Where's the reverence? John 2:12-25

This week we covered the last half of John 2.  One of the things that really stood out to me this week was the fact that Jesus messed up the temple, and His reasons for it.

If we look at the Jesus presented in most churches today, we see a Jesus that has long-flowing hair, He is a pretty man, is usually glowing (like He has the most perfect skin), and if He were walking around here on earth today, He'd look closer to Bono than He would a carpenter.  Would it be fair to say the Jesus depicted in most churches today would be a tree-hugging metro-sexual?  Can you picture this Jesus making a whip and clearing out a massive area inside the temple like He did in John 2?  He cleared out the temple...by HIMSELF!  Why?

We can see from Leviticus that the temple had some strict rules and laws regarding the temple and the activities that can go on there.  Clearly making the temple a super-mall was not allowed, yet due to the fact that the Jewish nation hadn't heard from God since Malachi 400 years earlier, they had become very complacent and irreverent towards God and His temple.  Jesus comes, sees this gong-show, and is righteously angry.  What does He do?  He makes a whip and uses it.  This brings me to the point for our churches today.

If Jesus can get angry and clear out the temple, why do our churches discourage men and women from having righteous emotion?  Why do men in church today confuse meekness for keeping the peace?  I would argue that most men in the church today are closer to Ned Flanders than the apostle Paul, or Christ Himself.  Is this the picture we have for Christians?  Christians are allowed to cry in church (especially men), they are allowed to be happy, but whatever you do, don't be angry, that's not allowed.

The second point is how many times do we go to church with an irreverent attitude?  This was what Jesus was so angry about.  Do we think that somehow because we're part of the church it's somehow OK to walk in the doors of a church and do so with casual observance?  Why do we go to church?  Is it for fellowship?  The coffee?  The entertainment (God forbid!)? Lord help us if we use the church for business contacts...oi!  We are to go to church to praise God, to worship God, to give glory to God!  If we don't do this with the right heart condition, why would the Holy Spirit ever move in a place that treats God so casually?

Three questions to ponder this week.

a.      How have you come to church?  Do you have reverence for Him?

b.      What role do emotions play in the Christian life?

c.       What would it take for you to give up Christ?