeremiah says, you will seek me and find
(23:49):
me when you seek Me with all your heart. Through Jesus,
prayer is possible. There is no actual impact we are
going to make as believers without stepping into unity with
God in prayer, and Jesus made that all available. May
we be people known for prayer because God has given
us access to Him through prayer. It is the source
(24:09):
of our power and our intimacy with Him. Join us
for our next episode as we continue along this journey
to the Cross and out from the grave. For more
inspiration to last a lifetime, download the pray dot Com app.
See you next time.
Give counsel, execute justice. Make your shade like the night
in the middle of the noonday, Hide the outcasts, don't
betray the fugitive Isaiah sixteen three to five. Dear Lord,
you are my source of strength, comfort and joy. When
(00:22):
I think about your life, death and resurrection, I am
filled with hope, for you proved yourself as my deliverer.
Because of your goodness, I cannot help but shout for joy.
Because of your faithfulness, I will raise my hands and
praise and proclaim your name from the roof tops. My
(00:44):
hope in you will never end because your love endures forever.
Empower me to day, to march forward with light hearted joy,
even when life gets heavy in Jesus name. Amen, Thank
you for praying with me to day. You're listening to
(01:06):
the Jesus podcast Sagas from the Gospel told like never before.
Remain here to immerse yourself in the drama and wonder
of Christ's road to the Cross and out of the grave.
Follow this podcast on whatever platform you're listening to. Doing
so will keep you updated, but also help us get
(01:29):
discovered by more people. We want the story of Jesus
to be known throughout the world. Thanks for making that possible.
The gentle touch of the sun softened the morning's cool bite.
Rays of light paved the road between Bethany and Jerusalem.
(01:49):
Splashes of orange and hues of muted pink arrayed the countryside.
The pathway Jesus and his companions traveled ascended and deca
scented with the hills. The tall grasp beside them bent
toward the city as if pointing the way forward. Standing
(02:09):
proudly atop a cliff to their left was a solitary
fig tree. Its leaves were a deep shade of green.
Jesus paused and peered at the fig tree with an
intense gaze. He climbed the slight slope to the tree
and scanned it up and down. He surveyed its branches
(02:30):
for fruit, but it hadn't none. It was not the
season for figs. Yet this tree, with its vibrant leaves
and colorful complexion, touted itself differently. The disciples watched Jesus
place a hand on the tree trunk. They looked at
his hand. It was the hand of a craftsman, calloused
(02:53):
from decades of labor. For the entire time they knew him,
they had watched those hands heal lepers, give sight to
the blind, and comfort the outcast. They were the hands
of restoration, blessing, and providence. However, as Jesus extended his
(03:13):
right hand and placed it upon the tree, they felt
a different power emanating from him. He grasped it firmly
and spoke a curse that sent chills down their spines.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
May no one need fruit from you ever.
Speaker 1 (03:28):
Again, he growled. Everyone looked at the tree, back at him,
then at the tree again. The fig tree stood unperturbed,
leaves rustling only slightly in the breeze.
Speaker 3 (03:44):
What makes God angry? And what would it take for
the Prince of peace Jesus to act out in rage?
Micah six ' eight says this. He has shown you,
o man, what is good? And what does the Lord
require of you? To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God. God has told
us what he's required. He wants justice and mercy to
(04:05):
be balanced with humility. What happens when an entire religious
system forgets justice, ignores mercy, and puffs themselves up with pride.
Welcome to the Jesus Podcast. Stories about triumph, love and
the passion of Jesus. I'm pastor zachwpray dot com, and
I want to invite you to follow this podcast. We're
going to be going through hundreds of gospel stories all
(04:28):
throughout the year, told in a way to awaken your
imagination and challenge your faith. It's Holy Week, the time
between the triumphal entry and the resurrection from the grave.
