Mark 11:15  And they come to Jerusalem: and Jesus went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves;
16  And would not suffer that any man should carry any vessel through the temple.
17  And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.
18  And the scribes and chief priests heard it, and sought how they might destroy him: for they feared him, because all the people was astonished at his doctrine.
19  And when even was come, he went out of the city.

Jesus was in the last week of His earthly ministry, prior to His crucifixion. Jesus Christ had taught many things during His three plus years of public ministry. He had exposed the hypocrisy of the Pharisees and their friends. He had helped the people to see the importance of truth. The truth is very important. We are not saved by law keeping. Man has never been saved by law keeping. It is important to know the purity of the law. God’s standard for man is very high. God is holy. There is no sin in Him. Man cannot meet God’s holy standard. Man is born a lost sinner and is unable to keep God’s holy law. He needs a Saviour.
Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world. Jesus Christ came as the Son of God. He came to lay down His life for the sheep. His righteous blood would soon be shed, making it possible for repentant sinners to be saved.
The temple was to be a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ. It was overlaid in gold to depict His deity. The brazen altar, the table of shewbread, the laver, the candlestick, the holiest and all that was in that place was to be a picture of the deity and holiness of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus came into the temple in our text, and He found the religious leaders turning the house of God into a house of merchandise. He cast them out. The temple was not a place to make money. It was not a place to do business. It was a place to come and worship God. It was to be a place where people could come and learn the truth. It was to be a place where people could come and offer their sacrifices to a holy God. The priests were to receive the offerings and make the sacrifices for the people. However, they had turned it into a racket. Jesus cast out those who were buying and selling in the temple. He overthrew the tables of the money changers. He also overthrew the place where they were selling the doves. The doves were to be the sacrifice of those who were poor. Yet, the religious elites, were hindering the poor from being able to come before a holy God.
In verse 16 Jesus forbad anyone from carrying any vessel through the temple. Jesus stopped all opportunity to use the temple as a place of merchandise. In verse 17 Jesus reminded the people what the temple was to be for. It was God’s house. It was to be known by all nations as the house of prayer. It had become a house of merchandise. It was a place that was limited to those with money. Corruption had taken over that place.
Jesus stated that they had turned it into a den of thieves. They were charging exorbitant fees to those who wanted to purchase animals for the sacrifices. No business was to be conducted in the temple. What a shame that the false teachers had followed a similar path to that of Eli’s sons back in the Old Testament. The people were given cause to despise the law of God due to corrupt religious leaders. This was not God’s design. As we mentioned, the temple was to be a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Today we have many false Christs. The long-haired, ‘cool’ Jesus that is presented in many religious groups is a mockery of the holy Jesus of the Bible. The Jesus of the Bible does not condone sin. He came to lay down His life and shed His blood so that people could be forgiven and set free from the bondage of sin. The ‘worship teams’ of today are leading the people in the worship of the flesh and the devil. They do not exalt God. The world has been invited into the churches and the holiness of God is gone in most of them. People like attending those places because the mood is not that far off from the bars. So far, they don’t offer liquor, but they certainly offer the immodesty and the worldly atmosphere of the bar. They still offer prayers, but not to God. The devil is in charge in most ‘churches’ today.
The scribes and the chief priests hated Jesus for what He had done. He further exposed their hypocrisy. They wanted to destroy Him. They did not want to change. They did not want to know the truth, nor did they want to accept the truth. They thought if they got rid of Jesus they could continue with their ungodly ways. They assumed they were pleasing God, but they did not know Him.
Today we have a multitude of perversions that are designed to keep people from the truth. Many people are content to accept the perversions because they allow them to keep their sinful ways. They can feel good about acting spiritual even though their spirituality is toward the devil, and not to God.
In our text we read that the false religionists feared Jesus. He did not put up with their hypocrisy. They could not get at Him because His time was not yet come. The common people were astonished at His doctrine. The common people could see that Jesus was different than the false religionists. God was still giving the common people opportunity to respond to the truth. At Jesus’ trial things would be different. The mood would change. The false religionists would be given much greater liberty there. The gullible people would be convinced to agree with the chief priests and Pharisees. They would cry out for Jesus’ crucifixion.
Jesus finished His work for that day and at even He left the city once again. He cleansed the temple. He showed the people the importance of holiness in worship. He was not welcome in Jerusalem. He had come there because He belonged there, even if He was not welcomed there. Jerusalem was to be the city of God. The temple was the house of God.
Jesus would not spend the night there. In Revelation 3 we read that Jesus was standing outside the church of Laodicea knocking to gain entrance. He was not welcome inside that place. He still offered His salvation and His blessing to those who would open up to Him. Jesus Christ is not welcome in most churches today. The noise and the excitement are not toward Him. Those who enter there are deceived and in the dark.
There are still a few true, Bible-believing churches around today. They are not popular. There is room in them for those who want to know the truth. There is also room in them for those who have been deceived, but who are being drawn by God to the truth. The curious are welcome there. Most are deceived into thinking numbers and programs are essential. Few are interested in sound doctrine.
Today is the Lord’s day. Where will you be today? A true church is not swayed by the world. It holds to the Word of God and gives opportunity to hear and know the truth. It is the place of blessing designed to be so by God. It is the house of God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
Pastor Bartel