April 1 Devotion

Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it a ‘den of robbers.’” – Matthew 21: 12 – 13

Jesus had become upset because the house of God had been turned into something that was a far cry of what God intended for it to be. I think that perhaps the people thought they were doing what they were supposed to be doing. They were seeking to provide the supplies needed for sacrifices and worship of God. They were also seeking to provide the proper monies to be offered to God. However, in their attempt to make the worship setting and their offerings perfect, they lost sight of God.

Today is Palm Sunday, a day when we celebrate Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. It is a day when we remember how the people of Israel rejoiced to see the Messiah coming into their midst. We remember how the people thought that Jesus was going to rescue them from years of foreign occupation. The people thought that Jesus was going to be some type of great warrior that would come in with an army and defeat those who persecuted them. But Jesus was not that type of leader.

In their attempts to put Jesus and who they thought he should be into a box, the true man and savior was lost. Jesus, when he cleansed the temple, told those there that they had made it a den of robbers…something that God never intended for God’s house of worship. He became indignant that God’s vision had gone so askew.

When the people saw that Jesus was going to be almost anything but the warrior they assumed he was, their attitude changed from one of praise and thanksgiving to one of anger, scorn, disappointment and revenge. They no longer sought to worship him but rather they sought to have him destroyed…to have him crucified. The attitude that people had about Jesus and who Jesus was became tainted as they sought to worship him as a strong warrior and not as the Son of God. Many missed the Messiah, the very person they were searching for, in their midst because they let their worldly opinions of who the Messiah was get in the way of true worship and devotion.

Perhaps Jesus, in his cleansing of the temple, was talking about more than just the getting things right within the temple walls. Maybe Jesus was also talking about how we need to rid ourselves of the things that seek to get in the way of true and authentic worship. Perhaps when we seek to prepare our hearts and minds for worship, we are focused on so many other things and those things obstruct us from seeing the true Messiah in our midst.

As we prepare for the most important week in the life of the church, let us rid our temple of those things that seek to separate us from God. May we open ourselves up to truly focus on God, God’s love and presence as we make the journey from Palm Sunday through the painful times of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday and finally come to rejoice together on Easter Sunday. Let us prepare ourselves to truly experience the Messiah in our midst.

Rev. Carol McKay

Evening Prayer

Clippity Clop, we hear the sound of the colt coming. Bringing you closer to the city. The city that you love. The city that will capture you and kill you. We are the people of that city, thinking we understand you and know you - we do not. We make you small and package you into our own design. As the week stretches forth and the light of the world grows dim, may we, in this time of darkness, be blessed with discernment as to who you are and what you truly want from us and for us.. In the moment when the light goes completely out, may we see clearly our savior and on that that wonderful day of new light be renewed as to heart and purpose. Lord of all, be with us, love us and show us how to love you . In Jesus name. Amen.

Steve Matthews