Knowing God

In the temple he found those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the money-changers sitting there. And making a whip of cords, he drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and oxen. And he poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables. And he told those who sold the pigeons, "Take these things away; do not make my Father's house a house of trade." - John 2:14-16

In today's text, Jesus is upset with what was happening to the temple, a house of worship. Instead of being a place where everyone came to worship and meet the Almighty God, it had literally turned into a marketplace where people were bartering to purchase animals for sacrifice, revealing the condition of man's heart. They prioritized themselves to ensure that they were in good standing with God by paying their dues through animal sacrifice. However, what God desires is a relationship with us. Not because He needs one with us, but because He loves us. As John writes in his first epistle, 

"In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins." - 1 John 4:10

Our relationship with God should not look like a to-do list; love must be the basis of our relationship with Him. 

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us continue to develop our relationship with God through Word and prayer, knowing that He loves us and we are called to know Him and make Him known.