Saturday, May 12, 2018

Jesus Rebuilding Temple (SD24)

                 'Sound Doctrine'

John 2:19  Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." Then the Jews said, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?" But He was speaking of the temple of His body.
    There are so many speculations on when the law (Judaism) ended and the period of grace began. Our Lord told the Jews that He would rebuild the temple of God in 3 days.

Destruction of the Temple
Mark 15:37-38  And Jesus cried out with a loud voice ft, and breathed His last. Then *the veil of the temple was torn in two* from top to bottom.
    At the death of our Lord Jesus on the cross, the veil of the temple of God was torn. At God's departed from the Most Holy Place, the temple was discarded (destroyed) by Him, resulting to the end of Judaism.

At His death on the cross, all these items were fulfilled by Him:-
1. Bronze Altar - Sacrificed as the Lamb of God
2. Bronze Laver - Obeyed God and was baptised by John the Baptist.
3. Table of Showbread - He was the Bread of life.
4. Golden Lampstand - He was the Light of the world.
5. Golden Altar - He was offered as sweet incense to God.
6. Ark of Testimony consisted of
  a) Ten Commandments - Word
  b) Aaron's rod - Perfect Priest
  c) Book of the law - Word of life
7. Mercy Seat - Jesus is so merciful that even at His death, He showed these mercies to us:-
A) He tasted death for us
Heb 2:9  But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone.
   Since all men fear death, our Lord Himself tasted death on our behalf so that we will not taste the horror of death.
B) Delivered us from Fear of Death
Heb 2:14-15  Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.
    Through His death, He destroyed the devil's power of death, to release Christians from the fear of death.

Discarded Temple
    Though the temple was discarded by God at the death of Jesus, yet God did not tear it down for the sake of saving the devout Jews coming back from distant land to observe the Jewish feasts. In Acts 1-4, thousands of Jews were saved, and Apostle Paul rushed back to Jerusalem (Act 18:21) for the feast to evangelize the devout Jews.

Temple of God Rebuilt in 3 Days
Luke 24:1, 6-7  Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they, and certain other women with them, came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared... "He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, saying, 'The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.'"
   At His Resurrection (three days after His death), He rebuilt the temple of God with all the *7 items* within, thereby replacing the discarded Herod's Temple.

Born Again Christian
John 20:21-22  So Jesus said to them again, "Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you." And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit."
    Then Jesus gave His disciples the Holy Spirit to become born again Christians. Every Christian can start to build his own temple of God within his body on His foundation.