BUYING AND SELLING IN CHURCH

Matthew, Mark and Luke record one instance of Jesus clearing out the temple. Then John Chapter 2 records a different instance where Jesus clears out the temple. This is something that he did twice and the thing about that is when something is recorded in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, it must be pretty important to get that kind of emphasis where all four gospels deal with it.

Matthew 21:11-13. And the multitude said, "This is Jesus, the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee. Jesus went into the Temple of God and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple and overthrew the tables of the money changers, and the seats of them that sold doves, and said to them, It is written my House shall be called the House of Prayer, but ye have made it a den of thieves."

Mark 11, Verse 15, 16 & 17, "And they come to Jerusalem and Jesus went into the temple and began to cast out them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves and would not suffer that any man should carry any vessel through the temple. Is it not written my house shall be called, of all nations, the house of prayer, but ye have made it a den of thieves and the scribes and chief priests heard it, and sought how they might destroy him, for they feared him because all the people was astonished at his doctrine."

Look at Luke Chapter 19, Verse 45, "And he went into the temple and began to cast out them that sold therein and them that bought saying unto them, 'It is written my house is the house of prayer, but ye have made it a den of thieves.' He taught daily in the temple, but the chief priests and the scribes and the chief of the people sought to destroy him, and could not find what they might do for all the people were very attentive to hear him."

Notice the pattern over and over again. The Bible is telling us who's getting thrown out. Those who sold and those who bought. This was in the Temple of the Lord. This is in God's house at that time, but the Bible teaches that the Church is now God's house. 

It sounds like he's being pretty strict when he says you can't even carry that vessel through the temple, let alone buy or sell there.

1 Timothy 3:15 that "Thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the Church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth."

This teaching made people upset whenever it's recorded in Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. Sometimes I think we read over this without picturing the intensity of a scene where Jesus literally walks in and flips over tables. Stuff is flying everywhere, merchandise is crashing and flying. It says he dumped out their money. He's dumping the money on the ground, flipping things over. Think about the boldness that it would take to do that, and think about how angry you'd have to be to start flipping the tables over. 

Nothing wrong with buying or selling in a store, but church is not a store. You don't buy and sell things there. It doesn't matter. It seems like it mattered a lot to Jesus.

A lot of people, in order to justify the sinful practice of buying and selling at church will try to twist this story and say, because he said they made it a den of thieves, the sin there was that they were not dealing honestly. The Bible doesn't mention anything about them dealing dishonestly or about the money changers charging too exorbitant of an exchange rate. That's what I've heard my whole life about this passage. My whole life, I never heard anybody teach this passage properly when I was growing up. Why? Because they're all selling things. The church is selling things, so they find some other way. 

He cast out those that sold and bought. If it was a problem with the exchange rate, then why would the buyer be in sin? If the people that were selling stuff were ripping people off, why is the buyer being condemned in all four passages? I'll tell you why he said you made it a den of thieves, because when you're using God's house for your financial gain, you've made it a den of thieves.

It's a den of thieves when we take God's house. People didn't come to buy your merchandise. They came to worship the Lord. They came to hear God's word preached. They didn't come to buy stuff and sell stuff, but then you're stepping in as a merchandiser and stealing God's customers, basically, and coming in and taking people that didn't come to hear that, and you're stealing God's glory and He should have the preeminence, and we shouldn't be selling and buying. There's a time and a place for everything. Nothing wrong with buying, nothing wrong with selling, but there's something wrong when you're doing it at God's house.

Another twisted interpretation that some people will have of this story is they'll say it's okay to buy and sell at church as long as you're buying and selling that which is spiritual. Don't come to church selling Tupperware and Mary Kay, but as long as you're selling something spiritual, like let's say you're selling Bibles or selling Christian CDs, preaching CDs, then they say that's okay, because you're selling that which is spiritual. 

The reason we know that's a lie is because in this story, they were selling that which was spiritual. What does it say they were selling? Doves. What was the purpose of selling doves? Because doves were major sacrifice items. He commanded people to take their tithes and if the way was too far, instead of bringing their tithe in the form of animals or crops, bringing the tenth unto the Lord, He said turn it into money, bring the money, and then buy the offerings when you get there.

God even said come to Jerusalem and buy offerings. It was spiritual thing that was being sold, but you know what the problem was? They weren't supposed to be buying and selling in God's house. God's house was supposed to be a house of prayer. It was not supposed to be a merchandising zone. The doves were a spiritual item that were being sold.

Look at John Chapter 2, Verse 13, "And the Jew's Passover was at hand and Jesus went up to Jerusalem and found in the temple those that sold oxen, and sheep, and doves, and the changers of money sitting."

These three items are all used in the worship of the Lord. All three of them, and the changes of money sitting. You say why do they need a money changer? Because people are coming from all different nations and when they show up, they have all kinds of currency, so they have to exchange their money into the local currency.

What's the big deal, Jesus? What's wrong with people coming and exchanging their money? What's wrong with buying sacrifices? That's what you told us to do. Because God's house is not the place for it! You go to a business, you go to a merchant, and you buy oxen, sheep, and doves, but you don't buy them in church. You don't buy them in God's house.

He said unto them that sold doves, "Take these things hence." What does hence mean? From here. He's not saying you're doing wrong by selling doves. You need to stop ripping people off on that exchange rate! No, he says take it out of here. Take these things hence. Make not my Father's house a house of merchandise, and his disciples remembered that it was written, the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.

Source: Faithful Word Baptist Church Website