As a child growing up in Germany I was most familiar with images presenting Jesus as the suffering one on the cross. It was much later when I was grown up that I understood how my parents and others of their generation related to Jesus. Seeing the suffering of Jesus on the cross meant to them that Jesus understood their suffering and the losses they experienced during WWII.

 

It was about fifteen years ago when I went back to Germany after the reunification. For the first time I got to see the part that used to be East Germany and walked among many of the houses and churches that were still in ruins. It was a sad reminder of what went wrong when people strive for power and possessions.

 

         One of the saddest time for me was when I went into downtown in Dresden and stood in front of what used to be a church, looking at a pile of rubble from the bombings during WWII. There was an exhibit of black and white photos showing the horrors of destruction. I felt overwhelmed with emotions, and tears just streamed down my face.

 

Showing feelings, displaying emotions is something we don’t do much in church. Especially sadness and anger is something we avoid. We stuff those feelings and pretend we are fine by smiling and showing kindness to others.

 

In today’s text we see a different side of Jesus, different from the nice guy with the shepherd staff. We don’t see the kind young man with long wavy hair and flowing robes. This story does not show Jesus with his hands upraised blessing people.

 

 One of the artists El Greco, painted Jesus as he is cleansing the temple. Jesus is in the center of the picture, wearing a scarlet red robe and blue stole. His whole body is in movement. His arms are flayed. He is holding a whip. People are falling down around him, trying to protect themselves from his fury.

 

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In preparation for this sermon I read the book The Gospel of John by William Barclay. Barclay was a New Testament interpreter, who gives a vivid description of the temple. I invite you to envision this gigantic building.  There are many levels and “a series of courts leading into the Temple proper and to the Holy Place. There is first the Court of the Gentiles, then the Court of the Women, then the Court of the Israelites, and then the Court of the Priests” 113).

 

 All this buying and selling is going on in the Court of the Gentiles, the only place into which a Gentile might come.

 

Imagine you are a Gentile. You want to come to meditate and pray to God, and the only place you can go do this is the Court of the Gentiles. You come into this place. You hear the voices of various animals like oxen, sheep, doves. You hear people bargaining and arguing. You see visitors buying animals necessary for sacrifice. You see people with Greek money, Roman money, which they are changing into shekels to pay the Temple tax.

 

Jesus had just attended a wedding in the village of Cana in Galilee. He stayed there several days, and then went on to journey to Jerusalem. Just like other devout people, Jesus observed ritual obligations.

 

It was the annual celebration of the Passover, which caused many people and also Jesus to come to Jerusalem. Jesus comes to the Temple, and he finds a market where people trade.  He gets angry, makes a whip, overturns the tables, drives out the animals, and calls out “get out of here. How dare you make my father’s house into a marketplace!”

 

How do people respond to all this commotion? The leaders misunderstand Jesus’ symbolic words. They respond by confronting Jesus with questioning his authority, asking where does he get the right to destroy the temple?

 

The disciples believe and understand the meaning of Jesus’ actions. They understand that Jesus reveals that he is the Messiah. When he talks about the temple being destroyed and rebuild in three days, he means his death and his resurrection.

 

How do we respond to this text?

 

Do you get the feeling that something is terribly wrong with the picture of Jesus in such an angry state?

 

Jesus is furious because what was happening in the temple was opposite of what was supposed to happen. The temple was supposed to be a house of prayer, a house of worship. The purpose of a temple, a church is getting in touch with God, and encountering God’s presence.

 

Even as a young child in the temple, Jesus knew the importance of listening and interpreting scripture. Jesus was famous for speaking with authority.  Jesus took over, and he claimed his authority in the temple. Jesus promise was “I will give you a way to come to God”. Jesus wanted that God’s love would be proclaimed to all the world, and that all people would know the presence of the living God.

 

Life for the people at that time was confusing and stressful. There was a clash of cultures. People lived under the rule of the Roman Empire with the focus on power, prestige and possession. There was much injustice and leaders were taking advantage of the poor by overcharging them.

 

Jesus was painfully aware of what was happening was wrong. Jesus was passionate enough to get angry about what was happening in the temple. Worshipping in ornate man-made temples, sacrificing animals, and priestly ritual did not bring people closer to God.

 

What is it like for us to see Jesus so furious?

 

We are not to be afraid of anger. I am not saying that we should all react in anger to the injustices in this world. If we are angry, it is good to be aware of those feelings.

 

When I was standing in Dresden looking at the bombed church and thought of the suffering that was caused because of WWII, I felt angry. After some time those angry feelings were transformed, and I felt inspired to draw and talk with people from other nations about the war.  My experiences helped me to gain more compassion for others who are suffering and persecuted.

 

How much has really changed throughout the ages? When we listen to the media, open magazines, what do we see? Power, prestige and possessions are highly emphasized in our culture and time today. There is much injustice and suffering right here in our midst. Every day we see people who are suffering violence in various ways, people who are homeless, whose status here is illegal, those who are persecuted.

 

When we become aware of the social and economic conditions we can feel overwhelmed with feelings. We may even feel anger. But anger can be empowering. It would be good to redirect our anger into compassion for those who are different. We also need to realize that Jesus shares his power with his disciples, with us.

 

Jesus says I am the new temple. The old forms are no longer. I am replacing the old temple.  We must not forget the reason why we worship. Jesus is the center of our worship. Jesus gave his life for us.

 

We are grounded in him. This is who we are. We are to proclaim the mercy of God through mutual caring for the most vulnerable people. We are called to be lovers of justice. Doing justice is the primary expectation of God.

 

God has given us a good life style with enough resources to live comfortably. We have a responsibility in how we live, and sharing the gifts God has bestowed upon us with others.

 

A famous theologian of our time, Walter Brueggeman, in his book To Act Justly, love tenderly, walk humbly, says that “God’s justice …has a dynamic, transformative quality. It causes things to change, and it expects that things must need change if there is to be abundant life” p.6.

 

“If God is our God, then we are God’s people. If our God is a God of life and love, a God who wills freedom, justice and peace for all, then we must be a people who so live” p. 55.

 

In this text we have seen a different side of Jesus. We have seen that Jesus intervened for the poor and weak. Jesus enragement and actions transformed individuals and society.

 

May we reach out to others and connect with others as the body of Christ. May we as faithful disciples be the voices and hands that help restore justice and human rights for all, regardless of social status, religious convictions, economic influence, gender, and age.

 

May we learn to pray

• That Jesus would give us a new boldness so we will all go from here and reach out and witness to others about the good news we know

•  That Jesus would equip each of us to be ministers all this week long wherever we find ourselves

• That Jesus would turn other thoughts from being skeptical, cynical, critical to loving, grace-filled and blessing others by our presence

Amen