Jesus's last few days before his crucifixion were filled with
tense moments that inspire both reflection and praise. Today we
focus on the intensity of Jesus. We just listened to
(04:48):
him curse a fig tree, and now we're going to
hear him proclaim woes over the city of Jerusalem and
storm the temple courtyards picking a fight. While you listen
to this story, I want you to look closely for
parallels between the fig tree and the religious leaders Jesus
is about to challenge. There are many parallels between them.
Jesus despises vapid and empty religion. Jesus knows the end
(05:12):
is near and he's turning up the temperature here. He's
not running away from conflict, and he's not running away
from the trials that await him. Each act is deliberate
and purposeful. His feet are pointed like arrows towards the destination,
the place called Calvary, the place of the skull, Golgatha,
the Cross. Jesus isn't going to do anything by accident.
(05:34):
Everything right now is purposeful. Do you think Jesus is tame?
Do you think Jesus is a passive spectator of corruption?
Think again.
Speaker 1 (05:45):
Jesus' shoulders relaxed as he released his grip on the tree.
He turned back and saw the city of Jerusalem shining
brilliantly in the light. Its glory was vibrant, beautiful, like
the trees leaves. His jaw clenched and his bottom lip
began to quiver. Jesus looked at Jerusalem with disappointment in
(06:09):
his eyes. The disciples drew back and gave him space.
There was tension in the atmosphere, like a shifting wind
before a storm. The dam in Jesus's soul broke, and
a flood of rushing emotions poured out of him. A
mixture of anger, sorrow, and love poured out of him.
(06:34):
As he bellowed, His cries echoed down the hills. He
fell to his knees and wept with a ferocity, like
a mother bear roaring over her lost cup.
Speaker 2 (06:47):
My youre, how I wish to tell you would understand
the path to peace.
Speaker 1 (06:52):
He gripped his chest, as if pleading with the city
and his own soul. But it's too late. It's too late.
Speaker 2 (07:00):
Peace is hidden from your eyes.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
There was a momentary pause, a break in the tears
as he closed his eyes. The wind continued its descent
toward the city, carrying his heartfelt message with it.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
It won't be long now before your enemies build ramparts
against your walls and surround you from every side. They
will crush you, Jerusalem. They will bury you into the ground,
you and your children with you. Your enemies won't leave
a single stone in place, and all if it could
have been saved, if you just seemed God in your midst.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
His followers remained at a healthy distance, allowing space for
his prophetic weepings. They had assumed their journey with their
master would ultimately end with a provisional rise to power. However,
at this moment, on the hill overlooking the Holy City,
they sent something else was in store for them. The
(07:59):
passion of the prophet King was awakened, and Jerusalem was
about to be shaken. Jesus disciples stayed a few paces
behind him, trying to discern what would happen next. Their
teacher's demeanor had shifted since his triumphal entry. He wasn't
(08:20):
anxious or hurried, but there was an urgency in his
stride they hadn't seen before. Jesus entered the city with intention.
Every step was aimed at the Temple like an arrow.
They arrived at the temple courtyard, a space set aside
(08:41):
for gentiles and foreigners to worship God. The intentions for
the outer Yard were explicit in God's word. The outer
squares were designed to be a refuge for the alien
and onlooker to experience the love of God. However, what
the group stepped into was some else Entirely. Money changers
(09:02):
and merchants occupied the courtyard, peddling animals for sacrifice and
exchanging foreign currency at an unfair rate. The outer courtyard
had ceased being a place for outcasts to worship God
and had become a place to milk the foreigners for
all they were worth. The poor were now unable to
(09:25):
make sacrifices at the Temple. The middle class was forced
to exchange their modest sacrifice for a more expensive and
temple approved sacrifice. Tables arrayed the courtyard, holding weights and
scales to balance silver and gold. Yet for all the
scales there was no fairness. For all the guards, there
(09:49):
was no justice. Jesus peered up at the temple's leaders
and snarled. He could smell their greed from a mile away.
