Author: David Worcester

Lead Pastor of Compass Church http://CompassChurchSD.com #Jesus, #Family #ChurchPlanting #CollegeMinistry. #Missions http://GospelAppointments.com @collegiatecoll

You Might Be Saved If… (Sheep Vs Goats) – Matthew 25:31-46

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Reflection from my reading in Matthew 25:31-46 in the One Year Bible New Testament.

When Jesus comes back in his glory, he will gather all nations to himself into two categories: sheep and goats (saved and unsaved.)

You Might Be A Sheep If…

” For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,  I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’” Matthew 25:35–36

Followers of Jesus feed the hungry, quench the thirsty, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, visit the sick and the prisoners. These good deeds do not earn our salvation; they prove that we are saved. It is amazing who Jesus says we do all these things for…

Feeding Jesus

‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.” Matthew 25:40

The King told his true followers that when they served the less fortunate they were serving Him! The amazing truth is that when we care about the people Jesus cares about, we are serving Jesus himself!

Don’t Be A Goat

“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,” Matthew 25:41–42

False believers will receive the same punishment as those who admit that they do not believe in Christ. Those who have been transformed by Jesus will serve others, not to earn their salvation but as a proof of it. False believers may say they believe the right things but if there is not proof in their actions then they are showing that they are not really saved.  There are only two ultimate destinations…

“And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” Matthew 25:46

If Jesus came back today are you 100% sure that you are in the sheep category?

If you are sure, then start acting like a sheep and start caring for people!

If you are not sure, repent of your sin now, receive Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross as the forgiveness of your sins as a gift, and commit your whole life to following him!

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3 Ways To Waste Your Life – Matthew 25:1-30

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Reflection from my reading in Matthew 25:1-30 in the One Year Bible New Testament.

Summary of the Parable

Here’s my summary of a powerful parable of how to make the most of your life that Jesus told.

A man went on a long trip and entrusted his money to three of his servants. One he gave five bags of silver, one two bags, and one one bag. He divided it up based on their abilities and then left.

The one who got five bags earned five more. The one with two bags earned two more. The one with only one bag dug a hole and hid the money!

When the master returned he pulled a Jerry McGuire and asked them, “SHOW ME THE MONEY”! From the master’s exchange with the servant who hid his money we learn some lessons on…

3 Ways To Waste Your Life

1. Let Fear Dictate Your Actions

“He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.” Matthew 25:24–25

Fear paralyzes us and keeps us from faithfully using what God gives us. Fear is like a imaginary cage that we make for ourselves. Satan loves to use fear to stop us from using what God has given us. Fear also leads us to do the second thing on the list…

2. Don’t Take Risks

“so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.” Matthew 25:25

His fear led him to do the safest thing he could think of, hide the money in the ground. If you let fear keep you from taking risks in life you will never faithfully use what God has given you to it’s full potential.

As the greatest hockey player of all time  Wayne Gretzky said, “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” Most things worth doing take risk; asking a girl out or to marry you takes risk, sharing the gospel takes risk, applying for a job takes risk.

If you are not taking any risks then you are not living to your full potential in life. 

3. Be Lazy

“But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed?” Matthew 25:26

The master rebuked the servant for being lazy. Another result of fear is laziness. Once you become comfortable not taking risks laziness naturally follows. The Bible is very serious on the issue of laziness. Actually in Proverbs it says,

“Whoever is slack in his work is a brother to him who destroys.”  Proverbs 18:9

The sluggard says, “There is a lion outside! I shall be killed in the streets!” Proverbs 22:13

From these two verses we see that fear leads to laziness and that laziness is taken very seriously. Being lazy leads us to waste our lives. If you want to make the most of what God has given you it will take risk and hard work. So get off the coach and start using what God has given you for his glory! 

Well Done Good And Faithful Servant

The Master’s response to the first two servants who were faithful with their money was much different.

“His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.” Matthew 25:21 & 23

This is what every follower of Jesus longs to hear at the end of our lives. Notice he rewarded the one he gave two bags with the same praise as the one he gave five bags. Our reward is based on what we did with what we were given, not how much we were given.

