Don’t use what God has given just for your own benefit.
Matthew 21:12-17
12 Jesus entered the Temple and began to drive out the merchants and their customers. He knocked over the tables of the money changers and the stalls of those selling doves. 13 He said, “The Scriptures declare, ‘My Temple will be called a place of prayer,’ but you have turned it into a den of thieves!” 14 The blind and the lame came to him, and he healed them there in the Temple. 15 The leading priests and the teachers of religious law saw these wonderful miracles and heard even the little children in the Temple shouting, “Praise God for the Son of David.” But they were indignant 16 and asked Jesus, “Do you hear what these children are saying?” “Yes,” Jesus replied. “Haven’t you ever read the Scriptures? For they say, ‘You have taught children and infants to give you praise.’” 17 Then he returned to Bethany, where he stayed overnight.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.) 1996.
People came from all over the world to make sacrifices for their sin at the Temple in Jerusalem. Some came from very long distances. Travel was difficult and they could not always bring animals for the sacrifice with them, so they had to purchase them when they got to Jerusalem. The Jews and the Gentiles saw an opportunity to take advantage of these people by selling the animals at an inflated price. When Jesus entered the Temple, He came into the Court of the Gentiles. This is where the money changers were and they were Gentiles. People wanting to purchase an animal had to have the correct currency and this is where the money changers also took advantage of them. These money changers cheated ignorant people by not giving them a fair exchange. The Temple and God’s system for forgiveness had been turned into a money making opportunity for Jews and Gentiles alike. This is why Christ became so angry and why He came in and turned over all of their tables to stop this sinful practice. People had made God’s grace into a profit making sinful situation. God does not take people using His system for making money and will judge all those who do so very harshly. We are still seeing this today, when so called preachers use religion for financial gain. And Christians do it when they do not grow in Christ and use it to only save themselves. There are those who accept His offer of grace and are saved, but never do anything with it. They never grow to become more like Him and never do His work. Don’t use what God has given just for your own benefit, He never intended for you to keep what He gave you. Use it for His purpose and for His glory. Tell others about what He has done for you and seek to live His will. Do not become complacent in your salvation. It is a tremendous gift and was given at a tremendous cost. He saved you for a purpose and that is to tell others of His love.
Have a God Day!
