“And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and He overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. He said to them, ‘It is written, “My house shall be called a house of prayer,” but you make it a den of robbers.’ And the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them.”
(Matthew 21:12-14 ESV)
Imagine that—an animal market right where people were trying to worship! Jesus was angry. He made a whip and cleared the place, and He told the people why: “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers.”
What’s a temple for, then? Jesus’ answer, “prayer,” is obvious from His quotation. But He also used the temple to heal sick people and to teach people about God. And He smiled at the praise of the children who cried out, “Hosanna to the Son of David!”
If you belong to Jesus, you, too, are a temple of God, and Jesus is just as concerned for your welfare as He was for that of the temple in His day. Paul writes, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20a). You are not trash, and you shouldn’t treat yourself that way—or allow others to do so. Jesus died and rose again to make you His own, so that you who “hope in Christ might be to the praise of His glory” (Ephesians 1:12b).
We pray: Lord, help me to realize and believe the high value You set on me. Amen.
Reflection Questions:
* What is the price you were bought with?
* Who do you belong to?
* People abuse God’s human temples, too. What does Jesus want to protect you from?
Lenten Devotions were written by Dr. Kari Vo.
Originally published in The Lutheran Hour on March 14, 2025
Used by permission from International Lutheran Laymen’s League, all rights