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Sermon for March 14-15, 2009
Third Sunday in Lent
The Lord Cleans House —Ex. 20:1-17, I Cor. 1:18-31, Jn. 2:13-25
We all know what happened in the village of Cana, right? Jesus did his first miracle at the wedding party on the brink of catastrophe—turning water into wine when they had run out. Now think of what comes next: Jesus in the holy city of Jerusalem—at the temple—driving out animals and their sellers … upending money tables and scattering coins on the ground. And all of this at the big gear-up for the Passover feast, when people had to get their lamb to slaughter somewhere!
Was Jesus making a royal mess of things? The way many saw it, yes; but in reality, he was cleaning house, he was cleaning house … turning the extortioners’ marketplace mockery back into the house of prayer for all people (Is. 56:7). Things had gotten cluttered and noisy in people’s hearts and in that house of prayer; God himself got crowded out of the picture. We know from historical record that the high priest Caiphas allowed this activity, but Jesus came to his Father’s house to restore order, to call people who thought they were being religious back to a remembrance of God who rescued them from slavery …to remind them that the Lord alone is to be worshipped, in holiness and truth (Ex. 20:1-2). And he didn’t do it in a polite way to avoid upsetting anyone … he wanted everyone to know that he was ticked off.
Did Jesus make a stir and cause a scandal that day? You bet. But as he said to John the Baptist’s disciples: “Blessed are those who are not scandalized by me” (Mt. 11:6). And it’s in today’s epistle: ‘Jesus—the wisdom and word of God made flesh—nailed up on a cross in horror and disgrace is a scandal to Jews (expecting him to rule from David’s royal throne) and pure idiocy to Gentiles who can’t see the point.’ Is it a scandal and pure idiocy to us? “Heavens no!” we might answer. But you know what, we’re scandalized and miffed when Jesus doesn’t meet our selfish expectations … when he’s anything but “safe and predictable and easy to follow” (Michael Card) as we’d really like him to be.
You see, Jesus didn’t come just to clean house in the Jerusalem temple way back when … he comes wherever people think they’re doing their relgious duty (and providing necessities to others to boot!), but are really dishonoring God. He comes to upend the tables of wrong priorities in our hearts. He comes to drive out our selfish desires and make room for the Holy Spirit.
Passover meant getting every bit of leaven (or yeast) out of the house for seven days … eating only flatbread, so Paul used that as an image for the housecleaning we need: ‘Don’t you know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? … So get rid of the old leaven so that you may be a whole new batch of yeast-dough. For Christ, our Passover lamb has been sacrificed, so let us celebrate the feast not with the same old yeast of bad thoughts and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth’ (I Cor. 3:16 & 5:7-8).
Would you rather not do that kind of housecleaning? Well, it’s not optional for a people immersed in the dying and rising of Jesus. That’s what it means to live as baptized followers of the Savior, as people who want to get rid of the wrong in our lives instead of getting comfortable with it … as people who want God’s holy change for the better to come about in our lives. But it starts with taking a look around inside and saying, “Lord, I’ve really let the place go. I need you to clean house!”
That’s what Lent is about: getting rid of the garbage we’ve been hanging onto so that by the Holy Spirit’s grace we can live as an Easter people. You see, Jesus isn’t satisfied with the appearance of cleanliness … keeping all of our junk and shoving it in closets so it’s out of sight. He wants it out in the open and gotten rid of. That’s why he took it all upon himself—body, soul, and spirit—on the cross: to get rid of it once and for all and for every time we crowd him out and forget to put him first. There’s a wideness to God’s mercy that pushes out the narrow self-interests and self-centered profiteers of our own souls … the wideness of Christ’s outstretched hands that save us!
Is there place for Christ here in this temple? In our hearts? In our homes? A few weeks back, one of our younger members filled out the record of fellowship beautifully. She listed her parents and siblings and dog as members of this church … and her parents as communing that day. But more, she listed God as a member too, who is also communing. What a wonderful statement of faith to all of us. God is here; don’t let him get crowded out and lost in the clutter of our own pursuits. Christ is here to commune with us—body, soul, and spirit, in heart and mind—in bread and wine, in body and blood—so let us commune, truly be at one with him in heart and soul and life.
As we sing the Offertory in just a moment, let us think about what we’re really praying and singing: “Clean the house of my heart, O God, and make my spirit set on you. Don’t throw me away with the rubbish, but restore me with your Spirit’s joy so that I can live in your freedom as the temple of the Holy Spirit … so that I can live in your gracious freedom as a home where there is plenty of room, and you are welcome … and you, O Christ, are always welcome!”—Amen.