Date: March 3, 2024
Scripture: John 2:13-22
Sermon Title: “Jesus Out of Control”
Preacher: Rev. Dr. Bob Jon
You can also listen on Podcast from iTunes and Spotify. Search for “Podcasting from Rev. Bob Jon.”
When I was a kid, I grew up with several pictures of Jesus both in home and the church. It was a picture of Jesus walking on the water, having a child on his lap being surrounded by other children, or standing and knocking on the door. All these pictures had Jesus as a light-skinned man with blue eyes and blonde hair. So, I was shocked when the professor of religion in my college class introduced the first “true-to life” picture of Jesus which was created by the BBC using a combination of 2,000-year-old Jewish skulls and ancient religious images.[1] This Jesus had a dark skin, dark hair, and round nose. One of my classmates started sobbing and said, “Why are you doing this, professor? What have you done to my Jesus?”
Interestingly, the BBC never said that it was the actual face of Jesus. It might be what he would have looked given the scientific information they had. But the lesson many learned was that there might be a gap between Jesus as we know today and Jesus as he existed over 2,000 years ago. And my comparison does not come from the scientific data to discuss who Jesus actually was as the scholars of Jesus Seminar debate on what they call the “historical Jesus.” Instead, my comparison is between how Jesus is culturally defined and how Jesus is actually described by the Bible. The differences between the way people, whether they go to church or not, understand who Jesus is and the Jesus we encounter in the Bible.
Some people say that Jesus was a socialist. He cared about the equity and equal possession of people. And yet, we read Jesus giving the parable in Matthew 25. A man goes on a journey and entrusts his property to his servants. But he does not give to them the equal amount. Instead, one servant with five talents, another two, and the last one just one. After he comes back, he takes away the one talent away from the last servant and gives it to the one with most talents. Some say that Jesus was non-judgmental and non-discriminatory. So, we should be also loving and welcoming to all. And yet, when a gentile woman comes to Jesus asking for a healing for her daughter, he compares the people of this poor woman with a dog.
Some say that Jesus was always peaceful. He was non-violent and never angry. And yet, we see him going into the temple, making a whip of cords, driving the animals, cattle, sheep, and doves out of the temple. He took the bags of the coins away from the money changers and poured them out on the floor, turning over their tables. Just imagine Jesus walking through the door of our church this morning. He takes the cord from my clergy robe and beating me with it. He is going around the building, throwing the hymnbooks here and there, tearing apart our worship bulletins, smashing the guitar like a rock musician, overturning the offering plate. Jesus is going wild. And somebody shouts, “Somebody, please, call the police! He is absolutely out of control!”
I imagine that this text is kind like a nightmare for many preachers today. After all, there is no church that does not do some fundraising in their buildings. Is Jesus calling us the moneychangers? Well, the other gospels, so-called the synoptic gospels, describe Jesus saying, “My house shall be called a house of prayer; but you are making it a den of robbers.” Some biblical commentators notice that these money changers were selling these animals for sacrifice at a premium price, therefore exploiting the poor and marginalized. They say that this was an issue of economic justice. Hey, if you are going to do some selling in the house of God, be honest with your price. But the gospel of John is different. Jesus goes rogue here and directly argues, “Stop making my Father’s house a marketplace!”
Recently, I heard a clergy saying that churches are declining in attendance. We have no capability to maintain their buildings anymore. They just need to do anything they can find to connect with their neighborhood. Sell some chickens and biscuits every month! Occupy your building with any groups in your community that need space. After all, you want your church to be a busy place. The mission of the church becomes “do anything you can to keep the door of your church open.” After all, it is a place where your parents got married, where you were baptized as babies, and where you did the funeral service for your uncle. Church becomes a place that needs to do anything to preserve its name and history. And Jesus shouts, “You have my Father’s house something other than what it should be!”
William Temple was the archbishop of Anglican Church in the 20th century. He once said, “The Church is the only institution that does not exist for itself.” As God has poured out God’s love lavishly through the life, death, and resurrection of Christ, the Church is also called to give its life for the sake of others and the world. We shine the light of Christ brightly in this world by burning ourselves with the fire of the Holy Spirit who purges us of the things that disconnect us from the heart of God who calls us to do justice, to love kindness, and walk humbly with our God. We shine the light of Christ brightly when we remember that we do not exist for ourselves, but primarily exist to love and serve our neighbors, as Jesus did, especially those who are sick, poor, and marginalized.
And it is not just the Church that Jesus comes, purges, and cleanses. As Paul says in1 Corinthians 6, our bodies are also temples of the Holy Spirit. When we feel like we all have figured out who Jesus is, when we feel comfortable where we are in our life today, Jesus comes into our hearts, shake us to the core, overturning what we thought mattered the most, and restoring our distorted relationship with God. Maybe Jesus is standing at the door of our hearts and knocking to see if we are willing to hear his voice and open the door for him. And sometimes, Jesus just comes into our heart when we are not ready for him, as he walked through the locked doors to meet and give peace to his disciples who were full of fear. Be careful. Jesus might come with a surprise to us today or tomorrow.
I want to finish this sermon with a story from Fred Craddock, one of the most influential preachers in the 20th century. One day, he went to the dedication service of a beautiful building at the University of Oklahoma. It had a tall tower, great facilities, all kinds of marvelous things. He was there for the dedication. And the young man, the campus minister, had a very brief prayer. “Lord, burn down this building and scatter these people for the sake of the gospel.”
Amen.
[1] Betsy Reed, “Is This the Face of Christ?” The Guardian, (https://www.theguardian.com/media/2001/mar/26/bbc.broadcasting1, accessed on March 1, 2024)
RAIN OF GRACE 