So We are at Summer Camp 2010 and the theme of the camp is called Revamp.The title to me sounds like an energy drink. Something that will give me spike in energy, letting me run harder, faster, and longer. Might even give me wings, if you get it. This theme Revamp been going round on email, Facebook, and in our conversation. I’m sure we are all interest to get a taste of this revamp. Now the question comes down to “how do I revamp my spiritual life with Christ?”. How do I make this passion for God the same or greater than before?. We learned about how worship is an important aspect of being revamped for the Lord.
This morning we will focus on another aspect. Which is having a clean temple. So by having a clean temple you will be revamping your spiritual life. I sure you are wonder what the heck does having a clean temple have to do with revamping my spiritual life? And what temple are you talking about? The temple I am talking about here is not one where people go to mediate, pray, or worship. This temple that I am talking about is you.In 1 Corinthians 6:19
It says “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit whom is in you, who you have from God, and you are not your own.” So if we are temple, how do we clean it? I broke it down into three simply steps. The first step to have a clean temple is to let Jesus show you the dirty temple. Letting Jesus to show you the filth Is the first key of having a clean temple. You have to know what to clean, to clean it. Verse 13 – 14 Story 13 Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business. Passover – celebrate how God deliver the Israel from Egypt. I am sure most of you watched the movie the Ten Commandments. And is familiar with the story about how Israel was free from Egypt. Passover focus on the last plague which the Lord killed all the firstborn in Egypt. The Lord protected Israel from this plague by telling them to put lambs blood over the door. This is why it is called Passover because the Lord Passover the land in Egypt. The Passover was an important festival to celebrate. People from all over world go to Jerusalem for Passover. During this people would make sacrifice, give offering and pay temple taxes. Priest in the temple properly initially had good intention. Thinking, man it’s a pain to carry along animals on a long trip, Why not provide them with an easy way to purchase. They started to sell animals in the temple as sacrifice. Since people had to pay temple taxes and the fact long trip to Jerusalem. The temple only accepted certain type of money due to the purify of the coins, they had money exchanger.
No one is perfect .We all have dirty and there is always room to improve. A clean temple can be obtain if you let Jesus clean it drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers’ money and overturned the tables. Jesus went into the temple and saw all this filth. He knew He had to cleanse the temple
tables being flipped, animals and sellers being whipped out
What if I don’t see any dirty in my life? The first step to have a clean temple is to let Jesus show you the dirty. The second step to have a clean temple is to let Jesus clean it. Letting Jesus clean your temple is the second key of having a clean. Verse 15 Story 15 When He had made a whip of cords. This is when it all went bad, sellers were selling the certify temple animal at outrages price and the money changer were charging outrages fee for the exchange. When Jesus went into the temple it was the first thing that he spotted. If you look at yourself as a temple.h. Similar things happen to the temple back then happens to us.
At these point is where we feel distance from God and unfruitful. Thinking you’re ok where you are at is a dirty in itself. So he made a whip of cords and drove out all the sellers. This must have shock everyone. You see Jesus as being a graceful and loving man. But in this case there was angry, coin falling on the ground, This was all righteous angry, Paul stated be angry and not sin. There is not wrong with having a righteous angry. I actually think having a righteous angry is a sign of a healthy Christian.
How does this relate to us? Most of us have already passed step one. But step 2 is usually where most people struggle at. If you at this story, no one protested Jesus for his act. People already knew it was wrong, but they did nothing about it. We have filth in our temple and the Lord has showed us that filth. We don’t want to the table to be turn in our life, we don’t want to lose gain that we received from filth in our temple, and don’t want to go through the hassle of having it cleaned. It is hard to have the temple clean, things will change, relationship maybe lost, passion are changed and profit maybe lost.
You start to be renewed in the things of God, you will strength by the spirit of God, and things life won’t feel so overwhelming. The bible says that we are earthen vessel. Picture yourself as this water bottle Water represent God and his Holy Spirit. And the Air void represents the emptiness of this water. Just for some of you guys that don’t know or forgot. Density is the measurement of mass per unit volume. Mass is matter. For this morning today, you can consider mass as weight
What is the benefit of cleaning my temple and why should I do it even though it might create discomfort. Just look at the theme of camp. When you start to cleaning up your temple of the filth of the world.
Water has a density of 1000 kg/ cu m. Air has a density of 1.2 kg/ cu m. For the practical purpose you could consider water to be. Air in the other hand is very compressible. Here is two water bottles one fill with water and another fill. If I were to apply load on this water bottle filled with water it. But still will be able to hold its shape. The temple of God wasn’t meant for a place of business. Or for a play to make profit or make gain. Just picture yourself going to church expecting to worship. There is a lot noise from the animal and people selling.
The second step to have a clean temple is to let Jesus clean it
The third step to have a clean temple is to be a temple. Being a temple is the third key of having a clean temple. Verse 16 – 17. By being a temple, you will have a clean temple. “Take these things away! Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise!” 17 Then His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up.” While was throwing the table over, whipping the animal and sellers out God, to pray, and study the Word of God, but once you arrive you see oxen, sheep, doves, people handling money.
If people were to do a study of your life, outside the church setting. Could people really identify you as a child of God? It becomes a noise market place. You are no longer able to focus on worshiping God, to pray or even study the word of God. No longer is the Church is operating as a church but a market place. When you take things out of its purpose, things will become messy and it will not operate correctly. You no longer can identify what it is. If you at some modern churches, you can tell some have lost it’s purpose. People now Identify the church as a place of entertainment , a place to feel good, a place about the people.