The poorest janitor who faithfully serves Christ will receive the same reward as an equally faithful famous preacher like Billy Graham! 

The key is being faithful with what you have been given. Not just monetarily but being faithful with all of your opportunities, talents, connections, and everything God has entrusted you.

Life is a test.

Those who prove faithful will be rewarded.

Those who waste their lives will look back in regret, wishing for another chance.

Which of the “3 Ways To Waste Your Life” are you most tempted with?

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Are You Ready For Christ’s Return? – Matthew 24:29-51

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Reflection from my reading in Matthew 24:29-51 in the One Year Bible New Testament.

Jesus gives us a strong warning to live for Him now so that we can be ready when Jesus returns. Here’s some things Jesus said,

No One Knows (Besides God)

“But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.” Matthew 24:36

Jesus warns us that no one knows the day of Christ’s return accept God the Father himself. Now that Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father I think it is safe to say he now knows even though he didn’t while he was on earth.

Anytime someone declares Jesus will come back on Feb 8th,  they are wrong because no one knows. And even if Jesus happened to come back that day it wouldn’t be because they predicted it!

We Must Be Ready!

” Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” Matthew 24:44

Being ready means to be prepared for Jesus’ coming because we never know when he will come back. Because of this, we must be careful that we are following him closely.

Everyone knows the feeling of your parents catching you doing something wrong. I personally don’t want this to happen when Jesus comes back. I want to be found serving him with everything I am when he returns.

Reward for Being Ready

“Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes.  Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions.” Matthew 24:46–47

Those of us who are faithfully following Christ upon his return will be rewarded in Heaven. Faithfulness now will give us more opportunities in heaven.  

Punishment For Evil 

“But if that wicked servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed,’ and begins to beat his fellow servants and eats and drinks with drunkards, the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know and will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Matthew 24:48–51

NOTE: This warning does not apply to true believers who have trusted Jesus and have been saved.

This warning is for those who claim to be followers of Jesus but really are hypocrites and haven’t received saving faith. Those people will be found guilty and sent to hell where there is “weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

The only way to avoid this is by repenting of your sins and trusting Jesus to forgive you and give you eternal life.

 Are you ready of Christ’s return? 

If you have never given committed your life to Jesus and received eternal life, please don’t wait another day because you never know when he will come back!

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Something More Epic Than the Olympics – Matthew 24:1-28

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Reflection from my reading in Matthew 24:1-28 in the One Year Bible New Testament.

The Gospel To All Nations

In his warning about the end times, Jesus gives many signs that the end is near and then he predicts something will happen before he returns!

“And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Matthew 24:14

Jesus said that before the end will come, the gospel must be preached to all nations. After saying this, Jesus gave us the command to “make disciples of all nations” Matt 28:18-2o. Jesus won’t return until his followers obey him and preach to all nations!

Unreached People Groups

It is important to know that the original greek word for nations is Ethnos, which means people group, not just political country.

According to the Joshua Project website there are  7,286 unreached people groups! 

We have a lot of work to do to get the gospel to these unreached people groups, that’s why I want to encourage you to play your part in reaching the nations for Jesus!

Play Your Part

God does not call every Christian to literally go to the other side of the world, but I believe that we all can be a part of God’s global purpose.

  • Go – I encourage you, if you can, to go on a short term trip somewhere less reached than your current home. It will open your eyes to the spiritual needs of the world and it will help you see if full-time overseas missions work is for you.
  • Pray – Ask the Lord of the harvest to send workers to the harvest field. Pray specifically for countries and unreached people groups to have missionaries come and that people would respond to the gospel. Use a website or book like Operation World to fuel your prayers.
  • Give – You can give money to your church if they are actively involved in missions. Also, you can sponsor a missionary who is raising support or you can give to a missions organization.
  • Welcome – In America especially we have an opportunity to welcome international students from all over the world. These are not only people who want to learn about American culture but are also often the brightest future leaders of their countries. I believe reaching international students is one of the keys to reaching the world for Jesus!
  • Mobilize – Cast vision for what others can do to go, pray, give, welcome, and mobilize. When you mobilize someone and give them a heart for the nations you are multiplying your impact.

