Sunday, March 7, 2021

Third Sunday in Lent
Exodus 20:1-17
Psalm 19
1 Corinthians 1:18-31
John 2:13-22 (23-25)

For Jews ask for signs, Greeks seek after wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews, and foolishness to Greeks, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God; because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

I occasionally get an email from some foreign dignitary (or usually their recently widowed wife) that claims that they have millions of dollars that they need to smuggle out of their country before it is stolen by an evil government. They compliment the work they see me doing and want to use my ministry as a beneficiary. They promise that they will give me a huge percentage of the money for my trouble, and ask only that I give them some important information so that they can begin the process. These emails always focus on their humble desire to support the great work of my ministry.

These emails sound wonderful. Imagine what I could do with millions of dollars! I could do more than write a few words of inspiration and instruction every day. I could open a retreat center. I could publish my own books. I could share my windfall with other ministries that are doing incredible work in the world. I would try to glorify God with every cent of that gift and hope that it might help change lives and create faith. It is tempting to answer, “Yes.”

But I’m not foolish; I would not fall for the scheme because I know that it is too good to be true. Oh, the first one delighted me and made me consider it for a minute, but I did a little research and it didn’t take very long to discover the truth. These people have been doing this for a very long time. They establish a relationship with their victim and slowly gain their confidence. Eventually they ask for a bank account number or other personal information. Some even claim that they need a few dollars (or a few thousand dollars) to pay for the legal fees, which they can’t afford because the money is tied up until the transaction is complete. They sign with official titles and use real names, making it seem as if it is legitimate. It sounds too good to be true, and it is.

It amazes me that anyone would fall for these schemes, and yet they do. Dr. Phil often does shows with the victims of these imposters. Some have sent hundreds of thousands of dollars on the promise of millions. The schemers have ways of making people believe that what they say is true, and then when cooperation fades, they make people think something bad will happen if they don’t continue. The victims are often those who can’t make decisions; they have mental issues or are desperate. Some are simply greedy and think that they can beat the conman. It is foolish to think that it could be true, but our fear, desperation and greed can make us see things from a skewed perspective. A few kind words and a promise can offer hope to someone who is anxious for salvation.

Paul tells us that the Jews were looking for miraculous signs and the Greeks were looking for wisdom. We ask ourselves, what are miraculous signs and what is wisdom? The cross does not fit into our worldly understanding of miracles and wisdom. For the Jews, the cross means the person hanging from “the tree” is cursed. It was a sign from God that the person is not blessed or righteous. For the Greeks, the cross was not a wise way to create a group of followers. It is, indeed, foolishness to the world.

Stephen King’s “The Stand” is a book about the end of the ages, the final battle between good and evil. Though it has been a long time since I’ve read the book, the basic plot is that a disease wiped out the majority of people in America. It was a frightening book to read years ago, but it would be even worse for many today as we live through the covid pandemic. The few who survived because they were immune to the disease divided into two camps: the good and the bad. The bad people ended up in “Sin City,” Las Vegas Nevada, where they could meet all their every desire. They surrounded an incredibly charismatic character named Randall Flagg who had supernatural powers. He sounded good, looked good and seemed to do what his people wanted done. They, in exchange, were willing to do anything he asked.

The rest of the people gathered around Mother Abigail. She was found in Nebraska, but led the people of “The Free Zone” to Boulder, Colorado where they began to reestablish a democratic society. Mother Abigail was a Christ-like character, representative of all that is good in the world. She was humble and encouraging of others. Though she was a leader, she believed in the concept of ‘The Free Zone,’ so no one was required to work. Compared to the work ethics of those living in Las Vegas who are serving Flagg with all their heart and energy, ‘The Free Zone’ appeared to be filled with lazy, unmotivated people. Mother Abigail, as a country bumpkin, didn’t seem to have the wisdom to lead an army into the war that would define the future of the nation.

