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Listen to the sermon Joel Russell-MacLean
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The Soul’s Black Market
The First Sunday in Advent
Bulletin: Bulletin November 28 2021
Newsletter:Weekly Letter November 28 2021
Scriptures: Romans 13:11-14; Psalm 50:1-6; Matthew 21:1-13
Songs:
- O Thou Joyful, O Thou Wonderful (lyrics, melody & background, video, harp, meditation)
- Love Divine, All Loves Excelling (choir & lyrics, candlelight, background)
- Of the Father’s Love Begotten (lyrics and choir, background)
Joel Russell-MacLean
God unveiled humanity’s purpose with the advent of Jesus: God intends to live within every person. Now every human is called to be a temple of God. Before this, the temple in Jerusalem was the physical location where God’s presence was found on earth.
Jesus came to the temple of Jerusalem and purified it. He confronted all the stalls set up in the temple’s courtyard. Now, these stalls existed in order for people to worship and pray and yet Jesus overturned them. They made up a kind of black market. They were not avoiding Roman taxes or the Temple Tax, they were trying to avoid God’s scrutiny while they made their living.
In a manner of speaking, we have stalls set up in our lives and in our hearts where we make daily deals. We hold onto all sorts of things inside us like opinions, memories, pleasures, habits, or plans, which we rely on to get by in life. We must submit these to God’s scrutiny.
We have an advent invitation. Every Advent and Christmas, Mary says, “Allow Jesus to be born within you.” Jesus says, “I am standing at the door and knocking, open up and welcome me! And I will come in and eat with you.”
Jesus is coming. If we welcome Jesus into our lives, he must purify us.