John 2:13-22 (NRSV)
Read John 2:13-22 on biblegateway.com
Verse 13The Passover of the Jews was near, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Verse 14In the temple he found people selling cattle, sheep, and doves, and the money changers seated at their tables. Verse 15Making a whip of cords, he drove all of them out of the temple, both the sheep and the cattle. He also poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. Verse 16He told those who were selling the doves, "Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father's house a marketplace!" Verse 17His disciples remembered that it was written, "Zeal for your house will consume me." Verse 18The Jews then said to him, "What sign can you show us for doing this?" Verse 19Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." Verse 20The Jews then said, "This temple has been under construction for forty-six years, and will you raise it up in three days?" Verse 21But he was speaking of the temple of his body. Verse 22After he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this; and they believed the scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.
Devotion
In times of dilemma we look for a sign. As a kid, I flipped a coin to make a decision, solve a tie or even predict the future. In John, the people wanted a sign from Jesus to prove his power, his authority and his interpretation of the Scriptures. “What sign can you show us for doing this?” they asked Jesus when he challenged the tradition of the temple and the exploitation of people’s belief. He replied, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” He was speaking of his body as the only sign for a spiritual temple. Jesus uses his finite body and the sacrifice of the covenant as the one and only true sign for redemption, forgiveness and transformation and to re-establish a covenant relationship with God. When the disciples saw this sign after he was raised from the dead, they remembered what he said, believing the Scripture and his words.
Prayer
O Lamb of God, help us remember the sign of your death and save us. Amen!