House of ________
6 min read
15 On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, 16 and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. 17 And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’”
—Mark 11:15-17
The outer area of the temples courts was called the “court of the Gentiles.” It was the area of the temple designated for God-fearing Gentiles from all nations to come and pray and worship. But apparently, it had become a marketplace to provide goods and services to support the needs of the pilgrims who had travelled long distances to attend one of the annual festivals.
And so I was wondering: Have we turned our church into a den of _________ (fill in the blank), when His church is to be called a house of prayer and worship, instead?
Have we become a den of program seekers? A den of Korean culture keepers? A den of social club cliquers? A den of Sunday church checklisters?
I don’t think we have. But I don’t want to be complacent about what God has called us to be, either.
I was sharing with our house church shepherds about how sweet our praise time is on Sundays. I stand in the front, and so I can’t really see many people. But I can hear and feel how the congregation as a whole is really engaged in the singing. I can truly feel that our Lord Jesus is sitting enthroned upon our praises.
However, I feel that I have personally been lacking in leading our congregation to be a house of prayer. And this has been a struggle and challenge of mine for some time. And so I keep praying to the Lord, “Make us a house of prayer; make us a house of prayer; make us a house of prayer!”
And since I know that this is the will of God for us, I trust that He will make us into a house of prayer.
In my heart, what that looks like is our Canvas family eagerly desiring to gather together to pray, whenever, and enjoying that sweet fellowship with God and with one another in prayer. Not that we don’t enjoy our corporate prayer times, but … do we really eagerly desire to gather together to pray?
And I pray that no one reads this and thinks that I am passively-aggressively trying to manipulate more people to come to our prayer services. I will directly encourage people to come out.
But the truth is (and herein lies the problem, I think), I myself don’t always eagerly desire to gather together to pray. And for that I need to repent daily and pray, “Make me a man of prayer; make me a man of prayer; make me a man of prayer!”
Father, Make me a man of prayer, and make us a house of prayer! You have been faithful in all of our prayers. And yet I still get caught up and trapped in the “performance” of praying. Even if we pray in groans, let us pray in faith, knowing that the Holy Spirit is interceding for us, and that our Lord is interceding for us. In Jesus’s name. Amen.
