John 2:13–21 (NLT) — 13 It was nearly time for the Jewish Passover celebration, so Jesus went to Jerusalem. 14 In the Temple area he saw merchants selling cattle, sheep, and doves for sacrifices; he also saw dealers at tables exchanging foreign money. 15 Jesus made a whip from some ropes and chased them all out of the Temple. He drove out the sheep and cattle, scattered the money changers’ coins over the floor, and turned over their tables. 16 Then, going over to the people who sold doves, he told them, “Get these things out of here. Stop turning my Father’s house into a marketplace!” 17 Then his disciples remembered this prophecy from the Scriptures: “Passion for God’s house will consume me.” 18 But the Jewish leaders demanded, “What are you doing? If God gave you authority to do this, show us a miraculous sign to prove it.” 19 “All right,” Jesus replied. “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” 20 “What!” they exclaimed. “It has taken forty-six years to build this Temple, and you can rebuild it in three days?” 21 But when Jesus said “this temple,” he meant his own body.

Why was Jesus so upset?

1. He had a love for His Father’s house.

1. He said it in Luke, “Didn’t you know that I would be in my Father’s house.” 
   1. Psalm 84:10 (NLT) - 10 A single day in your courts is better than a thousand anywhere else! I would rather be a gatekeeper in the house of my God than live the good life in the homes of the wicked.
   2. Psalm 27:4 (NLT) - 4 The one thing I ask of the LORD— the thing I seek most— is to live in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, delighting in the LORD’s perfections and meditating in his Temple.
2. He felt like His Father’s house was being defiled!

2. His Father wanted all people to come, but they were being obstructed.

1. Isaiah 56:6–7 (NLT) — 6 “I will also bless the foreigners who commit themselves to the LORD, who serve him and love his name, who worship him and do not desecrate the Sabbath day of rest, and who hold fast to my covenant. 7 I will bring them to my holy mountain of Jerusalem and will fill them with joy in my house of prayer. I will accept their burnt offerings and sacrifices, because my Temple will be called a house of prayer for all nations. 
2. This whole event took place in the court of the gentiles. They were allowed to come and pray in the court, but the court was filled with merchants.

3. The holiness of His Father’s temple had been turned into something common and unholy.

1. Jesus sees this unholy commercialization of God’s house as a defilement
2. Don’t you hate to see things capitalized on to make money?
   1. Being trapped in an airport
   2. Being at a ball game
   3. Being at Disney world
3. The problem: THERE IS A MARKET FOR IT
   1. We want something easy! 
   2. We will pay for convenience.

What does Jesus care about today?

1. He cares about the place of worship.

1. Matthew 18:20 (NLT) - 20 For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them.”
2. Although a building means nothing, when we gather together, we are his temple.
3. Our gathering is holy. 
   1. May we prioritize it
   2. May we cherish it
   3. May it be holy to us (not common)
   4. May we be filled with joy, lifting up prayer and worship “Isaiah 56.”

2. He cares about His church.

1. He cares about our doctrine (how are we representing him to people).
2. He cares about our worship (how are we worshiping him).
3. He cares about our outreach (who are we welcoming into our midst).
4. He cares about our unity (In John 17, this was his top prayer).
5. He cares about our shepherds (Those that lead among us will be held accountable, like the Pharisees).
6. He cares about our purity (The stumbling blocks we place in the way, our cheesy)

3. He cares about you!

1. We are told that “our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit” and that we are spiritual stones that are making a “temple” for God.
2. What tables does He need to turn over in your heart?
3. What money changers does he need to kick out?
4. Is my belief in him about “what I can get out of this?”

Final questions:

• What is obstructing you from prayer and worship? 
• Do you value your Father’s house as Jesus did? 
• Will you get zealous like Jesus to clean it out and make room?