Destroy This Temple

Jno. 2:19 ... "Jesus answered and said to them, 'Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.'"

      Jesus made this statement in the Temple in Jerusalem on the first Passover after He had begun His earthly ministry.  Upon entering the Temple compound He was filled with indignation at "those who were selling oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money seated," (v.14).  These were people who had commercialized the sacrifice of animals prescribed by the Law of Moses.  Along with them were men who exchanged foreign currency for Jewish coin, capitalizing on a law that required sacrificial animals to be purchased only with Jewish money.  Of course, they also imposed a hefty fee for making this exchange, thus exploiting the pilgrims from distant lands who had come to worship.  After Jesus watched all this for a short time, He "made a scourge of cords and drove them all out of the Temple ... and poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables," (v.15).  

      This action had a considerable impact upon the priests, who had authority over everything that went on in the Temple.  They permitted and supported these people who were making "My Father's house a house of merchandise," as Jesus exclaimed in v.16. They even maintained a police force within the Temple precincts to enforce their control, (Jno. 7:32,45-46).  Evidently, however, Jesus' work of clearing out this mess was so sudden that these officers did not have time to intervene. When the priests saw what had happened, they immediately came to Jesus to determine by what authority He had acted.  It says in v.18 that "the Jews ... said to Him, 'What sign do You show us, seeing that You do these things?'"  It was in reply to this challenge that Jesus said, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."

      The priests did not comprehend what Jesus meant by this.  They assumed He was referring to the great edifice in which they were standing, for they replied with contempt, "It took 46 years to build this Temple, and will you raise it up in three days?" (v.20).  They interpreted Jesus' statement as some kind of threat against the Temple, and three years later used this construction against Him in the trial in which they sentenced Him to death.  But the apostle John carefully points out that Jesus "was speaking of the Temple of His body," (v.21). The Bible occasionally refers to the human body as the "temple" of the soul, and that is the sense employed here by Jesus. In essence, He was telling His interrogators that He would for sure give them a "sign" (or proof) of His authority for clearing out the Temple, as well as for everything else He said or did.  He challenged them to destroy His body, knowing they would crucify Him before long anyway.  Then He said He would "raise it up in three days."

      The authority of Jesus is still a burning issue after some 2000 years.  In the New Testament He teaches a unique doctrine and then commands us to adapt our lives to it.  Moreover, He models that doctrine in His own life and then tells us to "follow Me." When people now read the New Testament, or listen as faithful Christians teach it, they want to know, "By what authority does this Jewish zealot and visionary make these demands of us, and what proof can He give of that authority?" The answer continues the same from the day Jesus first spoke these words.  His authority is from heaven, and the proof is His resurrection from death after His enemies had crucified Him.  There is nothing further to be said about it. If people will not accept this proof and be convinced by it to submit their lives to Jesus' authority as laid out in the Gospel, there is no hope for them.  They will die and be lost.  Our pathway to eternal salvation begins with faith in Jesus' resurrection and submission to His authority.

The Word Becomes Flesh

Jno. 1:14 ... "And the word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth."

      The first fourteen verses of the Gospel according to John are the prologue to this account of Jesus, which is different in so many ways from those of Matthew, Mark and Luke.  They also constitute one of the major Christological passages in the New Testament.  Since volumes have been written to discuss the meaning and significance of what these verses reveal about Jesus, I confess that is rather presumptive of me to devote this brief article to such a vast subject.  If I can succeed, however, in focusing the reader's attention for a few minutes upon the central Figure of mankind and the only hope for our future, then my feeble effort is worth it.

      The text quoted above declares the fact of the incarnation, the descent of God to earth to enter into human flesh and dwell among us as a Man.  That this would happen was prophesied centuries earlier in Isa. 7:14, "Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call His name IMMANUEL."  In Matthew's account of Jesus' birth, (i.e., His incarnation), he quotes Isaiah's prophecy and explains to us that "Immanuel" means "God with us."  It is an astounding fact to the sensitive mind that God would choose to humble Himself to the human plane of existence and submit His presence and activities to the limitations of our physical condition.  If anything should cause our hearts to overflow with gratitude and thanksgiving to the Father, it should be the consideration of Jesus' assumption of the human state to share life with us in all its varied situations.

      John, an eyewitness of Jesus' human experience, emphasizes here that he and his companions were privileged to behold in Jesus "the glory of the only begotten of the Father."  It is difficult, if not impossible, to explain the full meaning and significance of the word "glory," but to say that it refers to "the sum total of God's perfections" may be a working definition.  The divine glory was constantly manifested to select men in the Bible as a brilliantly radiant, utterly beautiful light.  John, along with Peter and James, were honored to behold that glory when Jesus was transfigured before them one day on a mountaintop.  On that occasion "His face did shine as the sun, and His raiment was as white as the light."  In the initial text above, John may be ultimately referring to this experience when he declares, "and we beheld His glory."  As a member of the Holy Trinity Jesus was endowed with glory which He left in heaven on His journey here to earth.  But on the remarkable occasion in Mat. 17:1-8 He was transformed back into it briefly before the awestruck eyes of His three disciples.

      Two other manifestations of Jesus' glory, though not beheld as a radiant light, were nonetheless wonderful.  John says that Jesus was filled with "grace and truth."  Grace refers to everything God gives us, although here the emphasis is upon His gift of salvation which we receive at Christ's expense.  Jesus did what no one else could.  He assumed the collective sins of every human and paid the price of death for their absolution.  What greater gift could God give us than release from the death penalty for sin and the promise of eternal life in heaven?

      Truth refers to the reality of spiritual existence which we can know only by means of revelation. Our perception is limited to the physical world, but Jesus taught us accurately about what exists in the spiritual world and what relation it sustains to us.  Others, who were of course inspired by God, revealed small bits of information about that other sphere of existence.  But the fullest picture we shall ever receive in this life is the truth which was revealed by Jesus when He was here among us.