Luke 21:5-9 – The Temple
The disciples are praising the Temple for its beauty, size, grandeur, and cost. But they meet with no response from Jesus. Instead He replies with words very startling to these Jewish ears. They are spoken about a building that every Israelite thinks very highly of almost to the point of worship. It is a building containing the ark of the covenant and made according to God’s directions. It is a building associated with the great men of Israel’s past. It is a building towards which every faithful Jew turns his face in prayer. But Christ is trying to make the point that the true glory of a place of worship has nothing to do with its outward appearance but with the presence of the Holy Spirit. And this presence is missing from the Temple.
We should take care of the building we use to worship in. Whatever is done for Christ ought to be well done. The house in which the Gospel is preached, and the Word of God read, and prayer offered up, should be beautiful, clean, and safe. But we have to remember that the outward part of a church is not the most important part. The most beautiful churches are worthless in God’s sight, unless there is truth in the pulpit, and a congregation growing in Christ. The temple that pleases our Lord most, is a broken and repentant heart, renewed by the Holy Spirit.
Jesus gives us a warning against deception. Many are constantly trying to tell us when the end of the world will be. There are many people who think they can prophesy about the end times. We must always be careful that we stick to the things we know that God has told us in His Word. If we don’t, we will leave ourselves open to all sorts of lies.
Questions
- Why do the Jews love the Temple?
- Why should we take care of our church building?
- How can we guard against being deceived?
Prayer Points
- Give thanks that we have a church building to worship in.
- Use prayer points from your congregation.
- Pray for family matters.