15So they came to Jerusalem. Then Jesus went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves. 16And He would not allow anyone to carry wares through the temple. 17Then He taught, saying to them, "Is it not written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations'? But you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"
18And the scribes and chief priests heard it and sought how they might destroy Him; for they feared Him, because all the people were astonished at His teaching. 19When evening had come, He went out of the city.
Just the day before, Jesus made the triumphant entry into Jerusalem. It said he looked around the temple but as the hour was late, he left again. What did he see when he was there? I had read somewhere that what was sold in the temple were animals that were supposedly pure for the sacrifices that people were to make to God. Their pureness was so emphasized, that people were unable to bring their own animals. It was a great money making scheme for the chief priests and scribes. I could understand that Jesus would be so disgusted with seeing this in God's house that he would react and drive out all this corruptness. But why did he wait till the next day?
Up until now, we see Jesus as very mild mannered. We are to follow Jesus' example. Yes it is OK to show righteous indignation at times, but I think Jesus needed to step back and pray about it before deciding what course of action to take. I think seeing this temple, followed by the fig tree, really hit home to what happens when something does not bear the expected fruit. Jesus would not allow that to happen to God's house. Upon His return to the temple, He knew what he must do.
I have heard the question asked before if it is OK to do fund raisers and other sales at church, for example, fundraisers for youth trips or selling things to raise money for various charity organizations. This verse of the bible is always cited as an example of why it is or is not OK to make these sales at church. The biggest difference is the cause of the sales. The sales made in this verse are for things that were purported to be required for someone to worship appropriately. People were obligated to make these purchases if they wanted to worship. Plus the things were sold for personal monetary gain for the salesperson. This is obviously wrong. So then is it OK to sell things for good causes without any obligation, when it is all not for profit? My answer to this would have been yes -- until I read the one line where it says "He would not allow anyone to carry wares through the temple." The footnotes of my Bible say this is referring to people who walked through the temple as a shortcut to get to the Mount of Olives. No, using the temple as a shortcut when carrying wares is not the same as using the church narthex as a convenient place to sell something for a fundraiser (or is it?). But I think Jesus is emphasizing the point that the temple was to be used for prayer and nothing else.
So does that mean I should overturn the sales tables in our church? No, I think I need to follow Jesus' example and step back and pray about it. I think to answer this question about whether sales in our church should be allowed needs examination of more than just this single verse. Based on that verse by itself, I think the answer would have to be no, no sales should be permitted. But if you look beyond this verse, at the example of the fig tree, another good question to ask is: are these sales bearing fruit? And when I see the spiritual growth in our children as they participate in youth trips, and I see food provided for the hungry, and houses build for the poor, and missionary groups provide for a flock, all with the help of the fundraisers of our church, and the multitude of other causes our church does fundraisers for I would have to say the fruit is plentiful.
Jesus caught the attention of the people and the wrath of the chief priests and scribes. All necessary for his path to the cross. Jesus started with a triumphant entry into Jerusalem, leaving most likely in disgust. He returned with righteous indignation, and is leaving again, probably for his own safety. I just did a quick check to see where else Jerusalem was mentioned in the Book of Mark. This was the only trip to Jerusalem mentioned, though there were several references to people, chief priests, and scribes coming to Jesus from Jerusalem. It was also where Jesus said they were headed, where He would be betrayed, and condemned to death. Jerusalem sounds like a very difficult town. Following the path where God leads us is not always easy.