For an explanation of the strange event that nearly made me abandon this site, read here. The following post was mostly written at that point, and I will wrap up the “temple” set today, so I can move on to the next passage in Ezra.
“…to build Him a house…”(Ezra 1:2b)
OPEN UP:
Jesus is the builder and cornerstone of a new, living temple. Everyone who trusts in Jesus is part of that temple, and God has filled us with His Spirit.
various prophets before, during, and after the exile
Places:
God’s house
– Cyrus decrees that the God of heaven has appointed him to build Him a house.
Reviewing the Ark of the Covenant:
– it was a small box, and the tablets of the Law were inside it
– God’s glory was over it, like a cloud or a fire
– the terms of the Covenant were basically:
1) the people would obey the Law, and
2) God’s glorious presence would stay with them, without destroying them
– The Ark of the Covenant had to be covered with blood, because the people had not obeyed the Law
After the Ark disappeared, did God abandon the Covenant with His people, since there was no way to cover the broken Law with blood anymore?
Jesus is the messenger of a new covenant. The blood that covers the broken Law — once for all time — is His own blood.
“I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the LORD you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the LORD Almighty.”
(Malachi 3:1 NIV)
“And when [Jesus] had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.'”
(Matthew 26:27-28 NIV)
Since there is a new covenant, will God still live in a temple?
Zechariah, a prophet during the rebuilding of the second temple, said a coming king would build a temple:
“…a man whose name is Branch [a recognized term for the promised ruler] …will build the temple of the LORD… and sit and rule on His throne… He will be a priest on His throne… Those who are far off will come and build the temple of the LORD…” (Zechariah 6:12-13, 15 NASB)
There would be a new cornerstone:
“…I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone,
A costly cornerstone for the foundation, firmly placed.
He who believes in it will not be disturbed.”
(Isaiah 28:16 NASB)
“The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone…”
(Psalm 118:22 NIV)
The New Testament says that anyone who rests on Jesus, the cornerstone, is part of a new living temple:
“As you come to him, the living Stone — rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him — you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”
“…you are… members of his household… with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.”
(Ephesians 2:19-22 NIV)
Would God fill the living temple with visible glory, like He filled the tabernacle and the first temple?
After Jesus went back to heaven, God’s glory filled the new, living temple with a visible sign of His glory.
“Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other [languages] as the Spirit enabled them.”
(Acts 2:2-4)
This is a fulfillment of prophecy:
“…I will pour out my Spirit on all people…
Even on my servants, both men and women,
I will pour out my Spirit in those days.
…And everyone who calls
on the name of the Lord will be saved…”
(Joel 2:28-29, 32 NIV)
“…I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you… I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws… I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant… My dwelling place will be with them…”
(Ezekiel 36:26-27, 37:26-27 NIV)
“…I will make a new covenant… not like the covenant which I made with their fathers… which they broke… But this is the covenant which I will make… I will put My law within them… they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them…” (Jeremiah 31:31-34 NASB)
Since these prophecies have been fulfilled, is this the way things will always be — the way they are now?
Prophecies about the future are difficult to understand.
The prophecies had said people from many nations would be included in the new temple. This has happened — anyone from any nation can rest on Jesus the cornerstone and become part of the living temple.
But these prophecies are mixed up with prophecies about how the temple will look when Jesus returns again and establishes His kingdom on earth.
“‘…Jerusalem will be inhabited without walls because of the multitude of men and cattle within it. For I,’ declares the LORD, ‘will be a wall of fire around her, and I will be the glory in her midst… Many nations will join themselves to the LORD in that day and will become My people. Then I will dwell in your midst…'”
(Zechariah 2:4-5, 11 NASB)
“Also the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD… every one who… holds fast My covenant… My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples.”
(Isaiah 56:6-7 NASB)
“…my Spirit remains among you… what is desired by all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory… The glory of this present house will be greater than the glory of the former house… And in this place I will grant peace…”
(Haggai 2:3-9 NIV)
“Then the Lord will create over all of Mount Zion and over those who assemble there a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming fire by night; over everything the glory will be a canopy. It will be a shelter and shade from the heat of the day, and a refuge and hiding place from the storm and rain.”
(Isaiah 4:5-6 NIV)
And just to mix things up, the New Testament says Jesus Himself is the temple:
“’Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them.’
…I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb [Jesus] are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.”
(Revelation 21:3, 22-23 NIV)
“Jesus answered them, ‘Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.’
They replied, ‘It has taken forty-six years to build this temple [described in Ezra], and you are going to raise it in three days?’ But the temple he had spoken of was his body. After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said…”
(John 2:19-22 NIV)
When I see the way the prophecies have been fulfilled in the past, I know I can trust that every detail is important. Even if I don’t understand exactly how everything will happen, I know all of it will be fulfilled. It might just happen on a much different timeline than it seems…
The most important thing is that Jesus fills everything in every way.
I need to keep seeking Him with my whole heart, reading the Bible, and trusting the Holy Spirit to help me understand what I need to know — and to let my life be changed by it.
“…Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise…
you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God…”
(1 Corinthians 1:26-30 NIV)
If today were my last day on earth, I would:
…keep seeking Jesus with my whole heart.
God,
Everything in Your Word is summed up in one Word: Jesus. He is all I need — my temple, my covenant, my blood covering, my priest, my king, and my wisdom from God.
For Jesus, who fills everything in every way, Amen.