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THIEVES IN CHURCH
LORD’S DAY, FEBRUARY 27
Mark 11:15-19

Luke 19:45-48

 

“…but ye have made it

a den of thieves.”

 

THIEVES IN CHURCH
 
The temple was meant to be a “house of prayer,” but the chief priests and scribes had made it a “den of thieves” (Mark 11:17). Evidently, these temple officials had made themselves CEOs of Temple Pte Ltd, and turned God’s house into big-business racketeering. It became such because the chief priests had leased out spaces in the temple area (probably the Court of the Gentiles) to animal traders who sold their sacrificial sheep and oxen at high prices, and to moneychangers who exchanged Roman currency for temple coins at hiked-up rates. Not only were the people ripped off by those thievish merchants, the whole temple area had become a filthy and noisy market place most unsuitable for worship.
 
Jesus threw out all the sellers and buyers in the temple, and overturned the tables of the moneychangers and the stalls of the animal traders. He forbade anyone to bring any merchandise into the temple. After ridding the temple of all that unholy activity, He began to teach the people therein, and all of them heard Him attentively, hanging on to His every word. For this reason, the temple authorities who desired to kill Him became afraid of Him, and could do nothing.
 
Today, we find such pastors in the church who preach for filthy lucre’s sake. The Apostle Paul said, “For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision: Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre’s sake” (Titus 1:10,11). The Apostle Peter likewise warned, “But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not” (2 Pet 2:1-3).
 
THOUGHT: Beware the Benny Hinns and all Charismatic charlatans!

PRAYER: (Don’t be gullible; pray for discernment.)

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