They had been fattening themselves off the exploitation of non
Jewish worshipers. He looked upon the sea of innocent faces
desperate to access God. He saw poor families walking away
(10:13):
because they could not afford the temples approved animals. They
wanted to be near to God. They wanted God to
redeem them. God was near and he would redeem. The
words of Isaiah reverberated in his mind. Give wisdom, grant
them justice. Make your shadow like night at the height
(10:36):
of noon, shelter the outcasts. A large stone table was
in the center of the courtyard. Scales with gold and
silver weights were placed on them to measure against the
foreigner's coin. God's passionate prophet took a decisive step forward.
He was about to balance the scales. He placed his
(10:59):
work worn hands underneath the large stone table, gripped its
edges tightly, and swung his whole body upward, flipping it
into the air. The stone cracked as it hit the ground,
and coins scattered along the cobbled floor. The same power
that sent fire down from heaven and split the earth
(11:20):
in days of old coursed through his soul. One by one.
Jesus flipped every table in the courtyard that had been
hewn as an altar of greed. He shattered the crates
of the animals, sent sheep running from their owners, and
halted anyone from carrying anything into the temple. His strong
(11:41):
legs marched up the steps to where the temple leaders
remained in shock. He stood inches from them and stared
into their very souls. Jesus saw pass their ceremonial robes
and religious medallions. Outwardly, they appeared to have life. Jesus
could see the void within them. Jesus turned to the crowd.
(12:05):
The chaos he had caused paused momentarily, and all were
silent as he spoke. He spoke was a glorious authority.
His voice boomed and reverberated across the courtyard as he said.
Speaker 2 (12:20):
It is written, my house shall be called a house
of prayer for all the nations. Look what you've made it.
You've turned this refuge for prayer into a den of thieves.
Speaker 1 (12:31):
Everyone in the courtyard heard him, but only his students
truly listened. They watched his chest rise and fall with
every emboldened breath. He was more than a passionate prophet
like Elijah or John the Baptist. He was the voice
that once boomed from Mount Sinai. None could fathom the
(12:54):
depth of what was happening at the moment. The tables
and temple currency represented the walls of separation between God
and humanity. The connection between them had been lost, but
his chosen hero stood before them on the steps to
restore what had been lost. The broken tables and spilled
(13:17):
coins represented the toppling of a religious system that kept
people far from their creator's heart. All would be restored soon,
but not without a sacrifice. His battle was not ultimately
against the priests of the money changers, but against the
(13:38):
sin that ensnared their souls.
Speaker 3 (13:47):
What makes us angry often reveals what we cherish most.
If someone ever disrespects my wife, I'm stirred to anger.
If my kids are threatened in any way, I begin
to boil with fury. The same can be said for
not so righteous things in my life. I enjoy food,
probably more than I should, so I get irritated when
somebody interrupts me during a meal. What angers us most
(14:09):
reveals what we love most, or at least reveals a
crucial part of our character. So what angered Jesus the most?
What stirred him to action? This episode showed us a
few scenes of Jesus being moved to outrage. First, we
saw him lash out at a fig tree that wasn't
bearing fruit. Does that reveal Jesus's deep and passionate hatred
(14:30):
for figs? Of course not. In our next episode, we're
going to get into more detail about the fig tree,
but here's a teaser. The fig tree is a metaphor.
It's a metaphor for the priests, the Pharisees, and the
religious system. The tree showed vibrant leaves as if it
was the season for figs, but upon further inspection, no
fruit was found in the tree. Jesus hates spiritual false advertising. Next,
(14:54):
Jesus turns his face to the city and laments he
talks about how they've missed it. They've met this incredible
work of the Messiah that they'd been pining after for
so long. Peace with God was right in front of them,
but they were blind to it all. Jesus is angry
with their willing ignorance. He revealed himself to the Pharisees.
