The Gospel reading from John 2:13-22 is about Jesus clearing the Temple of all the clutter of business-as-usual filling up the sacred space that should be kept free from the marketplace. Jesus is zealous. He turns over the whole sacrificial pretense of placating God’s wrath and making His House fit our lifestyle with the marketplace of low expectations.
Jesus is still zealous for you and me. Through His suffering death and resurrection His love is poured out to us so that our hearts, our inner Temple, can become like His heart. Jesus is still zealous for us to be free from the clutter of our sin and the marketplace of our brokenness, material fixations and distractions.
I find myself, at times, trying to fit God’s plans into my own. It is so easy for me to justify my personal failings with, “well, this is just the way I am”. I can so easily avoid looking at the clutter of seeking approval or being appreciated or understood that I miss clearing and cleaning the thrashing floor of my heart.
I pray for you and me that this season will be a time to clear out anything that keeps us from the zeal of loving and serving Jesus…” Praise Him!”