The sermon text is below the sermon video…

 

Sermon preached at St. Stephen’s, Goldsboro, NC ; Sunday March 7 2021
The Reverend Alan Neale, “I got ZEAL!”

As the service was continuing, the minister was becoming more and more anxious. Somewhere, out there in the congregation, there was someone who kept murmuring “Praise the Lord, Praise God”. As the interruptions became louder and more vigorous, so the minister was becoming more anxious. Approaching his sermon, he beckoned the usher to come near. “Please… ask that person to be quiet.” The usher nodded and approached “that person”. When told to be quiet, “that person” responded, “But… but I’ve got religion.” To which the usher calmly replied, “I don’t care what you got, you didn’t get it here!”

I imagine that Pharisees and tradesmen, worshippers and visitors, were astounded at the enthusiasm and zeal that Jesus exhibited as he cleansed the Temple area and restored it to its proper use… the worship of His Father.

Now this temple-cleansing story occurs in all four Gospels (and that is always significant). John, as is his wont, differs from the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) and places the episode at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry and emphasizes the calumny of trading rather than the sin of robbery. I rather like the proposition that this occurred twice (beginning and end of ministry) and the whole episode escalated by the time Jesus returned and found nothing had changed… in fact, everything had worsened.

We see, in this story, Expectations that are Dashed, Expulsion that is Vigorous and Energy that is Zealous!

Expectations that are Dashed. With 300-400,000 other pilgrims, Jesus was making his way to the Temple for Passover; as he drew near so he doubtless was entertaining expectations of spirited and inspired worship, worship done (as Anglicans would have it) “decently and in order” (if it’s really possible to sacrifice hundreds of animals “decently and in order”?!); expectations of worship that would renew spirit and deepen faith. I wonder what your expectations were as you came to worship this morning (either in person or virtually online)? I can tell you, as a minister, that there is a chasm of difference in leading the worship of a church composed of those expecting much or expecting little from God. The expectations of Jesus were dashed, dashed to the ground, dashed to pieces, dashed to fragments, dashed to shards. John tells us, verse 14, that Jesus “found” the Temple populated with traders; I was interested to learn that the word “found” (euren) generally means to discover something unpleasant, unfavourable, unwanted… and here is not exception.

Expulsion that is Vigorous. There are no half-measures in this “cleansing of the temple”. He creates a scourge, a lash of cords and these are strong cords – strong enough that in Acts Luke tells us they secure lifeboats and shipping (Acts 27). And Jesus drives them out, and the word suggests a powerful ejection, a word used to describe dynamic exorcism and even the expulsion of Jesus into the desert place by the Spirit! Not wanting the money changers to feel unnoticed Jesus strides towards them and pours out the coins; just as the angels in Revelation poured out the bowls of punishment so does Jesus pour out the coins.
As I was thinking about this vigorous expulsion so I considered the Psalms that describe the energy, the determination with which evil and sin, fear and doubt are expelled. We see it happening in Jesus here; do we see it happening in our lives… individuals, churches, state and nation?

Energy that is Zealous. You remember the opening story of this sermon? “I got religion”! Well, “Jesus got zeal”. And the word is a story in itself…zḗlos (an onomatopoeic term that mimics the sound of water bubbling over from heat, derived from zéō, “to boil”) – a burning emotion (inner feeling boiling over, “boiling from heat,” says the scholar J. Thayer); something very fervent (“red-hot”) as with Spirit-fueled zeal to serve the Lord.

The root (zē-, “zeal”) literally means “hot enough to boil” – used of “burning anger, love, zeal”, for what is good or bad”. Friends, we see too much zeal hot enough to burn for what is bad; how about more, much, more of zeal hot enough to burn for what is good?

In our Christian walk, often we lose the zeal of former days. Thus the Lord chides His people, “I remember the devotion of your youth, your love as a bride, how you followed me in the wilderness, in land not sown” (Jeremiah 2:2). And thus the Lord reproaches the Ephesian church, “I have this against you… that you have abandoned the love you had at first; repent, and do the works you did at first” (Revelation 2:4).

And when you, when I ask, “when is a good time to renew our walk with the Lord”, St. Paul answers (2 Corinthians 6) “Well, now is the right time to listen, the day to be helped. Don’t put it off; don’t frustrate God’s work by showing up late… Dear, dear Corinthians, I can’t tell you how much I long for you to enter this wide-open, spacious life. We didn’t fence you in. The smallness you feel comes from within you. Your lives aren’t small, but you’re living them in a small way. I’m speaking as plainly as I can and with great affection. Open up your lives. Live openly and expansively!”

“Half measures availed us nothing. We stood at the turning point and asked His protection with complete abandon” – AA, Bill Wilson

I began ordained ministry (served my title as they say in the good old CofE) in Plymouth, England. One of my responsibilities was to pastor the youth group, called engagingly “The Fish Shop”. The Lord blessed that ministry in many ways. One day I was approached by two parents who said, “We are so happy that Jonnie is going to church now but… we do wish he didn’t take it so seriously!)”.

Jesus took it seriously… it led to Expectations that were dashed, to Expulsion that was Vigorous and to Energy that was Zealous; it led to death on a Cross and Resurrection from a grave.… and it led to Resurrection. What about us?

Oh, and know this God loves us with a zeal; and he loves not because we are of worth… we are of worth because he loves us… loves us with a zeal.
Thanks be to God. AMEN