99 Days to Pentecost: Day 46

Day 46 - March 31, 2021

Mark 13:1-2 (Read Full Chapter)
As He was going out of the temple, one of His disciples said to Him, “Teacher, behold what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!” 2 And Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left upon another which will not be torn down.”
 
“Den of Robbers”
Written by Pastor Won Kim
 
While the cleansing of the temple, Jesus quotes Jeremiah 7:9–11, “9 Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, offer sacrifices to Baal, and follow other gods that you have not known, 10 then come and stand before Me in this house which is called by My name, and say, ‘We are saved!’—so that you may do all these abominations? 11 Has this house, which is called by My name, become a den of robbers in your sight? Behold, I Myself have seen it,” declares the Lord."
 
When Jeremiah uses the term "den of robbers," he wasn’t just saying that the temple is where theft was taking place in the form of money changers. Jesus knew that the disruption of turning over the money-changing tables would only be for a day or a few hours. On the contrary, Jeremiah was saying that it's the site where the robbers go to shield themselves from the consequences of their behavior. Their den is their refuge. The whole system of sacrifice was being used to remove guilt from actions that robbers had no intention of stopping. 

This is the real question. Are we using the blood of Jesus to shield ourselves from the consequences of our behavior to remove guilt from actions that we have no intention of stopping? In the case of the temple, which had a beautiful facade but did not honor the Lord in its courts, Jesus stated that “Not one stone will be left upon another which will not be torn down.” May our faith be beautiful on the inside and the outside.
 
Prayer: Heavenly Father. In this week where we remember the death and resurrection of Your Son, help us to have a pure and wholly devoted faith. In Jesus’ name, we pray, Amen.
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