The ultimate conflict asks the ultimate questions. What is wisdom? What is power? What type of leader should we follow? The people in Paul’s day had their own idea of what they expected from a leader and the community of believers. The Jews were looking for miraculous signs and the Greeks were looking for wisdom. The cross certainly does not seem to fit into our understanding. For the Jews, the cross meant the person hanging from ‘the tree’ was cursed; it was a sign from God that the person was not blessed or right. For the Greeks, the cross was not a wise way to create a group of followers. It is, indeed, foolishness to the world.

Jesus turned the world upside down. What we see as foolishness is actually the wisdom of God, for it is in the life of that one perfect man that we find true peace and forgiveness. It is in His death that we find life. In God’s kingdom, the weak are given power and wisdom based on God’s grace, not on their own abilities or work. In God’s kingdom, the wise are those who look to the cross for everything instead of the things of this world.

The psalmist writes, “The heavens declare the glory of God. The expanse shows his handiwork. Day after day they pour out speech, and night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard.” God can be seen in the beauty of a rose garden anywhere around the world. He can be experienced on the top of any mountain. His handwork is seen in the sunset as it follows the path of the earth’s rotation. Every star screams “glory” and every wave mutters “power.” Everything that God created points back to Him. But we need more than the creation to have a relationship with our Father in heaven. Christianity is a faith based on grace and we cringe when there is a focus on law, but we need both to be whole. The Law shows us our need for God’s grace.

Board games come with an official set of rules so that all the players will know how to play the game. I don’t know about you, but we often change those official rules to make the game more fun. Take, for instance, Monopoly. On the board there is a space called “Free Parking.” According to the official rules of the game, the “Free Parking” space is just that, a place to park your token for a turn. If you are playing against a mogul who owns every property, a free space might be a welcome rest stop.

I don’t know many people who play the “Free Parking” space as directed in the official rules. We put the money that comes from taxes and fees paid from the Community Chest or Chance cards, as well as any bail money. We try to build up as big a pot as possible because when the players get rich, the game gets interesting. Though we do not follow the official rules of the game, we established a rule that makes it more fun. It is necessary, however, to ensure at the beginning of the game that everyone understands the rules.

That doesn’t always happen when playing games with young children. They want to teach us how to play and they are very good at making up rules as they go along. The new rules usually benefit the child in some way. When something is about to go against them, the child quickly says “Oh, by the way, I forgot to tell you about this rule...” and they go on to tell you how you have to jump three times on one foot and then turn around in circles until they can move their piece to the place where it needs to be to make them the winner. Ok, so I’m exaggerating, but I’m sure many parents know exactly what I’m talking about. It is important to teach our children how to play by the rules, but it can also be fun playing it their way. Playing the games are not just about winning; it is about building relationships.

Sometimes we have to establish the rules from the beginning. With board games it is important that everyone know how to play before starting, or else in the middle there will be conflict. Like the “Free Parking” rule in Monopoly, it is essential that everyone agrees or there will be an argument. It can ruin the fun and hurt feelings.

But sometimes it is more important to establish the relationship, to build up trust in one another before setting the rules. In the case of the Israelites, God did lay down the rules before taking them out of Egypt. He didn’t say, “If you do this, that, and the other thing, then I will save you from this slavery that has you bound.” No, God saved them first, taking them out of bondage and into freedom. As you read the story of the Exodus, you see how those Israelites constantly tried to get God to play by their rules. They grumbled and complained at every turn. The purpose of this journey was to rebuild a relationship with His people based on the covenant of steadfast love He made with Abraham so many centuries earlier. God met their demands, giving them water and food along the way until they arrived at the foot of Mt. Sinai.

Then, and only then, did God establish the Mosaic Covenant. This covenant was conditional and included the Law which was given to Moses on the mountain. They had learned that God was a deliverer. They knew He could save His people. They knew that they could trust Him. So, He gave them the Commandments so that they could learn how to live in His new community together.

