JESUS AND SCRIPTURE
MATTHEW 21:12-1
MATTHEW 21:12-17 NKJ
12 Then Jesus went into the temple of God and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves. 13 And He said to them, "It is written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer,' but you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"
14 Then the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple and saying, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" they were indignant 16 and said to Him, "Do You hear what these are saying?"
And Jesus said to them, "Yes. Have you never read,
'Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants
You have perfected praise'?"
17 Then He left them and went out of the city to Bethany, and He lodged there.
OBSERVATION:
When we read the book of Matthew, what stands out is how often Old Testament scripture is used.
Matthew wrote his gospel with a distinct Jewish flavor. His perspective frequently went to the Old Testament prophets to validate what God was doing through Jesus.
On the other hand, Luke wrote with an eye for the Gentiles and so does not quote the Old Testament near as frequently.
One important thing we see in Matthew's gospel is how often Jesus referenced scripture. He gave scripture when He cleaned out the temple from the money changers and vendors. He was obviously angry. These people were taking advantage of worshipers and had established a lucrative racket. Then Jesus quoted from scripture about God's house being a house of prayer.
Jesus could have relied on being God's Son. He could have said, "Hey, I am the Son of God, and this is wrong. But He quoted the scripture as a basis for what He had done.
Then Jesus answered the indignant priests and scribes when they tried to correct Him regarding the praises of the children. "Have you never read ..."
Even though Jesus was the most genuine, credible man who ever lived. He still went to the scriptures to give clarity and validation to His actions.
APPLICATION:
Whenever we see Jesus doing something repeatedly, we should pay closer attention.
In this 21st chapter, we see four occasions where Jesus based His actions and answers on what was written, on scripture.
So, if Jesus relied on scripture as the sinless Son of God, how much more should we, as God's children?
It may not be necessary to quote a scripture, especially to those who are unaware of the Bible. But having a scriptural basis for our actions and answers is a lofty goal. But it is a goal worth going after.
We want more 'it is writtens' in our lives.
PRAYER:
Dear Father, help me see more of the strength and power that is in Your word. I want to be more like Jesus.