The True Temple of God (John 2:18-22)

Topic: The True Temple

Reading: John 2:18-22

18 The Jews then said to him, “What sign have you to show us for doing this?” 19 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” 20 The Jews then said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will you raise it up in three days?” 21 But he spoke of the temple of his body. 22 When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this; and they believed the scripture and the word which Jesus had spoken.

Introduction and Overview

In the Old Testament under the religion of Judaism, the Temple was core to their worship. In fact in almost every religion today, there are temples built for the worship of their gods.

But in this section of scripture we gain an insight into the truth of God’s Temple. The true Temple is not one built with or by the hands of men. When we look further in the scriptures we see this message repeated in many places. The true temple is not physical, it is spiritual. All of the temples, churches, mosques, synagogues, or any other description of a temple to any god that are built by the hands of men are not the true temple of God.

Instead, we find in these words that the true temple of God is spiritual and exists in the spirit. The true temple of God is a place where the Spirit of God resides and exists. And unlike physical temples that must be visited, the true temple of God is one that we carry with us wherever we go. And it is in these verses today that we get a first glimpse of the reality of the true temple of God.

Key points from reading:

The true Temple of God is not made by human hands.
The true temple of God is a spiritual temple that exists and is built by the Spirit of God
Jesus understood and prophesied that He was the temple of God

Discussion:

Scripture: John 2:18 – Jews demand a sign
- At this point in time, Jesus had just driven out the animals from the court of the Temple in Jerusalem. He had made a whip of cords, driving out the livestock and overturning the tables of the money-changers. His zeal for the Temple of God was such that His wrath drove Him to cleanse the Temple of the commercialism the Jews had established in the Temple.
- But the Jewish leaders and those who were making profit from the commercialism in the Temple were not happy about this. And the Jews sought some sign from Jesus showing He had the authority to cleanse the Temple as He had. We note from 1 Corinthians 1:22 that seeking signs was what the Jews were known for, as the scripture says,“For Jews demand signs…”
- This would be especially true with respect to anything to do with their religion and whatever happened in the Temple itself. Such a drastic event as Jesus carried out would, or should, demand a sign as proof and authority to do what Jesus did.
Scripture: John 2:19 – The sign of the true Temple of God
- Jesus gave the Jewish leaders a sign. He told them what would happen as a sign that He had authority over the Temple. In fact the sign Jesus gave them would not be fulfilled for some time, but when it was fulfilled it would change everything. The true Temple of God would be introduced and the physical Temple the Jews sought for worship would be destroyed.
- Jesus said to the Jews in this verse, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” In these words He was prophesying, not about the bricks and mortar of the Temple in Jerusalem, but about Himself.
- Jesus showed that He was the true Temple of God in these words. If you think about what a church or temple is, it becomes clear. A temple is a place of worship, where people enter to praise, worship, and learn the things of God. In Christianity, we go to Jesus and we enter into His death and resurrection through the doorway of baptism, to praise, worship, and learn the things of God. We receive the Holy Spirit to dwell within us to teach us the things of God and the words of Jesus. So, Jesus is the true Temple of God, and rather than us going to a physical place of worship, He lives within us and goes with us in the Spirit everywhere. The true Temple of God is within us, just as the true kingdom of God is within us, as the scripture says:
  
  20 Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was coming, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; 21 nor will they say, ‘Lo, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.” (Luke 17:20-21)
Scripture: John 2:20 – The Jews did not understand about the true Temple of God
- Jesus spoke about the true Temple of God being Himself and in Himself. But the Jews did not understand. They, like most of mankind, looked at the things that were physical. They took the path often taken by people in the world today. They could relate only to the things that could be seen with the eyes. And they had no concept of the things of the Spirit as they believed Jesus was talking about the bricks and timber of the Temple in Jerusalem.
- It was an understandable mistake. But there ia a message we can learn from their mistake. Instead of rejecting the words that Jesus had spoken as being ridiculous, perhaps they could have stopped and asked , “Why and How?” Jesus was clearly a rational and knowledgeable person. Many of the people were following Him and listening to His words. The Jewish leaders were certainly aware of His presence and they knew of the many signs He had done.
- So, rather than reject His words as foolishness, they should have asked some questions to understand what Jesus was talking about. And this is a lesson for us today too.
- Any time you read the Bible, or hear someone talking about something you don’t understand, especially from the scriptures, ask “Why?” I know from personal experience that there are many things I am still waiting for the Lord to reveal to me. And I can confidently say that no man or woman has perfect understanding of the words in the scriptures. These words are the word of God, and without His guidance through the Holy Spirit, who can understand them fully and completely? Furthermore, Jesus Himself told us to ask questions, as that is how we learn. He said in Matthew 7:7-8
  
  7 “Ask, and it will be given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For every one who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.
  
  This is what the Jews should have done when Jesus told them that if they destroyed the Temple, He would raise it up in three days. Had they done that, they would have understood Jesus was not talking about the Temple in Jerusalem, but the true temple of His own body.
Scripture: John 2:21-22 – The true Temple
- This was the truth that Jesus was expressing. The true Temple was not a physical temple like the one that stood in Jerusalem. The true Temple exists in the spiritual realm. It is not physical but spiritual. And we are being built into the true Temple of God in Christ Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit. Consider these words.
  
  16 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? 17 If any one destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and that temple you are. (1 Corinthians 3:16-17)
- We are told earlier in 1 Corinthians 3 that Jesus Christ is the foundation of the true Temple of God. We are also told in Ephesians that Jesus is the cornerstone of the true Temple of God in the Spirit, with the teachings of the apostles and prophets, which are the teachings of Jesus, being the foundation upon which it is built. Note these words.
  
  19 So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; 22 in whom you also are built into it for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. (Ephesians 2:19-22)
- The true Temple of God is not made by the hands of men. It is made by the power of God through the teachings of Jesus Christ and the working of the Holy Spirit within us. As we come to Christ and believe that He is our Lord and Saviour, and that God raised Him from the dead, the true Temple begins to be built within us. We worship in Spirit and truth, learning the truth and being transformed into the image of Christ Jesus by the Holy Spirit. This is the true worship that exists outside of man-made temples and places of worship. The true worship is the worship of God in Spirit and truth, and we become part of the true temple of God through following Christ in this way.

Prayer Points:

Pray for understanding in these things. The true temple of God is spiritual rather than physical. All of the beautiful and wonderful looking buildings made by men as places of worship are not the true temple of God. Many of them are more a monument to the ego of man rather than the humility needed to worship God in spirit and truth.
Pray and ask the Lord to help you find the way to be built into the true temple of God.