It’s time to stop just talking about missions and start playing your part!

The gospel must be preached to all nations and we are the ones to do it!

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9 Ways To Be Legalistic – Part 2 – Matthew 23:23-39

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Reflection from my reading in Matthew 23:23-39 in the One Year Bible New Testament.

Jesus continues his rant against the legalistic religious leaders.

 7. Major on Minor Issues 

“For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel!” Matthew 23:23–24

Huge problems come when you focus on the minor rules and don’t focus on the most important things.

Jesus said that it is silly to worry about tithing every last piece of mint, dill and cumin when they are not worried about the things that really matter like justice, mercy and faithfulness.

He uses the illustration that they are like people who strain the tiny gnat out of a soup and then swallow a huge camel!

When we major on minor issues we often lose sight of what is really important.

8. Focus On Looking Good Externally

“For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness.” Matthew 23:27

Legalistic people may look beautiful on the outside but they are dead on the inside, and it’s only a matter of time before others start to sniff them out for what they really are.

In vs 25-28,  Jesus really drives this point home that focusing on the outside does not change a dead heart. It’s like putting cloths on a mummy and pretending it is alive.

9. Pretend That You Are Better Than You Are

“For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, saying, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ ” Matthew 23:29–32

Jesus criticized them for erecting elaborate monuments to the prophets that their ancestors killed, for he predicted that they would be a part of killing Jesus and the his followers. He is criticizing the hypocrisy of pretending they are different than those that persecuted the prophets.

In this final section in vs 19-36, Jesus is warning them that they are about to follow in the footsteps of those who have persecuted the prophets.

Great sorrow and judgment is reserved for those who choose the path of legalism. I pray that those of us who are committed to Jesus would avoid it at all costs!

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9 Ways To Be Legalistic – Part 1 – Matthew 23:1-22

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Reflection from my reading in Matthew 23:1-22 in the One Year Bible New Testament.

Jesus didn’t get angry often, but legalism was one of the things that really got him fired up!  The following are six of the nine problems with legalism Jesus lists. Notice I am not sticking directly to the tradition “7 Woes” list, this is not that I don’t believe in this organization but that I want to highlight other points Jesus is making as well.

1. Don’t Practice What You Preach

 “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice.” Matthew 23:2–3

Preaching is one of the most dangerous jobs, because you are accountable to put into practice what you preach. The religious leaders were basically saying with their lives, “Do what I say, not what I do.”

2. Put Unrealistic Man-Made Expectations on People

“They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger.” Matthew 23:4

Extra religious rules weigh people down and burden them unnecessarily. Jesus said his “yoke is easy and burden light.” Who are we to weigh people down with more than Jesus did?

3. Do Everything For Show

“They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long,” Matthew 23:5

Phylacteries are not body parts, but they special leather prayer boxes with verses inside. They did this as an overly literal application of the the instruction in Deuteronomy 6:8 to “bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.”

They made sure these boxes were extra wide so everyone would see how big their devotion to scripture was! Also, their tassels were extra long to show how extra spiritual they were!

Jesus also mentioned in vs 6-12 that they loved sitting in the seats of honor and getting special greetings of “Rabbi” as they walk though the marketplaces. Then, Jesus warned his disciples not to let anyone call you “Rabbi” or “Teacher.” Then he gives the principle,

” The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” Matthew 23:11–12

Humility and service are the keys to greatness, not showing off!

4. Raise the Bar for Entrance into Heaven

“For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in.” Matthew 23:13

Legalism does not like the idea of salvation being a free gift of God. It does not like the concept of being saved by grace through faith. Legalistic people like to add a list of things that you must do in order to be saved. This causes many people not to receive God’s grace because they rightly think they could never earn it so they don’t try!

