Luke 19: 29 – 46 - The triumphal entry of Jesus in Jerusalem

The Greek Orthodox Christians, are celebrating this Sunday, the "Palm tree Sunday', meaning Jesus entering Jerusalem one week before the Resurrection.
The sad part is, that we stop at these events and and we don't really talk about what happened after Jesus entered Jerusalem.
His concern was that Jerusalem lost the things that gave peace to it, and made God's worship place, meaning the Temple, a den of robbers. God showed me in this passage some things that deal with the Church today, the attitude that people have when coming to Church and the fact that we turned our gatherings in to a sort of a club that is really good with offering services to it's attendants. Let us go back to the times of Moses, and see the purpose and the significance of the Tabernacle, for the people of Israel. It use to be a holy place and God was present there. People were aware of the fact that they couldn't just approach God without preparing first, both the outside and the inside. They knew they were approaching a Holy God. If we move a bit further and take a look at Solomon's Temple, the first thing that should come to our mind is that the construction of the Temple, wasn't God's idea, but David's.
„Wherever I have moved with all the Israelites, did I ever say to any of their rulers whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, "Why have you not built me a house of cedar?"
(2 Samuel 7:7). While David lived in a palace, he saw all the riches he was enjoying and thought it's not fair for the Holy Ark (Which was the presence of God) to be in a tent. And David said "I will build Him a Temple".
God desired for His presence to be among His people. He wanted a tent because it was movable, and wherever the children of Israel went they could take it with them. That means they were able to have God's presence with them at all times. Putting together the Tabernacle took less than a year, while the building of the first Temple took 7 years (1 Kings 6:38) and the second Temple took 46 years to be built (John 2:20).
Can you see how people complicated things out of their desire to do something for God? Getting back to present time, what is the Church today? Better yet, what was the will of Jesus for His Bride? Jesus said that wherever 2 or 3 are gathered in His Name, He is with them. We turned the Church, that was meant to be a living organism (First Christians) in to a living organization. If on the time of Moses there was a tabernacle, since Solomon and up to Jesus time, there was a Temple. After Jesus went to heaven, He left a Church that was meant to be a living body, but what we have today is a "Church Club". We have activities on top of more activities, we have businesses, fashion, amazing buildings, comfort, great music, the best instruments, and much, much more. The Church has an offer for anyone and to please everyone. We try our best to entertain people, to have the best possible Church service, and we can't even see that God doesn't have any room left, due to the fact that we have increased and He has decreased in our meetings.
Going back to the passage in Luke 19, verse 37, we can see the crowds cheering up for Jesus. That's exactly what the Church does today with our "Praise and Worship' program, because whoever has the best and latest music wins.
Through praise, we say we open the gates of heaven and we prepare a way for God to come during the worship time. A sort of a spiritual battle. But we ended up covering through our praise the things that must be changed in our lives. We say we have Jesus and therefore we have a free entrance to the Father. It is true, Jesus is the Intercessor but there is also an unchanged fact: we still serve a Holy God. Moses was the Intercessor between Israel and God, but when Gd wanted to meet with them at the Sinai mountain, He asked them to prepare themselves so that they may stay in His presence. We go to Church, which is the meeting place with God, as if we would go to a fancy club, we don't eve think that we are about to meet The God of Avram, Isac and Jacob. In verse 41, it's written that Jesus wept for the city. Why? Because they knew no longer the things that were meant to bring them peace and failed to know the time of their visitation. I believe the Church s in the same situation today. They are looking for their peace in other places and in other things and when Jesus comes to visit our Churches, we are too busy with our own agenda and we don't allow Him to touch us and change us.
„Then he entered the temple area and began driving out those who were selling. It is written," he said to them, " 'My house will be a house of prayer' ; but you have made it 'a den of robbers.' (Luke 19:45-46)
Today the Church of Christ has turned in to a den. A place that is so cold and so dark and so unwelcoming for those that are outsiders, it's a place for businesses, it's a place where you can make deals with your brothers. A Christian club that doesn't have any room for the people in the world, and on the surface is something so great and something that pleases one's eyes, but that's all, it;s just pleasing to men. „And as he taught them, he said, "Is it not written: " 'My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations' ? But you have made it 'a den of robbers.' (Mark 11:17) Our house of prayer has become private property and it's no longer a place where anyone can come and worship together with us. I am a Pastor and I just realized that the Church I pastor, is heading towards an earthly image and on it's way to become a club. I don't wish to take over an idea of some man of what the Church should be and what program it should have. I love "Praise and worship"and I know it's a Scriptural thing, but it's not a standard that i want to copy and by that standard to judge the success of the Church and if God's presence is there or not. The way things are in Church today is no longer something heavenly but very earthly.
Maybe some of you are expecting me to give an example of what a Church should do, but I don't believe that there is just one way of doing things, we do need diversity, but I also believe that if i set my heart on understanding God's idea of what His body should be like, a body that will praise Him, then I am on the right track. I want to challenge you to pray for your Church to become a house of prayer for all nations and most of all, a place where Jesus is honored.

God's servant
Pastor Rares Calugar