Cleanse the Temple, Healing Begins

This morning I am reading from Matthew.

Matthew 21:12-15 NIV
[12] "Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. [13] “It is written,” he said to them, “ ‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’ ” [14] The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them. [15] But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were indignant."

What caught my attention was verse 14, which immediately followed the cleansing of the temple. As soon as Jesus drove out of the temple those that were doing business, and selling and changing money, both ways of making a profit, the healing began. I guess previously I always stopped reading this account as Jesus finished the statement of true purpose of His house, being a house of prayer.

I think this is a sort of precedent - in the focusing of the church on God and relationship with Him, rather than money, profit and the trappings of religion, the way is opened up for the true work of the Lord, namely healing, deliverance, miracles, true praise and worship and prayer where we truly encounter God.

Its also interesting to note how once Jesus cleanses the temple, He starts ministering there. He actually makes His presence known, and people are drawn to Him. Oh, that this would be what draws people to the Church, the in-dwelling presence of Jesus. That when we enter church, we encounter the presence of God and He heals us and delivers us! That the joyful shouting would rise up in our churches because God has visited us, that healing and miracles were breaking out!

Lord, I pray that You would breathe on the Church and cleanse it once again, that we might make room for true worship and relationship with You (prayer). That You would come and fill the Church with Your presence and we would experience Your touch in healings, signs and wonders, miracles, and deliverance.`