Not Headed For Extinction

The cleansing of the Temple by Jesus is an event described by all the gospel writers.  Matthew, Mark, and Luke place the event at the very end of His ministry on His last trip to Jerusalem.  However, in John's gospel it is found recorded in the early part of the Jesus narrative.   And while there are some differences in the account itself, each one depicts Jesus doing a number on the people who were using the Temple as a place of profit instead of a place of prayer and worship.  What is obvious is that a place set aside to glorify God had become a place driven by the purposes of the men who sought personal benefit within its corridors.

 

The church has always suffered at the hands of men and women who were driven by personal agendas instead of the agenda of God.   A look at the history of the church reveals that the church has always been under attack by folks bent on their own quest for control and power.  But, what is also very clear is that the church has survived.  It has not only survived, but there have been those times when it seems that adversity has strengthened it instead of destroying it.  Like a stream that disappears underground, it always seems to surface with even more power than it possessed when it appeared to lose its place. 

 

Many of us can see evidence of this truth in the denominations we love.  As one of John Wesley's preachers I can look back and see how the Methodist Church has butted heads with culture, changed, and continued with faithfulness.  What God has put here on this earth through the blood of His Son cannot be eradicated by men and women who think their power and control is all that matters.  Its institutional form may change to the point of being unrecognizable, but the essence of the church is a spiritual Kingdom which has been, is, will be, and will never be crushed into extinction by anything or anyone.  The spiritual Kingdom is God created and centered and it will prevail!