The Winslow mail., 1924-08-15
Lesson for August II
JESUS cLEANsEs THE TEMPLE

GOLDEN TEXT-"My house shall be
called the house of prayer.'-Matt
71:13.
PRIMARY TOPIC-Jesus Loves His
Fathers House.
JUNIOR TOPIC-Jesus and the Tenn
INTERMEDIATE AND SENIOR TOP
IC-Right Conduct in Gods House
YOUNG PEOPLE AND ADULT TOPIC
Reverence and Care for Gods House.
!. Jesus Attending the Passover
". 49,.
He went up to Jerusalem very often
to attend the various feasts. Begin
ming at the age of twelve this custom
was habitual with Him to the end OF
His ministry. He was under the law
and therefore He obeyed, 1t Deut
16 :16), but primarily He went up be-
cause it was His Fathers house 1t
is important that all people from their
youth up should make the attendance
upon the house of God habit of their
lives.
II. The Temple Defiled ". 14).
For the various sacrifices in the
temple many oxen, sheep and doves
were needed. Many persons came from
distant parts of the land therefore, 1t
was impracticable to bring their sac
rif1ces with them, SO they brought
money and bought the animals needed.
This privilege the Lord had granted to
them (Deut. IA :24-26). This exchange
was necessary, but when evil men
used it as an opportunity for gain 1t
became an offense before God. If
Christ were to come to many of our
so-called houses of God today He
would find them polluted in just as ag-
gravating a way. His purging the
temple courts shows the need of
purity and order in all matters con-
nected with divine worship.
III. Jesus Cleansing the Temple
wv. 1910.
/. Driving Out the Merchants and
Animals ". 15) Being the Lord of
the temple, the very Messiah who
should come to His temple, He had the
right to cleanse it, to drive out those
who polluted It, 1t is not said that
He used the scourge of cords but, at
any rate, 1t was the symbol of au-
thority.
2. His Command ". 16). Make
not my Fathers house an house of
merchandise" Merchandise is legtti
mate In its place. Any use of the
Lords house other than to worship
and honor Him is to make it place
of merchandise. to pollute 1t. There
is great danger of worldly spirit In
truding into the domain of religion.
Men who unite with the church for
temporal interests, men who come to
the house of worship with worldly
matters uppermost In their thought,
ministers who serve as professionals,
men who bring their illgotten gains to
help further the work of the Lord in
fact all who do not behave properly
in the Lords house, are defiling 1t and
therefore all such must meet His judg-
ment
9. His Zeal w. 10. He was so
completely dominated by the passion
TO do the will of God that He unre-
servedly gave Himself to His work.
This was according to the prophecy,
"The zeal of thine house hath eaten
an example to us i'm the divine service
and manifest commendable zeal. This
reform did not prove permanent. A
few years later He cleansed II again.
This shows how quickly the human
heart is under the control of sin. The
ont nPYt7Q
which is wrought In regeneration. The
new birth is necessary.
w. The Jews Demanding a Sign
wv. 1922.
They demanded of Jesus that He
show His authority for such behavior
He told them that the only sign that
would be given was His death and
resurrection. Destroying the temple
and raising it up in three days refers
to His crucifxion and resurrection.
The resurrection is an unalterable
proof of His divine sonship Rom.
1 ~ Jesus came forth from the
grave of His own power. The Jews
did not want a sign. They were only
finding excuses for their wickedness.
Men today who are demanding proof
of Christ's divinity do not really wish
the proof but are only trying to find
excuses for their sins Jesus had the
ability to justify His ways before God
and man. After the resurrection the
disciples remembered the words of
Jesus on this occasion This shows
that no sowing of the truth shall
eventually fail. This ought to be a
great comfort for Sunday school teach
ers and Christian workers.
Lofty Ideals