He revealed himself to the religious leaders. They saw all
(15:17):
the signs, they heard his preaching, and they beheld the
glorious work of Jesus. But still, because of their pride,
they ignored him. You see, pride blinds Us. When he
looked back at the city draped in splendor, he couldn't
help but weep. For all its beauty, it was dead inside,
just like the fig tree. Why was it dead? Because
(15:38):
they had strayed from the heart of God and were
unprepared for the struggles ahead. Jesus was emotional at the
thought of his people suffering. As a parent mourns over
a child who is strayed. God is passionate about you,
and he mourns when you've strayed or when pride has
blinded you. But Jesus is anger didn't stop there. In
this episode, what else stirs Jesus to indignation. Well, when
(16:01):
God's people are being kept from intimacy with him. Remember
how I said that what angers us most reveals what
we love most. If we look at the story of
God in the Bible, it becomes very clear as to
what God loves most. He loves to dwell with his
people and bless them. God loves to dwell with his
people and bless them. We first see this in the
Garden of Eden. In Genesis one twenty seven, it says this,
(16:24):
so God created man in his own image, in the
image of God. He created him male and female. He
created them, then God bless them. After the Garden of Eden,
God chose a family to dwell with. He shows Abraham, Isaac,
and Jacob. In Genesis seventeen, he makes a promise to Abraham,
and he says, i will establish my covenant between me
and you and all of your descendants and all the
(16:46):
generations after them. I'm going to make an everlasting covenant
to be God to you and your descendants after you.
And Genesis twenty two it says in your seed all
the nations of the earth shall be blessed. So God
has this divine plan to bring all of the nations
into intimacy and unity with Him. It starts with Him
establishing a nation through Abraham's descendants, a people group, a
(17:08):
nation whose history would be centered around a holy God
pursuing them at all costs, a God that would send plagues,
part sees, and shatter the earth and demolish walls to
get them and bless them. As a symbol of this unity,
he established the Ark of the Covenant and the Tabernacle.
God wanted to dwell with his traveling people. Then, once
the nation of Israel was established, God dwelled in the Temple,
(17:32):
a place where people could travel thousands of miles to
visit and commune with God. Here they would pray and
make sacrifices and seek intimacy with God. Sacrifices would be
made and offered up to God. In these sacrifices, the
innocent blood of animals shed were a picture of the
consequence of sin on humanity, and ultimately they were pointing
(17:53):
towards a greater sacrifice that Jesus would make just a
week after this. This temple is where the peace people's
sins would be brought before God and to implore of
God to forgive them bless them and embolden them. It
was a place of worship and repentance. And this was
not just a practice for the people of Israel, you
know that, right, people from all nations would flock to
(18:15):
the Temple, not just Jews, but gentiles too. In fact,
there was an entire outer section of the temple dedicated
for gentiles to come and commune with God. This is
so crazy because that was God's desire all along. Remember
the promise he made to Abraham. He wanted all the
nations to be blessed. In Genesis twenty two, he made
a promise that through the seed of Abraham, every single
(18:38):
nation would be blessed. So that's why there was a
special section of the temple dedicated to gentiles, but it
was also dedicated to the outcasts, the poor, those who
really desperately needed God can come and commune with Him.
And guess what section the priests and the temple leaders
used to start making money. That's right, the place where
(19:01):
the gentiles and the outcasts were supposed to be able
to come in commune with God was the same place
people were using to make a prophet. So not only
were all the gentiles now not able to come and
worship God, but the poor were unable to worship God too,
because the temple currency had a super crazy exchange rate.
These people were inhibiting the outcasts and the poor from
(19:22):
worshiping God, and that's what stirred Jesus to anger. The
temple was where God decided to make himself present, but
greed was keeping the poor and needy from accessing him.
The priests and the Pharisees were making the poor and
dispossessed by their atonement. But only the blood of Christ
can do that. So Jesus got mad. He flipped the
(19:44):
tables over because the heart of God is to be
with his children, and he'll do anything it takes to
be with them. When we get angry, it's always because
we're supposed to protect something. So when it comes to
God displaying anger, he is protecting something to his glory,
his purpose for humanity. That is what made Jesus angry.
