Cleanse the Temple

Reading Time: 8 Minutes

The whip Jesus made to cleanse the Temple was symbolic of the flesh-tearing stripes He would willingly endure at the whipping post. His sacrificial blood paid the price to cleanse us from sin. Jesus rose again so we could be brought to life, born-again and filled with the Holy Spirit. Now, we are the Temple of the Holy Spirit, seated with God in the heavenly realms! Praise the Lord for Good Friday and Easter Sunday!

Jesus Cleansed the Temple

Jesus made a whip from some ropes and chased them all out of the Temple. He drove out the sheep and cattle, scattered the money changers’ coins over the floor, and turned over their tables.  Then, going over to the people who sold doves, he told them, “Get these things out of here. Stop turning my Father’s house into a marketplace!”

Then his disciples remembered this prophecy from the Scriptures: “Passion for God’s house will consume me.”

But the Jewish leaders demanded, “What are you doing? If God gave you authority to do this, show us a miraculous sign to prove it.”

“All right,” Jesus replied. “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”

“What!” they exclaimed. “It has taken forty-six years to build this Temple, and you can rebuild it in three days?”  But when Jesus said “this temple,” he meant his own body.  After he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered he had said this, and they believed both the Scriptures and what Jesus had said. John 2:15-22 NLT

The Whip

Jesus knew how important it was for the Temple that housed God’s presence to be kept holy and sanctified. The Temple was for God’s purposes only. He used a whip as a symbol of God’s wrath against their rebellion and complacency. Jesus loved extravagantly using compassionate signs, wonders, healings and miracles! (Matthew 8:16-17) But when it came to His Father’s House and those that were assigned to keep it holy, He was stern. They knew better because they had been schooled in the scriptures from the time they were young. So, Jesus did not hesitate to swing a whip and rebuke them harshly.

The Atoning Sacrifice

Jesus cleansed the Temple in this violent way under the direction of God the Father. But He also obeyed and humbled Himself to become The Lamb of God, slain for the sin of the world. At the end of 3 years of ministry, the Jewish religious leaders were enraged by His popularity among the common people. They considered Him a threat to the high positions they had earned or inherited in the Jewish faith. So, they convinced the Roman government to convict Jesus to death by crucifixion.

His Body Destroyed for Us

They located Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane where He had gone with His disciples to pray. He was in such agony anticipating the cross that His sweat was mixed with blood. They took Jesus for His trial, beat Him and ripped hair from his beard. A crown of thorns was smashed onto His scalp. Already in excruciating pain, they whipped Him mercilessly.

So then Pilate took Jesus and had Him scourged (flogged, whipped). John 19:1 AMP

Jesus could have walked away before any of this happened. Instead, He accepted the torture willingly, like a lamb led to be slaughtered. He was so injured and had lost so much blood that He was unable to carry His cross all the way to the crucifixion site. So, the soldiers ordered another man to carry it the rest of the way. Jesus was nailed to the cross– His body destroyed for us.

His Body– the Temple of the Holy Spirit

Earlier, when Jesus told the Jews that they would destroy “this Temple” and He would raise it up in three days, they scoffed at Him. They thought He was talking about the Jewish Temple building, but Jesus was referring to His own body. Three days after His dead body was placed in a tomb, Jesus rose again!

Our Bodies– Temples of the Holy Spirit

Jesus’ body was the Temple of the Holy Spirit. They destroyed His Temple so we could be cleansed by His blood! Jesus’ resurrection made it possible for us to be born-again and made one with Jesus. Now we are Temples of the Holy Spirit. His body was whipped so ours could be cleansed for His glory!

Or don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 WEB

A Vision

Several years ago as I was praying, I had a simple vision. It was like a black and white video in my minds eye showing a profile view of my head. I appeared to be in the shower shampooing my hair above my ear. This went on for a few seconds and then faded away. At first, I thought the Lord was telling me I needed to do a better job of washing my hair on the side part of my head! But then I realized the Spirit was saying to me, “Cleanse the Temple.”

Saved by Grace

Only Jesus’ blood can atone for our sin. We cannot earn the honor of becoming a Temple of the Holy Spirit. It is given to us freely by our faith in His grace!

Our body, soul and spirit belong to Jesus now. He feels the same way about His Temple today as He did when He walked this earth. Jesus wants His Temple to remain clean and set apart for His purposes. We can only do that by remaining in Him and in the power of His grace. Jesus has given us His authority, His Armor, His Name, His Blood, His Word and His Spirit to equip us as guards and custodians of His Temple.

In my case, I did not understand the grace-power of renewing my mind and taking my thoughts captive. I didn’t know how to submit to God in the spiritual realm and resist the devil so he would flee. My view of God’s Armor seemed amazing to me. But my beliefs lacked power to cleanse me of inferiority, accusations from the enemy, strongholds of fear, and so on. I thought I was resting in God’s grace. But these wrong feelings and thought patterns were signs that I was trusting in my own power.

Finally, I became determined to pay attention to the Holy Spirit dwelling within me, and He taught me patiently. The Lord highlighted one unhealthy thought at a time so I could bring each one under submission to His will. Holy Spirit is still doing a deep cleansing of my heart in the secret place of prayer. This time it is by His power!

Jesus in the Temple as a Child

Every year Joseph and Mary took Jesus and His siblings to Jerusalem for the Passover Festival. During one of these trips when Jesus was 12 years old, His parents lost Him for 3 days. He was with the leaders in the Temple courts discussing scripture. Everyone was amazed by His understanding and ability to answer questions. When His parents found Jesus there they were upset and asked Him why He would do such a thing.

He said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Didn’t you know that I must be in my Father’s house?” Luke 2:49 WEB

As a boy and every year, Jesus treasured those times in the Temple courts. He heard the scriptures read and praises sung to God. It was a place of prayer. There, in the Temple courts, animal sacrifices were made to atone for sin. But one day He would be the sacrificial Lamb.

Jesus declared God’s House would be called a house of prayer for all people. (Mark 11:15-18) When Jesus began His ministry, the Temple courts were not a place of prayer anymore. The Simeons and Annas were long gone, (Luke 2:25-38) and the Temple had become a den of thieves. He had to drive them out!

As we sit with our Father in His Temple He teaches us truth and Jesus sets us free. It is still His grace through the blood of Jesus that delivers us from evil. (Matthew 6:9-13) When we allow Jesus to cleanse the Temple, the end result is His Bride that has made herself ready for Him! (Revelation 19:7)

Jesus is Alive in Us– His Temple!

We, His Temple, are called a House of Prayer for All Nations. We are holy and set apart for His useful purposes in His Kingdom! Our bodies house His Spirit and become a place where we can sit with our Father and learn from Him. Our hearts and minds can be renewed daily in His presence with His Word. And He will drive out anything that doesn’t belong– if we ask Him to and do not doubt. We live in His House, seated with Him in the heavenly realms by the Spirit. (Ephesians 2:6) Hallelujah!

So, together we glory in the cross and resurrection of our Savior and King! Let us worship and praise Him in the Temple of the Holy Spirit! And let us daily yield to the power of His amazing grace! I pray that you enjoy a very blessed Easter weekend, celebrating our risen King!