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A House of Prayer

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He said to them, “The Scriptures declare, ‘My Temple will be called a house of prayer for all nations,’ but you have turned it into a den of thieves.” Mark 11:17 NLT

Keeping church and state separate is even written into our U. S. constitution, but Jesus shows us that church and business should also be separate. Often, the pastors of large churches are criticized for their overzealous fund-raising appeals. But while we are criticizing them, we easily lose sight of the wheeling and dealing that can creep into our time of corporate worship. We must remind ourselves that church should never be the place we go to make business connections or to advance our financial position. Jesus called the temple of His day, “A house of prayer for all nations,” Interestingly, this is not the first time that Jesus did this. In the second chapter of John, we find a similar scene right at the beginning of His ministry. But after three years, those same money changers were back doing the same exact things. In His first visit, Jesus made an additional reference to the temple, that time calling it, “My Father’s house.” When we go to church, it is important to remember that though some denomination, or non-profit organization may have their name on the title, in God’s sight, the church is a place belonging entirely to Him and is to be used exclusively for prayer and worship.

This coming weekend is Palm Sunday, and the start of the festivities surrounding Easter. With all the hustle and bustle we have to consciously make the commitment to refocus and remember who this is all about. Why are we planning the things that we do? Who is it for? is there space to pause and reflect on the cross and resurrection morning? Just as in HIs day, they celebrated as Jesus rode into Jerusalem, but only a few days later the crowds began to chant, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” Jesus came to give His life. Will He also find us pushing and shoving for financial advantage or forgetting Him in the midst of the busyness of special meals, egg hunts and purchasing of Easter outfits? Just as in His day, from the money changers in the temple, to the soldiers gambling for His clothing, many people missing seeing the value of God’s free and precious gift, as Jesus died to pay the price for our sins. But the good news is that story didn’t end on the cross. Just as He had said, three days later, very early on Sunday morning, Jesus rose, triumphant over death and offering the gift of eternal life to everyone who would simply believe in Him.

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What About Lazarus?

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 There they made him a supper; and Martha served: but Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with him. John 12:2 KJV

Now, we are all familiar with the story of Martha complaining to Jesus that she was doing all the work, and most know about Mary pouring perfume on the Lord’s feet, but we don’t really know much about Lazarus. The Bible doesn’t tell us even one word that he ever said. In some ways Lazarus reminds me a little of my grandmother. She once told me, “When I was young, I was my father’s daughter.” (The local doctor.) When I married, I became my husband’s wife, (my grandfather was a U.S. Navy Captain.) When I had children, I became the mother of my kids: (Both my mom and one of my uncles became somewhat well-known writers.) “What I want to know, is when I can just be me?” Like my grandmother, we don’t know anything about Lazarus personally. We first hear about him only as the brother of Mary and Martha. Later on, all we know is that he got sick and died. We aren’t told whether Lazarus was married, had any children or even what kind of job he had. But we do find out one very important thing: Jesus called him out of the grave! His life may not have been impressive, but the lesson that we learn from Lazarus is because, we are loved by Jesus Christ. We don’t need to have the best grades, the highest paying job, or a perfect family to be special to Him. To Jesus, none of those details matter more than the simple fact that He chose give His life for us and that, if we believe in Him, He will also call us from our grave. Then, just like Lazarus, we will get to sit next to Jesus at His table in heaven forever and ever. And that is pretty impressive if you ask me!

“God loves each of us as if there were only one of us.” Saint Augustine
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No Throw Away People

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But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8 ESV

“They’re a bunch of rapists, murderers and drug dealers. Filthy animals! Let’s lock ’em up and throw away the key!” When we read accounts of the recent deportation of gang members to a prison in El Salvador, if we are honest, we might have to admit that we have used these kinds of words. Does our heart secretly do a little dance each time we hear of another one being thrown in the clink, deported or shot by the police? I struggle with these very thoughts myself, but the Holy Spirit reminded me recently that God created each one of those young men and women in His own image. He breathed the same breath of life into their lungs, knit them together in their mothers’ wombs, and planned a home in heaven for them, just as He has done for me. Though they may have covered themselves with tattoos, and have lived a lifestyle contrary to God’s will, it in no way means that they have no value to Him. When Jesus looks down from heaven over them, He doesn’t say, “Well I told them so! Now they’ve finally gotten what they deserved!”

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In fact, in the Bible we can find a list of men and women, a lot like them. “Yeah, like who?” you might ask with a gasp. Well, we could start with a murderous guy named Saul, who tells us that he was the chief ringleader of sinners. Then there was the working stiff named Peter. He fell to his knees in shame when Jesus blessed him with a boatload of fish, shouting, “Go away from here, I am a sinful man!” We also mustn’t forget the unfaithful woman caught in bed with her neighbor, the corrupt tax collector named Zaccheus and the brutal executioner standing at the foot of the cross, waiting for Jesus to die so he could go home for the night. None of these folks sounds like the type of company we hope to have sitting next to us in church on Sunday, but Jesus does! No, He didn’t join them in their sins, but He loved them with a radical love, that drove Him to the cross, accepted nails to be driven through His hands and feet, and allowed Himself to be stripped, crowned with thorns and spit on. His kind of love reached the thief dying next to Him, forgave those who killed him and even allowed Judas to kiss Him. The God who loved the world so much that He gave His only Son to die for us, came for sinners, because there were no other kinds of people. We all deserve to be locked away in the dark place of eternal punishment named hell and have the key thrown away forever. But instead of throwing us away, Jesus took our place and gave eternal life to everyone who repents and believes in Him: no exceptions! Now He commands (not suggests) that we offer that same love and forgiveness to others, because there are no, “Throw away people.” and no one so far away, that they cannot return to Him!