Notice that the Ten Commandments do not begin with “do not” rules. They begin with relationship building rules. It is about putting the One who saved them out of Egypt first in their life, and then those whom God has appointed as elders. The last few commands are the “do not” rules, but they are meant to be relationship keeping rules. The acts we do against other people are the acts that cause the brokenness in our world. We build walls between people when we murder, commit adultery, steal, lie and covet our neighbor’s things. These rules are not given to make our life harder. They are given to keep us right with our neighbors and therefore right with God. In the end, if we keep the first commandment by keeping God as first in our lives, we will by His nature not disobey the others because we will want to please the One who is our Savior and Deliverer.

God’s Law is described five ways in today’s Psalm. These words sound so similar: law, testimony, precepts, commandment and ordinances. However in the Hebrew the words are all very different. The law is the Torah, the teaching of God. The testimony is the witness to God’s wisdom, works and promises. The precepts reference God’s authority. The commandment refers to the entirety of God’s Word. The ordinances speak of God’s justice, the verdict over sin. We hear those law words knowing that God’s Word is meant for us, too. They bring us a sense of uneasiness based on our experiences and culture, but they also offer comfort and calm. God’s Word is perfect, sure, right, pure and true; His message gets into our hearts because He puts it there. By His Spirit, we hear His grace. His Law restores the soul, makes wise the simple, makes our heart rejoice, enlightens our eyes, and we will endure forever. We can trust in His Word because He is righteous.

The Psalmist shows us the only way we can live righteously for God: “Forgive me from hidden errors. Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins. Let them not have dominion over me.” Only with God’s help, God’s hand in our lives, will we ever be kept blameless.

There is a universal language when it comes to faith. No, I don’t mean that we can all hear words in other languages and understand everything we hear. While the gift of tongues is real, that’s not what I mean by a universal language. Music comes close, because it is in music that we share in the emotion of the words spoken. An Italian opera can move a person to laughter and to tears even if they do not know a word of Italian. A Christian can attend liturgical worship in a foreign country and understand what is happening even if the words spoken are not in their own language.

But the Psalm speaks of a more basic universal language: that of creation. The heavens declare the glory of God. They don’t speak words but their voice is heard. God can be seen in the beauty of a rose garden anywhere around the world. He can be experienced on the top of any mountain. His handwork is seen in the sunset as it follows the path of the earth’s rotation. Every star screams “glory” and every wave mutters “power.” All that God created points back to Him. By His Spirit, we see His grace. And by His Spirit, we hear His grace in His Word. In many and various ways God spoke to His people of old by the prophets, but now in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son.

In our gospel lesson for this week, Jesus enters into the Temple and openly defies the expectation of the community. The marketplace at the Temple was an important part of the worship experience. These merchants and moneychangers were there at the request of the priests to make things easier for the pilgrims attending to do their duty and obey the law. The moneychangers provided an important service, exchanging the money that had graven images to a type of coin that did not, which was the only type of coin that could be received in the offering. The animals were an important part of the worship. Providing the pilgrims with animals that were suitable made their travel easier and ensured perfect animals for the sacrifice. If the marketplace had been outside the gates of the Temple, Jesus would probably not have chased off the merchants and money changers.

The outer court of the Temple was a place where the pilgrims from other faiths were welcome to visit. It was a place of prayer for the gentiles, a sanctuary for those who wanted to worship God but could not enter the inner courtyards. In the synoptic Gospels, Jesus quotes Isaiah who wrote, “My house will be called a house of prayer for all the nations.” By filling the outer court with merchants and money changers, the gentiles had no place to experience the presence of God. Jesus was standing up for the nations of the world, whom God loved, too.

John tells us that the disciples heard Jesus and remembered a quote from Psalm 69, “For the zeal of your house consumes me.” They saw Jesus’ actions in the Temple as a statement about how He wanted to clean up the religion of the day. The priests had lost touch with the God for whom they claimed to work. They were more concerned about filling the Temple coffers than meeting the spiritual needs of travelers. They were more concerned about making every little detail about the service perfect that they did not see how they were no longer living up to God’s expectations.

