A Holy Priesthood

1 Pe. 2:4-5

4 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

• What is a living stone?
  
• Who was the first living stone?
  
• Who are living stones now?
  
• Why are living stones needed?
  
• What are the living stones being used to build?
  
• Which is more beautiful in God's eyes?
  - a huge, marvelously designed cathedral?
  - a large functional church building
  - a living spiritual church built using living spiritual people
  
• How do you feel knowing that you are a living stone?
  - delighted that you can participate with Christ
  - pleased to be connected to other living stones in a permanent bond
  - unhappy that people seldom see the individual stones in a building
  - disappointed to be "just another brick in the wall"
  
• Who makes up the holy priesthood that serves in the spiritual house?
• What is the apparent attraction of having a few designated priests instead of all believers being priests?
  
• How would your daily life be different if you realized your priesthood?
  
• What are the spiritual sacrifices that you as a priest are to offer? [Consider Rom. 6:11-13, Rom. 12:1-2, Heb. 13:15-16]
  
• What makes your spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God?
  
• Through what means are you sacrifices offered to God?
  
• Why do we have such a tendency to focus on the physical when God focuses on the spiritual?

Harold's Musings:
If I could just keep this passage in the front of my mind all day every day, I would be more content with my walk here on earth. This passage sums up what should drive a Christian's attitude and actions. My self-image would not be fragile and prone to being hurt. My every action would be a priestly service towards God. What a challenge we have!

Jesus may have been angry

John 2:13-21

13 The Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 In the temple he found those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the money-changers sitting there. 15 And making a whip of cords, he drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and oxen. And he poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables. 16 And he told those who sold the pigeons, “Take these things away; do not make my Father's house a house of trade.” 17 His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for your house will consume me.”18 So the Jews said to him, “What sign do you show us for doing these things?” 19 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” 20 The Jews then said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will you raise it up in three days?” 21 But he was speaking about the temple of his body.

• What indication(s) do you see that Jesus was angry?
• How long does it take to make a whip of cords?
• What was Jesus' purpose in doing what he did?
• As an obedient Jewish boy, how many times had he been to temple for Passover?
• How many times had he seen the "house of trade"?
• Why violence now?

Harold's Musings:
I can see where people would conclude Jesus was in a fit of rage here. Unfortunately a fit of rage is about being out of control and acting without thinking. That is sinful. Jesus took the time to make the whip, which he probably needed to drive out the sheep and cattle. Was Jesus angry about what he saw? I think he could have been, but it does not say so. I know scholars have argued if this is the same event as the cleansing after the triumphant entry. I believe this was the first time Jesus went to Passover after the Holy Spirit came down on him. I believe the sense of offense was greater than previous visits to the temple. This passage does NOT give us permission to be full of rage, even "righteous rage". This was about the physical temple of God. That building does not exist today. Blowing up abortion clinics because Jesus cleaned the temple cannot be justified. Blowing up at a person who dares question our belief in Jesus cannot be justified. Anger happens. You can choose what causes anger and you can choose what to do with the anger. Do not let Satan use either side of your anger.

Was Jesus angry?

Mark 11:11-19

11 And he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple. And when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve. ...
[the next morning] 15 And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. 16 And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple. 17 And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.” 18 And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching. 19 And when evening came they went out of the city.

Matt. 21:11-13

12 And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. 13 He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers.”

Luke 19:45-46

45 And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold, 46 saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.”

• What evidence is there in these passages that Jesus was angry when he cleared the temple?
• How many times had Jesus been to the temple prior to this?
  
• Why was it too late in the Mark passage?
• If Jesus was angry at what he saw in the Mark passage, did he sin by letting the sun go down (Eph 4:26)?
• If Jesus' actions in the temple were expressions of anger, was it a fit of anger/rage?
• What does Mark say Jesus was doing while he was physically disrupting things?
  
• Why do we want this to be an angry moment for Jesus?

Harold's Musings:
As humans we seem to want Jesus to be angry, throwing things a round, and yelling fury. These three passages do not state Jesus was angry. They indicate a person with a job to do. Drill sergeants yell at their trainees but most are not really angry; they are doing a job. Did Jesus as the son of God have a right to be angry at what he saw? Absolutely. But how many times had he seen this and done nothing? (The other temple cleansing tomorrow.) If this were an annual event, why were the people astonished? In the three or so years that Jesus was teaching, there were many opportunities for Jesus to be angry with the religious leaders of the day. Only once does God's Word state Jesus became angry, and this event is not it. (Day after tomorrow) I do not believe that we can truthfully use these three passages to excuse our angry actions.