Magnificent Temples
Or
Not One Stone Left Upon Another
Sunday Oct. 16, 2022
Scripture To Consider:
“Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said to them, ‘Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.’” Matthew 24.1-2
Something To Consider:
The temple in Jerusalem was the central hub of all Jewish religion and worship. This temple was sometimes referred to as Herod’s temple, for Herod rebuilt the temple during the Roman rule over the nation of Israel. The original temple was built by Solomon, King David’s son and heir, who reigned as king after David’s death.
The original temple was destroyed approximately four centuries later in 587 B.C. by an invading Babylonian army. The new temple built by Herod was forty-six years in building. It was magnificent in every aspect and the disciples proudly showed Jesus the various buildings of the temple.
In Matthew 12.6, Jesus speaking of Himself declared in comparison to the magnificence of the temple, “Yet I say to you that in this place is One greater than the temple.” And time has proven Jesus right in His statement! Of course, Jesus was speaking of Himself as the One greater than the temple.
But there have been many down through the centuries, who have built temples or monuments to themselves in the name of religion. Religious temples or man-made kingdom-like church structures fill America and other nations where the Americanized false gospel has been preached. And in time, not one stone will be left standing as a memorial to any earthly man or group of men!
Something Else To Consider:
Matthew chapter 24 and 25 are often referred to as the Olivet Discourse. It is most important that we understand that these two chapters speak to both near and far future events. In verse 2 of our Scripture to consider, Jesus was speaking prophetically regarding the destruction and the devastation of the Jewish temple, Jerusalem, and the Jewish people at the hands of the Roman government in 70 A.D., which was led by Titus a Roman general.
Rome could no longer turn a deaf ear to the rebellious revolutions within the Jewish borders. Therefore, the city was seized, and the temple was leveled. Jesus, speaking as a prophet had declared, “Assuredly [truthfully], I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.”
In 1 Kings 6.7, we are told concerning the first temple that was built by Solomon, that the massive stones weighing several tons each, were fashioned and finished at the quarry so that no sound of a hammer or chisel could be heard in the temple during construction.
The apostle Paul, in 1 Corinthians 6.19, likens our bodies to the temple or dwelling place of the Holy Spirit of God. As true believers in Christ, we are under construction by the Holy Spirit, being fashioned without the sound of a hammer into the image of Jesus Christ. Now, for some, it may take forty-six years. For others it may take an entire lifetime!
Something More To Consider:
Though the disciples were fascinated with the magnificence of the temple’s exterior structure, within its walls the temple was stained with the sin of religious hypocrisy. Many are today fascinated with the magnificent exterior appearance of so many so-called Christian entertainers, musicians, pastors, preachers, and evangelists. And yet, inside the bodies of their personal temples there is the stain of sexual sin, financial greed, and humanistic pride.
During the siege of the temple, historians report that Titus had given orders not to desecrate the temple. Historians also record that a Roman soldier threw a flaming torch into the temple. The fire spread and eventually melted all of the gold in the temple from the top to the bottom.
Therefore, in attempts by the Roman soldiers to remove the cooled but solidified gold from between the cracks and crevices of those massive stones, every single stone was thrown down. The prophecy of Jesus, though seemingly impossible when spoken by Jesus some forty years earlier, was perfectly fulfilled in every detail. Not one massive stone was left upon another!
And there will not be one stone upon another of the spiritual temples of our lives if we remain sin stained and without true repentance and the forgiveness of that sin. We may choose to appear as magnificent temples before others, but before God, there will not be one stone left upon another.
A Few Final Words:
These words of Jesus concerning the destruction of the temple may have been devastating to these Jewish followers of Christ but also proud followers of their Jewish heritage. Is the truth concerning the inevitable future fall of America in some way devastating to us? Does the truth of that statement strip us of the false peace that the world bestows upon us for our blindly following after all the glitter and gold we can accumulate while alive upon planet earth?
According to Jesus in Matthew 12.25, “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.” America is greatly divided on many fronts and issues this Sunday, Oct. 16, 2022. And for the most part, America has rejected Jesus as did most of Israel and the Jewish people.
And in the place of receiving the Jesus of Scripture, America has received an ear tickling account of another Jesus never intended from God’s perspective. The You’re OK, I’m OK, We’re all OK 21st century false version of Christianity is just another worldly means of prolonging the miserable lives of what is described by many as magnificent temples. But in the end, there will not be one stone left upon another.
Bible prophecy, no matter how difficult to believe or seemingly impossible to understand, remains the Word of God and must in time come to pass. Therefore, the eternal and near future outcome of all rebellious disobedient followers of evil will have the same end result as did the Jewish temple and the Jewish people who rejected Jesus.
For according to Jesus, “Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” The end is at hand. The Word of God will not return void. We in America, as we have seen several cities being burned and business establishments being looted in major American cities, and the people of America are being programmed by political mandates echoed by global elites, the biblical based foundation of this nation is crumbling.
America is no longer a shining light divinely set upon a hill. It has become the habitation of all kinds of evil spirits and ungodly enacted laws that greatly go against God’s written and eternally preserved Word of God. And for that, America has become divided and not one stone upon another will remain standing when the dust settles across this once God-fearing, God-worshipping united land.
Are you spiritually prepared for the takeover of the Antichrist? Are you physically prepared for the requirement of the receiving of the mark of the beast in order to buy or to sell? If not, why not. What are we waiting for? Is it that we do not believe the Scriptures? Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. Are we looking unto Him today?
Prayer:
Our Father in heaven, how magnificent is Your Word. May we trust Your Word above the word of man in both earthly and eternal matters. And may we do that before every stone is removed within the ungodly religious, political, and satanic realms of this earthly system. Reveal Jesus to the world as the solution for its problems. In Him Always, Amen!
According to Jesus 