5. Work Hard To Make More Legalistic People

“For you travel across sea and land to make a single proselyte, and when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a child of hell as yourselves.” Matthew 23:15

Unfortunately, the most legalistic people are often the most devoted, even to go overseas to share. Because of this, many legalistic missionaries have imposed their legalism on the native people, resulting negative perceptions of missionaries worldwide.

When legalistic people do win people to their form of religion, they often don’t win them to Jesus but to a list of rules.

6. Be Very Picky About Unimportant Things

“Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.” Matthew 23:16

I get the picture of two religious leaders arguing about exact wording of what they swear by. It reminds me of a scene on the movie “Dumb and Dumber” when Harry and Lloyd were arguing, “You can’t triple stamp and double stamp!”

From vs 16-22, Jesus criticized the legalists for being so worried about what exactly they “swear to” instead of just keeping their word. He was furious that they were so focused on such petty things.

Jesus continues his rant with three more warnings against legalism that I will share in my next post…

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2 Things That Will Matter On Your Deathbed – Matthew 22:23-46

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Reflection from my reading in Matthew 22:23-46 in the One Year Bible New Testament. 

My First Hospital Visit

A little over a week ago, I made my first hospital visit as a minister. One of our 21 year old students was diagnosed with leukemia, and when I arrived in his hospital room he was declining fast.

In his waning moments, he was surrounded by friends and family whom he loved and who loved him back. He, along with his family, held a strong faith in God, which remains strong even now. My friend passed away when I was in the room.

At that moment there were many tears, but walking away that night I was struck with a sense of clarity. Life is ALL ABOUT LOVE. Nothing else really matters. I was very grateful that I accepted him and loved him for him, and that he made the choice to love God and commit his life to Christ.

Also, I was motivated to live with renewed passion to give my all for the sake of the gospel. Jesus was asked, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” Matthew 22:36 Here’s his response.

1. Do I love God with all my being?

“And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment.” Matthew 22:37–38

Basically, Jesus said that we are to love God with our WHOLE BEING! In Jewish tradition this is known as the “Shema.”  It was a phrase commonly used in Israel. It emphasizes the fact that we must worship God with everything.

  • Heart – In the Bible the heart is the control center of our lives. Proverbs 4:23 warns us to, “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.” In other words, what we let into our hearts trickles down into every area of our lives! If you love God with all of your heart your actions will follow.
  •  Soul – To love God with your soul is to love him in the deepest part of you.
  • Mind – We think most about the things we love most. To love God with your mind means that you think about him constantly.

Loving God is the greatest investment we can make in this short life we get on earth, and that love overflows and gives us love for others!

2. D0 I love my neighbor as myself? 

“And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 22:39–40

It is important that Jesus adds this statement to his answer. It is impossible to truly love God and not love the people he created.

Loving God above all gives us the power to truly love our neighbor as ourselves!

We are all naturally self-centered, and to love someone in the same way you love yourself is much easier to talk about than to do. One of the ways we show our love for God is caring about what he cares about… other people!

Jesus finishes that on these two simple commands you can hang the whole Old Testament. Everything else flows out of loving God first and loving others as yourself.

On your deathbed, how you answer these two questions is what is really going to matter.

 Did I love God with all my being?

Did I love my neighbor as myself? 

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How to Answer Controversial Questions – Matthew 22:1-22

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Reflection from my reading in Matthew 22:1-22 in the One Year Bible New Testament.

It’s A Trap

The religious leaders were desperately trying to find a way to trap Jesus in his words. If you ever watch an interview of a pastor on TV then you know it inevitably becomes “stump the pastor” as the host throws out the toughest questions they can ask. In the same way, the religious leaders started with some flattery then asked him their tough question.

“And they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are true and teach the way of God truthfully, and you do not care about anyone’s opinion, for you are not swayed by appearances. Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?” Matthew 22:16–17

To Pay or Not To Pay… That is the Question 

The issue of taxes was one of the most controversial issues for the Jews, because they were being forced to pay taxes to a government that was oppressing them. Caesar was a pagan King who did not worship God and promoted many evil practices. In the minds of the Jews, to pay taxes was to contribute to that. It is interesting to note that the religious leaders and the Herodians (supporters of Herod) were teaming up on this question, because the followers of Herod likely supported taxes and the Jews largely did not want to pay taxes. Jesus saw through their trickery.

