A life of prayer

When Jesus entered the temple courts, he began to drive out those who were selling. “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be a house of prayer’; but you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’” Every day he was teaching at the temple. But the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the leaders among the people were trying to kill him. Yet they could not find any way to do it, because all the people hung on his words. Luke 19:45-48

From the text, Jesus was rebuking the so-called church leaders in his time with these searing words: “My house wlll be a house of prayer. But you have made it a den of robbers.” When the Lord Jesus Christ entered the city of Jerusalem and went to the temple, He was expecting that people are engaging in praise and worship. What He discovered was the religious leaders using the objects of sacrifice as a means to increase their wealth. This was what the Pharisees and the Sadducees were doing instead of prompting the people to pray and offer worship to God. What is true for individuals should also be true for fellowships and churches. During the time of Jesus, in the Temple animals were still being sacrificed, people were still giving their offering, and religious leaders were still doing their work. But something happened that over a period of time, individual believers stopped to be a praying people. This attitude affected their perspective regarding the house of worship. When people start to neglect their own prayer life, such attitude could spill to the house of God because of the cumulative effect of prayerlessness in the life of individual believer. There’s a ripple effect for our individual lives are not isolated. Our actions could affect in the long haul our family, our congregation, and our community. Powerful testimony comes from spiritual communities that are composed of praying people. God expects His people to devote time in prayer. When Jesus came to the temple and removed those who were conducting business, He established His authority reclaiming His proper place in the lives of those who claim they want to offer a life of prayer and worship.

Blessings,

Noel De Guzman

www.my-wbc.com