John 2:18
Verse 18 The Jews then responded to him, “What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?”
As expected the Jewish leaders were not thrilled with Jesus causing a stir in the Temple workings. His flipping tables, scattering coins and cracking the whip had gotten their attention but not in the same way it had when He was 12. Some may have remembered Him as the 12 year who had questioned them many Passovers before but others were seeing Him for the first time. This would have been quite the impression making moment.
The question the leaders have for Jesus is not why He did it but who gave Him the authority to do it. They heard Jesus say, “Stop turning my Father’s house into a market” and they were not understanding who He was talking about. This is the second time He referred to the Temple as his Father’s house (the other being when He was 12). He didn’t see the Temple in the same way others did. To the leaders it had become the place they conducted business.
The Jewish leaders had lost their sense of reverence for this special place. While their ancestors had seen the Temple as the place to meet with God, this new generation had lost their passion for the things of the Lord as they had come to worship the letter of the law and money. They were so concerned about making sure the people had a perfect animal to sacrifice, they were willing to desecrate the Temple of God.
Seeing themselves as the authority of the Temple, they were in essence asking Jesus, “Who do you think you are?” They saw Him as the man coming in from the country and telling them how to run what had been the responsibility of their clan for many generations. His coming in and acting like He owned the place, didn’t sit well with them.
Jesus understood better than any of these men the importance of this building to the worship of God. It wasn’t that the building itself was important or particularly special, it was that this was the place God had called His people to interact with Him. This was a place where they were to come together and offer the sacrifices the Lord required of them. It was the place where past generations had known God to live after the days of the Tabernacle. In the past God had been made real to His people in this building and now the leaders were revealing how far they had walked from Him.
Making It Personal
Where do you meet with the Lord? Do you treat that place as special? What does it mean to you to meet with the Lord?
Making It Personal Kids
Why shouldn’t the church be treated as just another building? What do you think it means to meet with Jesus? What kinds of things should you do when going to church?
Closing Prayer
Father, thank You for this reminder of the importance of being serious about You when we come to worship You. Help us to focus on who You are and what You desire of us so we can worship You in spirit and truth. In Jesus’ name, amen.
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