The question for preachers on this Sunday is how the Ten
Commandments are connected with Jesus’ insistence that the house of
God is denigrated when it becomes a place for bargaining and making payments.
Perhaps this is an opportunity to talk about the blessing of
the law Moses received from God, how it protects us, nourishes us, gives us
plumb lines and boundaries, and plants those boundaries, as well, for others.
At least, this is a Sunday for reflection on Jesus’ zeal,
the deep seriousness of his mission, the openness with which he left us to understand our own responsibilities, and the “foolishness” of our
proclamation.
John 2:13-22
All four gospels recount Jesus’
confrontation with the moneychangers in the temple. However, John’s account is
distinct from the Synoptics in several important ways. First, John places this
encounter near the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, as the start of continual
antagonism between Jesus and the Jewish leaders, rather than at the very end of
his life, after his triumphal entry into Jerusalem as in the Synoptics. . . .
Second, the synoptic parallels
contain no references to sheep and cattle or to Jesus’ violent act of using a
whip to drive out the moneychangers.
Third, the Synoptics have him
citing scripture, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer’;
but you are making it a den of robbers” (Matthew 21:13), while John has him
saying, “Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father’s house a
marketplace.”
. . . Some of the differences from the
Synoptics may be minor, but the overall effect is to emphasize John’s concern
for the demonstration of Jesus’ nature, his performance of signs, and his
connection to other scriptural teachings. While the focus of this text is on
the Temple, several of the other passages for today are loosely connected to
this text in their emphasis on the law. – Jonathan D. Lawrence
I think we ought to take note . . .
when Jesus gets angry. It is not recorded often in scripture. Many times he
appears to be disappointed in his disciples for their inability to understand
what he is about, but except for a weary complaint to his mother and a few
sharp words to Peter, there are not many outbursts. This case is different and
therefore important. What he witnessed in the temple was a direct contradiction
of the message of grace for which he was prepared to give his life. He has no
choice but to clear away the lie to make room for the truth. – Judith E.
Simonson
Exodus 20:1-17
In previous weeks there have been
readings on the covenants with Noah and Abraham. This week’s reading from
Exodus contains the Ten Commandments, in one sense the core of the covenant
with Moses given at Mount Sinai. There have been many attempts to define or
explain the structure of the Ten Commandments, too many to outline in this
space. Even so, it is important to note that most of these regulations are
pronounced succinctly with little explanation or detail. Unlike some of the
biblical legislation that goes into extensive detail and is case-specific,
these laws are presented as absolute principles, leaving the exact
implementation to later interpreters and readers. – Jonathan D. Lawrence
1 Corinthians 1:18-25
Paul contrasts the message and
power of the cross with the way it is perceived by the rest of the world. He
suggests that even though the world might view the cross and faith as foolish,
God’s way turns things around. . . . Paul sees wisdom not in the law, but in
God’s “foolishness” in crucifying Christ . . . – Jonathan D. Lawrence
Jonathan D. Lawrence, an American Baptist Church ordained
minister, teaches Religious Studies and Theology at Canisius College, Buffalo,
New York.
Judith Simonson is
an ordained minister in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
Homily Service 39, no. 4 (2006): 33-43.
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