March 6, 2024
Please use the comment section on this page to share insights from today’s reading OR your own personal Bible reading.
Reading along with us in our Lenten readings from “The Life of Jesus”? Here’s today’s reading:
Day 17 in the Book: “The Life of Jesus“
The Week Jesus Dies
Read Sections 5.3 through 5.5 (pages 136-137)
This book is an account of Jesus’ life and teachings told through in chronological order from the four Gospels to create one continuous story.
*If you do not have a copy of the book please contact the church at (401)667-0775 and we can get you a copy.
5.3 Jesus Forces Merchants Out of the Temple (Mark 11:15-17, Matthew 21:14-16, Luke 19:47-48, Mark 11:19) Pastor, I am wondering if these instances from Matthew, Mark, and Luke are of the same occurrence that John writes about in his gospel in John 2:13-22, or if that was an earlier instance where Jesus did very much the same thing? One of the study notes in my Bible indicates that John’s recounting was of an event that occurred three years before the ones mentioned in the other three gospels, which makes sense…but it is just very interesting to see Jesus do the same thing, three years later.
5.4 The Dry Fig Tree, Faith and Prayer (Mark 11:20-25) Jesus makes it clear that we have access to the Father through prayer, and when we pray in alignment with God’s will for our lives, we can be certain that God hears and answers those prayers. The relationship that God has designed between his creation and Himself is staggering…the intimacy we are invited into through the blood of the Lamb is incredible! This verse makes me think of Romans 8:26-27 “Like the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for works. And He who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.” We can have such confidence and trust in God, because He has given us His Spirit to even help us in our prayers, and because the Spirit is in constant alignment with the Father, we can know that when the Spirit intercedes for us, the Father will answer His intercession!
5.5 Religious Leaders Reject Jesus’ Authority (Mark 11:27-33) Fear of man and the protection of pride (idolatry) again rises up and prevents the religiously hard of heart from drawing near to the very source of life and truth. Surrender is all it takes (so easy to say, so difficult to do, nay, impossible to do in our own strength)…Pastor Peter’s sermon on pride this Sunday was great, and such a very important message. C.S. Lewis calls pride “The Great Sin” and says “Unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and all that, are mere fleabites in comparison: it was through Pride that the devil became the devil: Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind.”
Yes, Sean I do believe that John recounts a different incident of Jesus cleansing the temple. So how significant is it that He had to do that at the beginning of His ministry as well as at the end?
This question from the older Jewish leaders is atypical of what we go through in our daily lives. “Tells us what authority do you have to do these things?”
I pray God help us to answer in the manner Jesus would be proud of us.
Thank you Jesus for your love and the Holy Spirit.
The Life of Jesus- 5.3-5.5
The Life of Jesus 5.3-5.5 and Romans 11-12.
In 5.5 when the religious leaders question the authority of Jesus I found it interesting that Jesus clearly knew that they understood in there hearts the authority came from God yet they backed out of submission to the truth and said they didn’t know. Imagine being present in that time and witnessing God’s power through Jesus at first hand and saying I don’t know? Lol.
Lenten day 17
25 ¶ “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.
26 “But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.”
Jesus clears the temple, a physical reminder of priorities and behavior. Like as a parent you say things over and over and then sometimes shock and awe is needed to get their attention and to realize He did this more than once…wow pay attention people!
Funny that with faith we can tell mountains to crumble into the sea and yet most days we don’t druther up enough faith to get out of our own way! Too bad the Jewish leaders were so blinded by their pride and insecurities to a point where their faith was so lost that all they wanted to do was kill the Savior they had so long awaited!
Steve M
5:3 – 5:5
Day 17 5.3 – 55
The Life of Jesus 4.69-5.5; Luke 11
Jesus cast out the merchants out of the Temple for it was to be a house of prayer and not to make money and make it a den of thieves. Here is a comment from a source book that I have that might help us all better understand. [ As Messiah Jesus entered the temple area, His indignation was directed toward those who had changed the character of the temple from a place of prayer into a place of corrupt commercialism. Many were making their living from the temple and the sacrifices purchased there. They insisted that in the temple the people could not use money that had been circulating in society, but had to change their money into temple money first, for a fee, and then use the temple money to purchase animals for sacrifice, at inflated prices. Since such extortion was completely contrary to the temple`s purposes, the Lord overturned their tables and benches in the outer court of the Gentiles while quoting parts of two Old Testament verses, Isaiah 56:7 and Jeremiah 7:11. Jesus had previously cleared the temple at the beginning of His ministry. John 2:14-16.} [ The Bible Knowledge Commentary] Jesus continued to stay there teaching and healing the blind and crippled. Meanwhile the children were shouting praises to Him saying that He is the Son of David. From the faith of little children to the contrast of the priests and teachers of the law. Who instead of being joyful like little children who were instead angry at the children and at Jesus. So much so that they wanted to kill Jesus. How blind and hard to the truth. Remember what Jesus said earlier about little children. That unless you come to Jesus as a little child you will not see God`s Kingdom. The faith of a little child coming in complete trust to Jesus. May the Lord bless us.
MY house will be a house of “Prayer”
What courage and conviction Jesus expresses as He cleanses the temple. He also recognizes the authority He has to defend what His Father desired the temple to be….prayer for all nations. It was not only what they were doing but where they were doing it that was the problem. Most likely in the court of the Gentiles, the outer portion on the temple that Gentiles could access in their worship of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, that the Jews show disdain for in allowing this activity there. And even though the Pharisees did not get who Jesus was, the children did…and these leaders should let these children lead them. And I always appreciate when Jesus confronts a question by asking a question. These Jewish leaders weren’t going to learn anything from Jesus answer anyways, so why not confront them with something that might cause them to think a little deeper and recognize how wrong they were to reject John as well as Jesus…..
Lenten 2024 – Day 17
Leten 17