“But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why put me to the test, you hypocrites? 19 Show me the coin for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. 20 And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” 21 They said, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” 22 When they heard it, they marveled. And they left him and went away.” Matthew 22:18–22

Jesus saw through their trickery and answered shrewdly.

  • With a clear “Yes we should pay,” the jews would have been angry and perhaps he would have had a riot on his hands.
  • With a straight up “No,” his enemies could have reported to the Roman government that he was spreading anti-governement propaganda.

A Wise Answer

Jesus answered the question so wisely and that people were amazed! When he said, “render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s”, he was confirming that the Jews should pay the fair taxes that they owe to the government. But by saying “and to God the things that are God’s”, he is saying that God is the priority. That we should give our whole lives, our money and our hearts to God. This frustrated his enemies because they could not pin him down and make him say something that would get him in trouble. I will conclude with the principle that we can take away from how Jesus responded this controversial question.

His answer was clear enough to answer the heart of the issue, and vague enough not to be polarizing. 

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Why Actions Speak Louder Than Words – Matthew 21:23-46

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Reflection from my reading in Matthew 21:23-46 in the One Year Bible New Testament.

Today is Super Bowl Sunday, and at the end of the day it doesn’t matter what predictions were made, the team that wins will be the Champion. Because actions trump words!

Two Types of People

Jesus tells a powerful story to the religious leaders of the day. Here’s my summary: A man told both of his sons to work in the vineyard. First, the older son said ‘no I won’t go’, but later changed his mind and went. Second, the younger son said, ‘Yes sir, I will’. But he didn’t go. Then Jesus asked them,

“Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes go into the kingdom of God before you.” Matthew 21:31

Prostitutes before Pharisees? 

Jesus told the religious leaders that the least respected people who humble themselves and choose to obey God would get into the Kingdom before the most respected who do not obey God.

“For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him. And even when you saw it, you did not afterward change your minds and believe him.” Matthew 21:32

Though the religious leaders appeared to be following God, they actually refused to repent and respond to John the Baptist’s or Jesus’ teaching. Many of the prostitutes and tax collectors on the other hand changed their minds and believed in Jesus! 

Humble obedience is greater than prideful promises. 

From this passage we can learn that we should be careful that we are ACTUALLY responding to what God is commanding us instead of mearly talking about what we are going to do.

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What Made Jesus Angry? – Matthew 21:1-22

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Reflection from my reading in Matthew 21:1-22 in the One Year Bible New Testament.

Like A $5 Soda

Have you ever been in an amusement park and really craved a soda only to see that the price was $5? The owners know they can jack up the price because you came all that way to the park and you have no other option.

Most likely, this is what the money changers and pigeon sellers were doing in the “court of the Gentiles.” They were  taking advantage of the non-Jewish people who had traveled far to just get to the temple. What probably started as a convenient idea turned into a huge distraction and opportunity for corruption.

Probably, the money changers would give the traveler a terrible exchange rate for their foreign money and then the bird salesmen charged an arm and a leg for the sacrificial pigeons. If that wasn’t bad enough, the pigeons were the sacrifice that the poor were permitted to bring if they could not afford a lamb! (See Leviticus 1:14) In other words, they were preying on the poor!

The very place designed to welcome the outsider was taking advantage of them.

Jesus Threw Down… (Tables)

“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.” Matthew 21:12

Jesus got mad because these people were making it hard for people to worship and pray. Jesus then explained the reason for his anger.

He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers.” Matthew 21:13

Prayer was the purpose of this part of the temple, not profit. Jesus was angry because instead of being a place of connection with God, this area had become a place of corruption.

From this story we learn…

Righteous anger is not a sin.

Jesus loved the outsiders enough to risk upsetting the religious of the day.

God’s temple was meant for connection with Him.

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