Why Thieves?
From Pastor Shemalya King
“...It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.” Matthew 21:13
Jesus rode into Jerusalem fulfilling another prophecy which informed the Jews how their King (the Son of David of Whose kingdom shall never cease) would appear. Read Matthew 21:5, 9-10. While in Jerusalem, Jesus went into the temple of God. What a mess He found, what business deals He found, and what a disappointment it was! He found moneychangers/bankers and people selling doves in plain sight, right there–in the temple.
Think for a moment. Think about a believer who is a worshipper (meaning they will frequent the temple) of God; think about them needing to advance their income and grow their business. Wouldn't it be convenient to set up a business in the place of populous? They wouldn't have to guess if people would be there or about how much exposure their business would receive. People are commanded to go to the temple. It's a PERFECT plan! Now think about WHAT they should sell. Why not sell something that the people need? In this case (referring to scripture), the dove was a part of the required offerings (all of the Israelites had to offer doves). If doves were sold, it would be convenient for the people and VERY lucrative for the sellers: it's a “win win” situation. Look at this wisdom!!
I want to HIGHLIGHT the wisdom of men–what seems right to them. I want you to see it at work in the house of God. Let's take a stroll down “Memory Lane.” In the Old Testament, it is recorded that the customs of the priests (not of God) were established in the house of God in Shiloh. Their custom was to send THEIR servants when men were offering their sacrifices to seize a healthy amount of meat with a fleshhook of three teeth while the flesh (meat) was cooking. The servant would strike the fleshhook in the pot and pull up as much meat as possible. ALL that he brought up was given to the priests (1 Samuel 2:13-14). Also, before the fat was burnt, the servants would come to the man sacrificing and say, “Give flesh to roast for the priest; for he will not have sodden (cooked) flesh of thee, but raw” 1 Samuel 2:15b. If any man refused the servants and desired to cook the fat (as God had commanded) first, telling them that they may have as much as they so desired after it's completely cooked, the servants would reply, “Nay; but thou shalt give it me now: and if not, I will take it by force” 1 Samuel 2:16b. The scriptures inform us that this was sin; meaning, that it went AGAINST God's commandments. The sin of the servants was great and because of it, people HATED the offering of the Lord (1 Samuel 2:17). Are we (the modern church) doing these things in the house of God and grieving the people–causing them to hate coming to church? Or grieving God, causing His wrath to be stirred?
Let's stay on “Memory Lane.” In the same house, where the angel of God–Eli–was overseer, were the sins of his sons (they didn't know the Lord; they were sons of Belial). In his old age, Eli HEARD what his sons did unto all the Israelites–how they were watchers at the door and slept with the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle of congregation. Read 1 Samuel 2:12, 22. His sons didn't come to church to serve the Lord; they came to serve their flesh. Is there anyone here who frequents church for selfish reasons? Maybe you're supposed to be here or there (somewhere else); maybe you're called by God; Eli's sons were. Maybe it's time for you to “check yourself before you wreck yourself.”
Here is a story that Jesus told of a certain homeowner who planted a vineyard and set it up perfectly, putting a wine press in it and fencing it all around. He was leaving to go far away, but lent it out to certain husbandmen to oversee it until he returned. He was going to be gone a VERY long time–to include during the time of harvest. As it turns out, he sent some of his servants to receive SOME of the fruits of HIS vineyard during the harvest. Guess what? They beat one, killed one, and stoned another. He sent MORE servants. More is safer, right? They did the same to them all. He sent his son, thinking, “Surely, they will revere my son.” They likewise killed the son. Read Matthew 21:33-41.
Back to our opening verse: when Jesus walked into the temple in Jerusalem, they were only selling goods and exchanging money. They weren't stealing from ANYONE! People were purchasing of their own agency/will. So, what in the world was Jesus talking about? They were stealing from God. How? Because they were taking away the purpose of His house. His house was for prayer. Read Matthew 21:12-13. Look at what was lawful in His house: the lame were healed, the blind were healed, and the children were praising the Lord in the temple (Matthew 21:14-16). Such things are lawful.
The other stories that I shared also displayed theft. They were each stealing glory from God and taking away the purpose of His house.
Let's close by looking at the Lord's response in each situation. (1) As a result of the moneychanging and selling in the temple, Jesus overturned their tables and threw them all out of the temple. (2) As a result of the offensive offerings and the sins of Eli's sons, God said that He would “cut off the arm” of his and his father's (meaning that he would cut off the lineage of men and none of their male offspring would live to see their old age), and an enemy would always be present in their habitation and in all of their successes. God left Eli a sign confirming that what He had prophesied SURELY would come to pass: that sign was that both Hophni and Phinehas (his sons) would die in the same day. Read 1 Samuel 2:27-34. (3) The wicked husbandmen would have the kingdom taken from them and given to a nation (a fruitful nation) who would give of the fruit of the vineyard to their lord. But those wicked men would be utterly destroyed. Read Matthew 21:40-44.
Brothers and sisters, we do not want to be thieves in the household of God. Let's stick to His plan and His desire for His house. Amen.
