Hearing God’s Voice from His Word
James 4:8 says, “Come near to God and he will come near to you.”
Take a moment and turn your attention to God. Tell God that you desire to trust and obey Him. Ask God to speak to you from His word.
Psalm of the Day
Psalm 139:1-2 Lord, you have searched me and known me. 2 You know when I sit down and when I stand up; you understand my thoughts from far away.
Read the entire Psalm
Praise God that He knows you. He wants to know you. He delights in knowing you. He knows your thoughts. He knows where you are always. He is present with you today.
John 2:13-25 – Christian Standard Bible
Cleansing the Temple
13 The Jewish Passover was near, and so Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 In the temple he found people selling oxen, sheep, and doves, and he also found the money changers sitting there. 15 After making a whip out of cords, he drove everyone out of the temple with their sheep and oxen. He also poured out the money changers’ coins and overturned the tables. 16 He told those who were selling doves, “Get these things out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a marketplace!”
17 And his disciples remembered that it is written: Zeal for your house will consume me.
18 So the Jews replied to him, “What sign will you show us for doing these things?”
19 Jesus answered, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it up in three days.”
20 Therefore the Jews said, “This temple took forty-six years to build, and will you raise it up in three days?”
21 But he was speaking about the temple of his body. 22 So when he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the Scripture and the statement Jesus had made.
23 While he was in Jerusalem during the Passover Festival, many believed in his name when they saw the signs he was doing. 24 Jesus, however, would not entrust himself to them, since he knew them all 25 and because he did not need anyone to testify about man; for he himself knew what was in man.
Having God’s Ear through Prayer
- Express thanksgiving to God.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal sin to you.
- Confess your sin to Him and receive forgiveness.
(1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sin He is faithful and just and will forgive our sins.”) - Bring your personal requests to God.
(Psalm 62:8 “Pour out your heart before God”) - Pray for someone in your small group.
- Pray for those in our church who are sick. Ask God to heal them and give them strength.
Living as God’s People by applying the Bible
Scripture Reflection from the Sermon
And his disciples remembered that it is written, “Zeal for your house will consume me.”
John 2:17
Then they went out from the presence of the Sanhedrin, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to be treated shamefully on behalf of the Name., Every day in the temple, and in various homes, they continued teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah.
Acts 5
You have been consumed by a zeal, but for who or for what? Perhaps you disagree; maybe you feel that you are without “zeal” or passion. Perhaps that is how you feel, but that is not how you have lived. You have spent your days living out of a kind of zeal…a commitment. Even if you have been passive, your life choices have revealed your true passion. After they had encountered the resurrected Christ, the disciples lived like their master did. They became consumed with a zeal for the glory of God. They were willing to sacrifice everything and to be treated any way for the Name of Jesus. It is not just for the Lord Jesus that it’s to be said that “zeal for your house will consume me.” It ought to be true for us as well. Oh God, help us be consumed with zeal for your honor. Please.