 | After Jesus entered Jerusalem he went straight to the Temple, where he 'looked round at everything'. It was here that he spent much of his time in this last 'Holy Week'. He taught here day by day, he mingled with the crowds. And it was here that the Priests and the religious authorities hatched the plot to have him arrested - the arrest that resulted in his execution. |
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Some History:
The Temple was originally built by Solomon some 1000 years before Christ was born. It had been destroyed in 515 BC and had been rebuilt on the same site. It was later enlarged and remodelled by Herod the Great.
The temple was always crowded during Passover, because it was the duty of every male Jew, wherever they lived in the world to make the pilgrimage to Jerusalem for the week-long celebrations of the Festivals of the Passover and unleavened bread. Those who had travelled to the Festival from far away places had to have their religious needs met by the local merchants. They needed animals to sacrifice and local money to pay their temple taxes. The problem was that the religious leaders had allowed the money changers and the merchants to set up their stalls inside the Court of the Gentiles. They said it was to make it more convenient for the worshippers but all it did was to cause great noise and congestion. It was also a way to raise money for the upkeep of the Temple.
The religious leaders didn't care that it was impossible to worship in this Court because of the crowds and noise. This was the only Court into which Gentiles were allowed – being foreigners they could not go into any of the inner courts reserved only for Jews. The Gentiles converts were in effect excluded from worshipping God.
The religious authorities turned a blind eye to the extortionate charges made for changing foreign currency into local money. They knew that people couldn't carry with them their own animal sacrifices on their long journeys and that the cost of these animals and birds was a rip off. No wonder Jesus was angry. Far from His Fathers Temple being a place of worship it had become synonymous with greedy dishonest practices. It made a mockery of God by turning His place of worship into a market place for profit. Jesus rage was more about righteous indignation that uncontrolled anger. He took the behaviour in the Temple as an insult against God.
But Jesus also spoke of the Temple being His body. A body that would be destroyed and yet rebuilt (resurrected) after three days. The Bible also speaks of individual Christians being temples of the Holy Spirit as God lives within us. Come then and spend time at the Temple. Reflect on what it means to honour and worship God with awe and wonder and with integrity in a materially-orientated world.
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It was almost time for the Passover Festival, so Jesus went to ___________________________________ He then taught the people: It is written in the Scriptures that God said, 'My Temple will be called a house of prayer for the people of all nations. But you have turned it into a hideout for thieves!' Mark 11: 17 |
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' Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you. God's temple is sacred and you are that temple'. 1 Corinthians 3: 16
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Visit the Temple - in The Rankin Church, Lethame Road. This point on the tour is good for thought and reflection. Take time to think about the 'journey' of this week.
The Rankin Church have created here a 'mini tour' using the church itself to allow you to reflect on each of the sites on the large tour.
