40 DAYS in the GOSPEL Sample

TEAM JESUS

In the history of American football, there have been times when a player becomes disoriented and runs the ball down the field into the end zone of his own team. According to the rules, this results in points for the opposition and brings what must be intense embarrassment to the player who ran it in. It's important in sports to remember which team you're on. And in life, it's even more vital.

A big part of Jesus' interactions with the religious leaders of His day was trying to show them that they had forgotten what team they were on and how as a consequence, they were scoring points for the wrong team. In our passage, the Pharisees are angry and questioning Jesus’ right to move the temple of God back towards being a house of prayer for the nations as the Father had intended. They are upset because the drift into the temple working for the wrong team had happened on their watch. When Jesus corrected it, He was correcting them.

When He is confronted, Jesus asks them about John the Baptist who had also come to call God’s people back to the heart of God instead of the worldly agenda of the Pharisees. It's a master move because they know they will have to show the crowd that they are on their own team if they answer Jesus honestly. So they try to just avoid the question. Jesus is doing everything He can do to show these guys that they are playing for the wrong side. He doesn’t answer their question either because, after all, they are just not on the same team.

What do you think about Jesus? Does He have the authority to do and say the things that the Bible says He did? Does He have the authority to turn over tables of idolatry in your heart? This is the question that the gospel is asking the world, and our answer is of eternal importance. Many are showing by their answer that they are not on God’s team and others are just trying to avoid the question. For those of us who follow Jesus Christ, there is encouragement and power in the Spirit when we answer yes—yes to Jesus, the gospel, and the priorities of almighty God.

PRAY ABOUT IT: In your times of prayer, refer to the prayer Jesus taught His disciples (Matthew 6:9-13). This prayer is a list of priorities for God’s team, and when we get it into our hearts and minds, it keeps our prayers aligned with the Kingdom of Heaven.