March 15, 2009: 3rd Sunday of Lent

Exodus 20.1-17; 1 Corinthians 1.22-25; John 2.13-25

Oxen, sheep and doves were for sale in the Temple precincts because animal sacrifice was performed there.  money changers were present because the law prohibited currency that bore the image of the emperor to be used within the Temple.  this begs the question: "What was the cause of Jesus' rampage?" the answer goes to the very heart of the Lord's mission on earth and His identity as the Son of God.

Jesus comes to usher in a New Covenant, complete with a new way of life and a new way of worshipping God.  the sacrifice of animals would be replaced by a new and perfect sacrifice, the sacrifice of the Lord Himself, the Lamb of God.  The temple fashioned by men for the glory of God would be replaced by a new Temple, with the stone rejected by the builders serving as the cornerstone. Jesus' dramatic actions at the Temple in Jerusalem serves as His boldest public declaration thus far of the truth that would later be uttered at Calvary by the Roman Soldier, "Truly, this man was the Son of God."

Reflections by Fr. Daniel Mahan, and is taken from Bible Diary 2009, Claretian Publications.