It was undermining his plan for the Gospel. Listen to
(20:07):
these words from Isaiah fifty six and let me know
if they sound familiar. Do not let the son of
the foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord speak
saying the Lord has utterly separated me from his people.
Nor let the eunuchs say here I am a dry tree.
For thus says the Lord to the eunuchs, who keep
my sabbaths and choose what pleases me, and hold fast
(20:29):
my covenant. Even to them, I will give my house
and within my walls a place and a name better
than that of the sons and daughters. I will give
them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off.
Also the sons of the foreigner, who join themselves to
the Lord to serve him and to love the name
of the Lord, to be his servants. Everyone who keeps
from defiling the Sabbath and holds fast my covenant, even them,
(20:51):
I will bring to my holy mountain and make them
joyful in my house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and
their sacrifices will be excp did on my altar. From
my house shall be called a house of prayer for
all the nations. The words of Isaiah revealed the heart
of God. He wanted his house to be a house
of prayer, a house where the foreigner, the gentile, and
(21:14):
the poor could come and connect with God. It has
always been God's desire to bring all the nations to himself,
and it has always been his desire to create avenues
for people to speak with him, to worship him, and
to be with him and to walk with him. Before
the veil was torn, this is where people would go
before the crucifixion of Jesus and the resurrection. This was
(21:35):
the place for worship. What we see Jesus doing here
in this episode is violently driving out that which is
separating people from experiencing intimacy with God. It's a picture
of what Jesus would eventually do on the cross. You see,
the Cross was the most violent upheaval of sin and
separation this world has ever seen. And just as Jesus
(21:57):
violently flipped the tables that were separating people from experiencing
unity with God, he violently crucified the very sins keeping
you from Him. These gentiles were hopeless to come before
God and to ask forgiveness in the temple, so Jesus
made away he flipped the tables. He does this with
us in Ephesians chapter two. Paul tells us that those
(22:18):
who are far from God, the gentiles in the flesh,
have now been brought in. We strangers to God have
now been called his children. The entire narrative of scripture
is that we have so many barriers keeping us from
a life of peace with God, and that God will
stop at nothing until all of those barriers are flipped
over and done away with. Romans eight thirty eight says this,
(22:41):
for I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels,
nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers,
nor height, nor death, nor anything else in all creation
will be able to separate us from the love of Christ. Jesus,
our Lord. Jesus removed all the barriers between us and
God on the cross. He flipped our tables, if you
want to use that metaphor, for the temple was a
place for reconciling, atoning, and the healing work of God.
(23:05):
After Jesus flipped the tables, people flock to him, and
he ministered to them. It says in Hebrews four sixteen.
Let us, then, with confidence, draw near to the throne
of Grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace
to help in our time of need. I think having
confidence that God wants to hear from us and speak
to us changes our perspective on prayer, doesn't it. He
(23:25):
bends his ear to hear us. He makes avenues for
us to pray to him. The grand table flipping work
Christ did on the cross and rising again from the
grave allows for prayer to have a full and unhindered
effect in our lives. We have access to God, Jesus said,
Ask and it will be given to you. Seek and
you will find. Knock and the door will be open
to you. Jeremiah says, you will seek me and find
(23:49):
me when you seek Me with all your heart. Through Jesus,
prayer is possible. There is no actual impact we are
going to make as believers without stepping into unity with
God in prayer, and Jesus made that all available. May
we be people known for prayer because God has given
us access to Him through prayer. It is the source
(24:09):
of our power and our intimacy with Him. Join us
for our next episode as we continue along this journey
to the Cross and out from the grave. For more
inspiration to last a lifetime, download the pray dot Com app.
See you next time.
Host
Zak Shellabarger
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