Holy Week | Day 1: Cleansing the Temple

A Righteous Zeal at the Start of Holy Week

As Jesus entered Jerusalem in the final week of His life, His first public act was not what many would expect from a Savior preparing to die. He didn’t begin with healing. He didn’t go straight to teaching. He went to the temple.

And He didn’t enter quietly.

“And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers…”
— Matthew 21:12

Why did He do this? Because the house of His Father—meant to be holy and filled with prayer—had become a marketplace. A den of thieves. A place where people used worship for profit, where reverence had been replaced with routine.

Jesus wasn’t passive about it. He was passionate. Zealous. Intentional.

He purified what had become polluted.

You Are the Temple Now

The temple in Jerusalem was the place where God’s presence once dwelled. But under the New Covenant, YOU are now the temple of God.

“Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?”
— 1 Corinthians 3:16

That makes today personal.

Jesus still wants to cleanse the temple—but now, that temple is you. He doesn’t do it with tables or cords. He does it by inviting you to open your life and let Him reveal what doesn’t belong.

Day 1 Reflection: Make Room for Holiness

As you enter into Holy Week, start where Jesus started—with a heart willing to be cleansed. Ask Him to flip over the tables of distraction, sin, addiction, bitterness, selfishness, or pride.

Let His zeal become your own.

Ask yourself:

• What tables need to be overturned in my life?

• Have I allowed convenience, comfort, or compromise to take over the place of reverence?

• What would it look like for my heart to truly be a house of prayer?

Prayer for Day 1:

Lord Jesus, cleanse my heart like You cleansed the temple. I invite You into every corner of my life—flip what needs flipping. Cast out what doesn’t belong. Fill me with zeal for Your presence. Let this Holy Week begin with a holy cleansing. Make me a temple where You dwell. Amen.