John places this incident much earlier in Jesus’ ministry than the other Gospel writers. The Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) place this event on the Monday following the Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem. They point out that this incident was a last straw for the leaders. Jesus had to be stopped because He was claiming authority over even the Temple business. While John also makes the point that the leaders demanded that He prove His authority, John has other reasons for placing it early in the story.

Water is a running theme through the first part of the book of John, often connected with repentance and purification. John writes of water far more than the other evangelists. In the early chapters of John’s Gospel, Jesus is baptized, He changed the water into wine, He talked with Nicodemus about water and blood, He had a conversation with the woman at the well, and He healed the paralyzed man at the pool of Bethesda. These stories remind us of the purification that must come as we become people of faith. In the midst of these stories, we see Jesus cleansing the Temple. Even the place where the people worshipped needed to be cleaned.

This is also a story about the leaders questioning Jesus’ authority. Jesus told those who demanded a sign that they would get one. “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” They thought this was ridiculous, and the statement would come back to haunt Him later during His trial. They thought He meant the Temple made of stones, the Temple that had taken forty-six years to build. He couldn’t possible rebuild such a miraculous building in just three days. However, we know that Jesus was not referring to the building; the Temple was His own body. When they destroyed Him, they would see the sign because He would rise up again in three days.

John put this story so close to the beginning because His purpose was to establish that Jesus is indeed the True Temple of God. Throughout the book of John, Jesus is identified with every aspect of the Temple worship. Each of the seven “I Am” statements that Jesus makes throughout the book takes us deeper into the Temple and deeper into the heart of God. He is the Bread which was represented in the Temple by the Bread of the presence. He is the Light which is represented by the candlesticks. He is the Gate, which is represented by the altar of incense. He is the Shepherd which is represented by the royal priesthood. He is the Resurrection and the Life, which is represented by the atonement cover on the Ark of the Covenant. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life, which is represented by the contents of the Ark: the tablets of Law, Aaron’s staff that budded and a gold jar filled with manna. Then, when Jesus says, “I am the True Vine” He is telling us that any connection we have to God comes through Him. We are merely branches. He is the One through whom we can see and know God. The Temple itself was just a building. He was the place where we would meet and worship the Creator and Master of our lives.

John begins with this incident so that we might see step by step as we move from the courtyard into the Holy of Holies that Jesus is the One He says He is. We enter into His presence cleansed and purified so that we can stand in His glory and worship Him. He is the I AM. He is our God. He has the authority to stand up not only for His chosen people, but for all people so that they might worship Him, too. His zeal is not to clean up a building, but to offer Himself to the world as the way to meet God, to know Him and to love Him.

God is revealed as we live according to God’s Word and Law. He is manifest in our relationships with our neighbors and creation. We see Him revealed in all these things as we put Him first, keep Him as our God, love Him above all else. The Jews went to Jerusalem to worship at the Temple, but today we are called to worship at a greater one; for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is the true Temple. He saved us and invites us into His eternal covenant where we will dwell forever in a relationship with Him.

Some people don’t want to hear about a God that demanded such obedience that His Son died on the cross. To them it is nothing but foolishness. Yet, by that Word we are saved. We follow after wisdom and intelligent teaching, but we ignore the foolishness of the cross. The truth of God’s purpose is a stumbling block to many and unfortunately, we think it is more important to sell ourselves than to give our visitors what they really need. God is not glorified by those who claim to be righteous. He is not glorified by a Temple full of moneychangers and sacrifices. God’s grace is found in the pure Law of God, for it is the Law that points to our need for Jesus.

The Law was a gift, a sign that shows us God's care and concern for our health and safety. The Law was a gift to help us build and keep relationships between our God and other people. The Temple was a gift, a sign that reminds us of God’s presence among His people. Even more so, however, our Lord Jesus Christ is a gift, because He is the Law in flesh and His body is the true Temple. In Him we truly see God’s care and concern for us and His presence among His people.