“Setting the cat among the pigeons”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Saturday, January 13, 2024
John 2:13-22 (Forward, p. 76) CEV p. 1102
If there was ever a passage that has sparked consternation and debate among Bible teachers and scholars, it is this one, the story of Jesus’ cleansing of the Temple in Jerusalem.
The most obvious ‘problem’, at least in the mind of the more liberal scholars is that this incident, or one similar to it, shows up in all four gospels but on two differing occasions. Here in John’s Gospel, it is set near the beginning of Jesus’ earthly ministry, while in the three Synoptic Gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, it shows up late in Jesus’ career, namely at the beginning of Holy Week. However, even so, all four accounts place it ‘not long before the Jewish festival of Passover’.
So, then, the obvious question arises, namely, is this the same incident, with John choosing to place it ‘out of sequence’, or two differing ones? Some scholars have suggested that he did indeed do the former, that is, place it out of sequence —for theological reasons—namely, to ‘set the stage’, as it were, for Jesus’ future ministry. Surely then, if this be correct, it highlights Jesus’ concern for the proper observance of the Jewish faith and His awareness, even at this early time in His career, of His own upcoming death and resurrection. Of course, certain liberal scholars certainly object to any such idea—that Jesus already was aware of this!
On the other hand, if this took place on two separate occasions, it might explain the two very differing reactions on the part of the Temple authorities. In John’s account, they simply quizzed Him about His authority to do such a thing (John 2:18), while in Mark and Luke (Mark 12:18 and Luke 19:47 actively seek to have Him killed, which would only be natural if they thought that Jesus was ‘getting in the habit’ of doing such a thing! This certainly makes sense in these two latter cases, given Jesus’ rising popularity and His denunciation of them as having made the Temple ‘a den of thieves.’
But there is one other issue, one that arises from people of widely differing theological perspectives, whether liberal or conservative: how could Jesus, the prince of peace, act in such an angry, viscious, violent, ungodly, and
totally uncaring, unloving way? To them, it seems absolutely ‘out of character’ for what we know—or imagine we know—of Jesus.
But here the noted actor, Bruce Marchiano, who played the part of Jesus in the movie, The Gospel According to Matthew, provides a much-needed insight. He suggests that Jesus’ actions there in the Temple were motivated, not by anger, but by love. Jesus was solely upset and concerned by what those folks were doing, to themselves and to others, by this desecration of the Temple. They were abasing themselves and their worship and they were cheating others of their opportunity to worship as well as their material substance. Jesus loved them too much to allow them to continue in their clearly deviant ways and so acted, so impetuously, to try to stop them.
So then, this brings me to a consideration of how this might apply to our lives. Seeing as this account often shows up in earlier lectionaries just a bit before Christmas, I have often thought about how Jesus wants us to examine our hearts and minds and cleanse them, in preparation for His coming—and, if we refuse to do so, how He might take this in hand Himself. And, maybe, just maybe, He might use those less than happy times in our lives, those troubled or stressful times, to force to look us to look at ourselves and examine what we see there—all out of His love for us, of course—so that we might better be the people that He intends us to be. It is something well worth looking at. Jesus certainly has a way of ‘setting the cat among the pigeons’, whether it be for those folks back then or for us today—forcing us all to look at ourselves more carefully. Amen.
Forward notes: “He also poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables. He told those who were selling doves, ‘Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father’s house a marketplace’”! (verses 15b-16).
“I remember reading a lovely sentiment on social media about ‘Things Money Can’t Buy.’ The list included a loving home, deep gratitude, a hopeful spirit. Many people appreciated it, but others responded by saying that money can enrich our lives and make these things more accessible.
“Money can be coveted, useful, and demonized all at the same time. But it is the love of money, not money itself, that Scripture says is the root of all evil. God’s first commandment is to love the Lord your God with all your
heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.
“This is more challenging to do when we are distracted. I think Jesus’ anger is less about money than it is about our distraction and focus. God is clear about our focus and where it should be. We know what distracts us. What will it take for us to refocus?
Moving Forward: “Is the love of money a distraction for you? Power? Addiction? How can you refocus?”