“Bake Sales Gone Bad!”
Unit II: “Jesus and the Temple”
PRINTED TEXT: John 2:13-25, NIV
July 20, 2025
Key Verse: To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!” (John 2:16, NIV)
Lesson Aim:
- Identify Jesus’ desire to rout out the abuses of Temple worship.
- Grow in confidence that Jesus is the temple where God dwells.
- Commit to a life of reverence that shows proper respect to God.
Unifying Principle and Why This Lesson Matters: People sometimes lack awareness of building protocols and may enter a space with little regard for the business that takes place there. What does it mean to honor a building and the purpose for which it was constructed? Jesus showed proper reverence for the Temple when He zealously cleared out the merchants.
The Introduction, Lesson in Focus, and Biblical Context:
In John chapter 2, we find Jesus in Jerusalem during the time of the Passover festival. Every male among the Jews was required to appear at this feast. Jesus, in obedience to the law, went up to observe it. This was the first Passover he attended after beginning his ministry work. His disciples accompanied Jesus as they traveled to Jerusalem for the Passover, a significant Jewish festival commemorating the Israelites’ liberation from slavery in Egypt. The temple, the center of Jewish worship, is crowded with people from all over, coming to offer sacrifices and fulfill their religious duties. Unfortunately, in the very temple, under the very eye of God, the people soon returned to old practices which they knew that God disapproved. Not even the sacredness of the temple, the presence of God, the ceremonials of religion, deterred them from this unholy traffic. So wicked men and hypocrites will always turn “religion,” if possible, into gain. So strong is this groveling passion, and so deep is that depravity which fears not God, and regards not his Sabbaths, his sanctuary, or his law. As he enters the temple courts, he is met with a bustling scene of merchants selling cattle, sheep, and doves for sacrifices, as well as money changers exchanging currency. The air is filled with the sounds of animals and the clinking of coins, creating a chaotic atmosphere. As Jesus observes the commercial activities taking place in the temple, he is filled with righteous anger at the desecration of a sacred space meant for worship. In a powerful display of his authority, he overturns the tables of the money changers and drives out the merchants, declaring, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!” Jesus engages in various activities in this verse that reveal profound truths about His nature and mission. First, by cleansing the temple, Jesus demonstrates His authority and righteousness. The act of cleansing the temple symbolizes the need for purity and devotion in worship, indicating that Jesus is the ultimate means of accessing God. Additionally, by foretelling His death and resurrection, Jesus reveals His divine knowledge and acceptance of His sacrificial mission. He knows the path that lies ahead of Him and willingly embraces it for the redemption of all humankind. In conclusion, John 2:13-25 encapsulates a profound message about the significance of upholding the sanctity of worship spaces and the authenticity of worship practices. It prompts individuals to reflect on their own spiritual lives and communal practices, ensuring that their focus remains steadfast on genuine faith and devotion. Just as Jesus cleansed the Temple, we are called to uphold the reverence and integrity of our worship, embodying a deep commitment to honoring God in all aspects of our lives. Reverence for God goes beyond just acknowledging His existence; it involves living a life that reflects a profound respect for His commandments, teachings, and character. It includes honoring and obeying God as the ultimate authority, recognizing His sovereignty over all aspects of our lives. Having reverence for God means we adore Him with deep respect, honor Him with our words and actions, and submit ourselves to His will in humility and obedience.
Right for the Wrong Reason (John 2: 13-17, NIV):
