A House for Prayer

Jesus went to Jerusalem for the Passover. He entered the temple, the place where people came to worship God.

But part of the courtyard had become a noisy market. Animals were being sold, and money changers were working at their tables.

Coins clinked on the tables.

The noise and buying made it difficult to pray. Jesus saw that his Father's house was being treated like a place for business.

He firmly told the sellers to take their things away (Take these things away, and do not make my Father's house a marketplace). He overturned the money changers' tables and sent the animals out.

Jesus did not seek money or power for himself. He wanted people to have room to come to God.

The leaders asked what gave him the right to act this way (What sign can you show us, since you are doing these things?). Jesus spoke about the temple of his own body (Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up), though they did not understand him then.

His friends would understand those words after he rose from the dead.

A place for prayer should welcome people who need God. We can help by keeping our voices gentle, listening, and making room for others.

Jesus teaches us that loving God matters more than getting things for ourselves.