A Beautiful Temple (Luke 21:5-19)

Many of us might be able to understand what Jesus’ disciples were thinking in the opening verses of this week’s Gospel reading, Luke 21:5-19. They were walking with Jesus through the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem, pointing out and marvelling at its ‘majestic stonework … and the memorial decorations on the walls’ (v5 NLT). Instead of the ancient Jewish Temple, we might have done the same if we’ve had the opportunity to visit medieval cathedrals, exotic mosques or temples, or the beautiful old churches of the Barossa Valley. It’s easy to be impressed with stonework which was laid more than a thousand years ago, or religious buildings overlaid with gold, or houses of worship with stained glass windows and steeples pointing towards the heavens. Like the disciples, we might admire the craftmanship and creativity, or maybe be just a little bit proud, that we can call this beautiful church our own.

It might surprise us that Jesus didn’t share in their wonder or admiration for the building they were walking through. Instead, he gave them this warning: “The time is coming when all these things will be completely demolished. Not one stone will be left on top of another” (v6 NLT).

Can you imagine the look on the disciples’ faces when Jesus said this? Do you think they would have been surprised? Sad? Or just annoyed with Jesus for ruining the moment? How would you react if you were showing someone around our church building, pointing out all the things you love about it, and their reply was that one day the whole thing will come crashing down and be nothing but a pile of rocks?

Jesus was predicting an event which would happen about forty years after this story. At that time, the Roman army put down a rebellion in Judea. They destroyed Jerusalem, demolished the Temple, and dispersed the Jewish people throughout their empire. While his disciples were immersed in the beauty and grandeur of the Jerusalem Temple, Jesus was challenging their view of what was at the centre of their religious activities and redefining their understanding of where we find God.

Jesus’ prediction of the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem signifies a shift in the Bible in how its authors understood the idea of where God makes his earthly home. Throughout the Old Testament, the Tabernacle and then the Jerusalem Temple was the one place in the world where God promised to meet his people, and people could go to meet with God. In the New Testament times, however, after the destruction of the physical Temple around AD70, the Apostles talked about temple not as a physical building, but a spiritual reality in which the people of God are living stones, built together to be the place where God makes himself known to the world. In 1 Corinthians 3:16 Paul writes, “Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you?” (NLT) In Ephesians 2:21 he also writes, “We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord” (NLT). Peter agrees in 1 Peter 2:5 when he writes, “And you are living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple” (NLT) Instead of locating God’s presence on earth in a building of stone and wood, the New Testament writers point to God’s people as his spiritual temple. The Holy Spirit joins us together and unites us with Jesus and each other to be the place where God resides in the world and people can encounter the beauty of God’s grace, mercy and love. According to the New Testament, we are God’s earthly temple more than any building.

Just as Jesus challenged his disciples to re-think the place of the Jerusalem Temple in their religious lives, his words can also challenge us to re-think how we view our buildings. Like the Jerusalem Temple, the day will come when not one of the stones or bricks that make up the building we worship in will stand on another. Nothing in this world is permanent. In time, everything passes and fades away. What doesn’t fade or pass away is the eternal life that we have through faith in Jesus. The lives we have in Christ will last forever. That is why the New Testament writers encouraged people in early Christian communities to build each other up in faith, hope and love (see Romans 14:19, 15:2; 2 Corinthians 10:8; Ephesians 4:12, 4:29; 1 Thessalonians 5:11; Jude 1:20 etc). Two thousand years later, the writers of the New Testament continue to teach us to prioritize building up the faith, hope and love of the people around us more than maintaining or preserving our buildings. That’s not to say that our buildings aren’t important. They are valuable assets in the work of God’s people for the gospel. However, God gives us buildings to serve us, not for us to become slaves to the maintenance of our buildings. One way we can keep that balance is to look at how much time, effort and money we spend on our buildings and properties, and challenge ourselves to invest as much or more time, effort and money into the people around us to build them up in faith, hope and Christ-like love through the ministries of our congregation and parish.

The disciples were impressed by what they saw in the Jerusalem Temple. We can be impressed by what we see in our church buildings. But what if people could be just as impressed, or even more impressed, when they see the beauty of God’s grace and love in us as his living Temple? God redeemed us to do good works so that people can see the wonder and beauty of his goodness in us. Peter writes, “Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us” (1 Peter 2:12 NIV). Our lives are to be evidence to others of God’s goodness and grace, so, when they see the way we love one another, they can see God at work in us (John 13:35). While some have built impressive churches and other buildings to glorify God, the New Testament tells us that what gives true glory to God is the way we live our lives, the ways in which we talk to and about each other, and the way we love one another in the way Jesus loved us. Lives that are lived in faith, hope and love give greater and more lasting glory to God than any building can, no matter how impressive it might be.

The next time you see a beautiful church, think about Jesus’ words in this morning’s gospel. We thank God for the buildings he has blessed us with so we can gather in worship and receive his grace through the proclamation of the gospel and the gift of the sacraments. We can also remember that the day will come when these buildings will go the way of the Jerusalem Temple and no longer exist. What will last for eternity, however, are the lives we have in Christ and the glory we give him by building others up in faith, hope and love.

More to think about or discuss:

• What is the most beautiful church building you’ve ever seen? What did you like most about it?
• What do you think of Jesus’ reply to his disciples in Luke 21:6? How might you react if he said that about your church building?
• What is one way you can build up a person in God’s spiritual temple this week in faith, hope or Christ-like love?