Life-Study of Johnpor Witness Lee
ISBN: 0-7363-0957-8
Copia impresa: Living Stream Ministry disponible en línea
ISBN: 0-7363-0957-8
Copia impresa: Living Stream Ministry disponible en línea
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It is quite interesting to see that in John chapter two we firstly have the case of changing water into wine (2:1-11) and then, following that, the case of dealing with the temple (2:12-22). We must believe that both of these cases were recorded for the purpose of signifying something beyond the mere account of historical events. Why does the dealing with the temple follow the changing of death into life? It shows that life is for God’s temple. In other words, life is for God’s building. In the incident of the Lord’s changing water into wine, we saw the principle of life, that is, to change death into life. Now, in the case of the dealing with the temple, we see the goal, the purpose of life, that is, to build the house of God.
John 2:12-22 shows two aspects of the Lord’s dealing with the temple—the cleansing aspect and the building aspect. Satan, the enemy of God, is always trying to damage or to frustrate the temple of God. He attempts to defile it with many sinful things. This is the reason that the house of God needs cleansing.
Jesus cleansed the temple at a time when “the Passover of the Jews was near” (2:13). The Passover at that time was a remembrance of God’s salvation (Exo. 12:2-11; Deut. 16:1-3) through which remembrance the Jews worshipped God in their temple. But, when the Lord Jesus went up to Jerusalem, their temple was filled with oxen, sheep, doves, and money-changers. So, the temple needed a cleansing, and the Lord Jesus did it.
The Passover was a prefigure of our remembrance of the Lord (1 Cor. 11:24-25). And we are the temple of God (1 Cor. 3:16). It is very possible that when we come to the Lord’s table to remember Him, we are filled with earthly things. So, we also need a cleansing that we may be the proper temple of God.
Let us read John 2:14-16. “And He found in the temple those selling oxen and sheep and doves, and the money-changers sitting there. And having made a whip of cords, He drove them all, both the sheep and the oxen, out of the temple, and He poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned the tables; and to those who were selling the doves He said, Take these things away; do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise.” The Lord dealt with the house of God by cleansing it with a scourge or a whip made of cords. The King James Version says that the Lord made “a scourge of small cords,” but some versions say that the Lord made a scourge or whip out of rushes, which are inexpensive and ordinary. The Lord made a scourge or whip of ordinary things, of rushes, and used it to cleanse the temple. He drove out the oxen, sheep, doves, and coins. That signified the casting out of all earthly occupations. We are the temple of God, yet we are not filled with God. We are filled with so many things other than God. Although we, as the house of God, should be filled with God, yet the fact is that we are filled with merchandise, money, and tables of the money-changers. Therefore, the Lord must make a whip of cords to drive these things out of us.
Often, the Lord uses the ordinary and common things, such as the rushes, to cleanse us. Sometimes He uses someone common to purge you—such as your wife or husband, your parents or children, your employer or employees. We all have experienced the whip of cords which the Lord has made of common persons or ordinary things to purge us. Sometimes the Lord comes to interfere with our lives by turning things upside down. He comes to cast out the sheep, oxen, and doves, and to overthrow the tables in order to bring confusion into the whole situation. For example, last year you gained a lot of money in business, but this year you lose everything—this is a scourge that the Lord uses to purge you. With every seeking Christian there is always someone or something purging him.
Generally speaking, a wife who is a seeking child of God always longs for her husband to be spiritual and to love the Lord, but it sometimes turns out to be just the opposite. A husband who loves the Lord always looks to the Lord that his wife might be spiritual and love the Lord, but it is sometimes contrary to his desire. Also parents who sincerely seek after the Lord and pray daily for their children sometimes suffer to see their children going astray. The scourge you experience is made by the Lord. If your husband or wife is quite spiritual, the Lord would have no scourge to purge you. If your sons are like Peter and John and your daughter is like Mary, there would be no rushes available for the Lord to make a scourge. If your parents are like Abraham and Sarah, nothing would purge you. On the one hand, you may daily enjoy the Lord as a feast, but, on the other hand, the Lord will send a scourge a number of times to purge you. Many times the Lord will even use the brothers and sisters in the church as a whip of cords to purge away the merchandise and the money-changers that exist within you.
Nota: Esperamos que muchos se beneficien de estas riquezas espirituales. Sin embargo, para evitar cualquier tipo de confusión, les pedimos que ninguno de estos materiales sean descargados o copiados y publicados en otro lugar, sea por medio electrónico o por cualquier otro medio. Living Stream Ministry mantiene todos los derechos de autor en estos materiales, y esperamos que ustedes los que nos visiten respeten esto.