"MY HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED A HOUSE OF PRAYER FOR ALL THE NATIONS"
As Jesus once again drove out religious thieves from the temple He echoed the words of the prophet Isaiah who made it very clear that God would not reject anyone who wanted to join themselves to Him, who loved His name and would hold to His ways. His house of prayer was to be joyful and acceptable for all people. It had become a ROBBERS' DEN, preying on the weaknesses of others. Greedy lecherous deceitful charlatans found evil ways to use God's sacrificial laws to serve their own purposes within the temple walls. Jesus was setting them straight, reforming their ways...they hated Him for it. This portion of scripture says the Jewish leaders heard about what He was doing and sought ways to further destroy Him because "they were afraid of Him". Not the kind of fear we read about in Proverbs that tells us the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom but the type of fear that came out of their own decadence and depravity. Fearfully that is something we are all capable of apart from God. How important it is to draw near to Him and openly allow Him to clean our hearts and lives. May our PASSION for Him this week be as strong for Him as His is for us.
"For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God"
