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The Scriptorium

A House of Prayer?

Is your church a house of prayer? Are you? Matthew 21.12-17

Matthew 21: The End of the Beginning (2)

Pray Psalm 122.1-4.
I was glad when they said to me,
“Let us go into the house of the LORD.”
Our feet have been standing
Within your gates, O Jerusalem!
Jerusalem is built
As a city that is compact together,
Where the tribes go up,
The tribes of the LORD,
To the Testimony of Israel,
To give thanks to the name of the LORD.

Sing Psalm 122.1-4.
(Nettleton: Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing)
I was glad when they said to me, “To the Lord’s house let us go!”
Holy City, let our feet be firmly planted in your soil.
Jesus builds His Church forever, where His people sing His praise!
As Your Word decrees forever, we will thank You all our days.

Read Matthew 21.1-17; meditate on verses 12-17.

Prepare.
1. Whom did Jesus drive from the temple?

2. Why did He do that?

Meditate.
The temple in Jerusalem was constructed to be a place of worship, where God’s people – and indeed, people from all nations (Mk. 11.17) – might come to seek the Lord in prayer and with offerings. Here God would be honored. Here sinners would be restored to fellowship with Him. Here the praises of psalms would be sung to the glory of God.

In other words, the focus of the temple, all its architecture, décor, services, and staff, was to be on God. Seeking Him, honoring Him, communing with Him by offerings and prayer – this was to be the business of the temple.

In Jesus’ day, much of the focus had turned to the “needs” of the people. A whole gamut of programming was available for the convenience of worshipers. Need to exchange currency? Got a table for that. Need to buy an animal for offering? Can do – not the best stuff, you understand, but it’ll do in a pinch. Need a little refreshment from your long journey? Right over here. Kiosks, booths, and tables were set up in the temple court to accommodate the “needs” of “worshippers.” And from it all, the religious leaders turned a nice profit from renting space and taking a piece of the profits.

Jesus showed what He thought about this. Imagine the chaos! Bistro tables turned upside down. Coffee urns and latte machines knocked off their shelves. Special group rooms – with fun video stuff, ping-pong tables and foosball stations, cushy chairs, and whatnot – trashed, and the people manning all this sent scurrying for their lives. Staff offices savaged and all that nice furniture ruined.

Oh wait, that’s not the temple. Or is it?

Notice what happened right after Jesus trashed this faux worship center: People with serious needs flocked to Him (v. 14), while the religious leaders “were indignant” and got in Jesus’ face. They were especially galled about the children who greeted Him as the “Son of David” Who was bringing salvation to Israel. Jesus, in response, quoted from Psalm 8, and showed them that God had prophesied even this about His coming.

People who know they have no hope but in Jesus will find their way to Him, one way or another. Those who feel threatened by His exposing the farce of the “faith” will look for a way to control Him for their purposes or get rid of Him altogether.

In which of those camps do we stand?

Reflect.
1. What would a church look like that was a true “house of prayer”?

2. Since all believers are temples of the Holy Spirit (Eph. 2.19-22), what place should prayer have in our lives?

3. What are the greatest obstacles to your having a stronger and more consistent life of prayer?

Pretexts, indeed, were not wanting for that custom of keeping a market, which relieved the people from trouble, that they might not have far to go to find sacrifices; and next, that they might have at hand those pieces of money which any man might choose to offer.
John Calvin (1509-1564), Commentary on Matthew 10.12

Lord, help me to set my mind on You, so that in all I do I…

Pray Psalm 122.5-9.
Pray for your church and its leaders, that they might seek the Kingdom of Jesus, and make His house a house of prayer.

Sing Psalm 122.5-9.
Psalm 122.5-9 (Nettleton: Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing)
On the throne of David, Jesus sits to judge the nations all.
As our holy peace increases we are safe who on You call.
Grant us peace, Lord, by Your favor; for Your people’s sake we pray.
For the Church’s sake, O Savior, we will seek Your good today.

T. M. Moore

Now might be a good time to start working through our
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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All quotations from Church Fathers from
Ancient Christian Commentary Series, General Editor Thomas C. Oden (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006). All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter (available by clicking here).

T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He and his wife, Susie, make their home in the Champlain Valley of Vermont.
Books by T. M. Moore

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