13. When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
14. In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money.
15. So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables.
16. To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!”
17. His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.”
The Passover was one of three major religious festivals that Jewish males were required to attend. In verse 14, we find Jesus entering the Temple as the Passover observance began. Merchants were selling animals for sacrifice, while others exchanged foreign currency for the Temple’s currency. Verse 14 explains that because people traveled great distances to offer sacrifices at the Temple, some had to purchase the animal after arriving in Jerusalem. The Temple Mount would be exceptionally crowded, and Jesus saw many doing business in the outer courts of the Temple. One commentator stated, “They all had to pay the temple tax, which was the equivalent of about two days wages for a working man – but had to be paid in the special temple coin. Consequently. Merchants, moneychangers, and lenders set up shop inside the Temple grounds. Although their services were “right,” their motives were wrong. This is why the moneychangers did so much business.” They had turned an opportunity to assist people in honoring their obligation to God into a way to make a profit. Thus, corrupting the Temple’s sanctity and making it a noisy marketplace instead of a place of prayer and praise. Ironically, the site they chose was the Court of the Gentiles, an area where Jews had the opportunity to witness about their God. The motive driving these businessmen’s actions prompted Jesus’ deliberate, forceful, and physical response. Jesus made a whip out of cords, drove them and the animals out of the Temple area, poured out the moneychangers’ money, overturned tables, told those selling doves to remove them, and commanded them to stop making His Father’s house a marketplace. Jesus’ passionate display of His deep commitment to honoring God and respecting the Temple’s sacredness caused His disciples to remember Psalms 69:9, which states: “For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me.” The results of their reflection highlight the importance of knowing, meditating on, and memorizing God’s Word. This incident also reveals the nation’s weakened spiritual condition and its leaders’ failure to model and teach genuine worship, respect, and reverence for God and the Temple. We must address practices that dishonor God’s house or take advantage of others’ needs, and recognize our need to continually examine our lives and remove anything that can hinder worshipping God in spirit and truth. Through his actions, Jesus demonstrated the importance of holding sacred places and practices in high regard as a reflection of one’s reverence for God. Reverence for God goes beyond just acknowledging His existence; it involves living a life that reflects a profound respect for His commandments, teachings, and character. It includes honoring and obeying God as the ultimate authority, recognizing His sovereignty over all aspects of our lives.
The Real Temple (John 2:18-22, NIV): 18 The Jews then responded to him, “What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?” 19 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” 20 They replied, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?” 21 But the temple he had spoken of was his body. 22 After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.
The Jewish leaders, scribes, Pharisees, and political figures immediately questioned Jesus’ authority to disrupt their “temple business” and demanded a miraculous sign to prove His authenticity. The Jews’ request correlated with their belief that a genuine prophet proved his authenticity by performing some spectacular miracle that he was from God. Instead, Jesus responded to their question with words that would further enrage His adversaries. This was an answer they misunderstood: Jesus said in verse 21 that He would “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” His listeners were confused, thinking He referred to the physical temple, which had taken forty-six years to build under Herod the Great’s reconstruction.
Herod the Great is known for the Bible story where he tried to have Jesus killed and, in the process, had many children killed. He is also known for reconstructing and expanding the Jerusalem Temple, building fortresses, and building pagan temples.) First, Jesus never said that He would destroy the material Temple. John clarifies that Jesus spoke of His body, predicting His death and resurrection. What Jesus meant was that His coming had put an end to all this human-made, human way of worshipping God and put in its place spiritual worship, thereby putting an end to animal sacrifice and priestly ritual, and establishing a direct approach to the Spirit of God. Jesus promised to give them a new way to approach God, without elaborate rituals. Even Jesus’ disciples did not understand His meaning until after His resurrection, when they grasped the prophecies in the Scriptures about the Messiah’s suffering and death. They saw in His words the promise of the Resurrection. Believers are reminded of the importance of focusing on a personal relationship with Jesus rather than just religious rituals or buildings. Because of Jesus Christ’s coming into the world, all those who believe the Scriptures can have utter confidence in the power and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
A Discerning Savior (John 2: 23-25, NIV):
23. Now while he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Festival, many people saw the signs he was performing and believed in his name.
24. But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all people.
25. He did not need any testimony about mankind, for he knew what was in each person.
To confirm that He possessed the authority to disrupt their business and prove that He was from God, the Jews requested a visible sign from Jesus. John informs us that Jesus did perform miracles and signs in Jerusalem during this Passover feast. As a result, many believed in His name. Yet, Jesus did not place confidence in their response because He could discern their motives and the content of humanity’s hearts. Faith based on seeing is shallow and will not last or stand up under testing. Jesus, knowing the human heart, should motivate believers to be transparent and seek to develop a deep-rooted faith based on an intimate and obedient relationship with Him. This passage teaches us that the foundation of genuine faith is not seeing and then believing, but believing the Word and then seeing, followed by a wholehearted commitment to Jesus as Savior and Lord of one’s life. Second, when we recognize that because of Jesus’ omniscient insight and discernment of the content and intent of humanity’s hearts, believers have the dual responsibility to be transparent and honest in their relationship with Him through daily confession and repentance. Finally, His intimate knowledge of us should prompt perpetual praise, worship, and confidence in Him to know and do what’s best for us as we walk with Him obediently.