Exodus 20:1-17, Ps 19:8, 9, 10, 11,
1 Corinthians 1:22-25,
John 2:13-25 Full Readings
If first Scrutiny take place today, readings of Year A are used Scrutiny Year A Readings
Cleansing the Temple
Brethren, on this third Sunday of Lent, we are presented with Jesus cleansing the Temple. Today, this temple is us and Jesus longs to cleanse us, so that we become the true temples of the Holy Spirit and of the Trinity at large. It must have been difficult for Jesus to enter the temple and see all that was not as his Father intended it to be. Imagine the chaos as Jesus flipped over tables, brandished a whip, and angrily ordered the money changers to leave. People and animals scattered. As the tables turned over, coins rolled to the ground and people climbed over each other to pick them up. The disciples observed the pandemonium, their mouths probably gaping open. What a mess! But a necessary mess—even a holy mess. This mess was brought about by the love which Jesus had for his Father's house, it was a holy mess, holy anger, holy zeal which we should have in attaining the things of God.
Brethren, with the same vigor, Jesus wants to cleanse the areas of our lives that are not as God intended them to be. Lent is a time wisely set aside by the Church for detaching from whatever is holding us back. We can cooperate with God’s grace by proactively examining our actions each day to determine if we are doing anything out of sync with God’s intentions. We take what we find to Jesus, who generously cleanses us through the sacrament of reconciliation. May we approach Jesus with trust and faith, as did the leper who approached Jesus saying, “Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean” (Matthew 8:2). Endeavour to go for cleansing during this lent through the sacrament of reconciliation.
Before cleansing, we must first find the areas which need cleansing. This can be done by examining ourselves based on how we followed and lived the commandments of God as they are presented to us in the first reading. The first three deal with our relationship with God and the last seven deal with our relationship with our neighbours. All these are guided by the love of God and neighbours. And so, we need to examine those areas where the love of God and neighbours has not been manifested and then go for cleansing so that we become again the holy temples of God
When Christ was asked for a sign for what he had done, he told them to break down the Temple and that he would build it in three days, which infuriated the Jews. However, Christ was speaking of his body when he told the crowd that he would restore the temple in three days. As members of his Church, we make up the body of Christ: “Now you are Christ’s body, and individually parts of it” (1 Corinthians 12:27). His temple is his body, which is the Church; each one of us is a temple of the Holy Spirit. St. Paul exhorts us, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been purchased at a price. Therefore, glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). When we allow Jesus to cleanse us of our sins, we are recognizing that while we are individually restored, the larger body of Christ is also cleansed. Indeed, we do not belong to ourselves, but to our Father. We are his temple; may we allow Christ to cleanse us.
Reflect today on how ready you are to let Christ cleanse you no matter how painful, hurting, or even uncomfortable it may be. Let us try to keep our bodies holy as temples of the Holy Spirit and cleanse ourselves through sacrament of penance when we sin.
Let us Pray
Lord, I know that I am a sinner who is in need of Your mercy and, at times, in need of Your holy wrath. Help me to humbly receive Your rebukes of love and to allow You to drive all sin from my life. Have mercy on me, dear Lord. Please have mercy. Amen
Blessed Sunday
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