The Temple. The Temple. The Temple!

Imagine, if you would, a building. Glorious, beautiful – taking years to build and thousands of thousands of dollars. Wood carefully selected from the best parts of the world. Furnishings crafted by the best of artisans. Embroideries and fabrics specially made.

And this building isn’t just any building. This is a house of prayer, a sanctuary to the Lord. Every detail laboriously poured over until, at last, the walls are complete, the roof finished, the decorations are in place – it’s ready to serve its purpose.

Know a building like that?

So did the Israelites. The Temple was the most beautiful building in all the world. Heads of state and foreign dignitaries traveled all over the world to glimpse this glorious structure.

It was a symbol of Jewish national identity. What does it mean to be Jewish? Come see this Temple and find out!

It was a symbol of the utter defeat of all the nations (and their gods) that previously possessed the land. Where is the heart of Israel? At its temple!

It was the center of wealth and prosperity in Israel. Who holds the nation’s possessions? The King of Jerusalem and the Temple priests in the treasury!

It was a lucky charm. The people began to see the Temple as the source of their comfort, security and freedom. Jeremiah, a prophet writing about 600bce, speaks out against the Temple, “Do not trust in lies and say: ‘This is the Temple of the LORD, the Temple of the LORD, the Temple of the LORD!’…. Will you follow your own ways and then come before God in his Temple and say, ‘We are safe!’” (Jeremiah 7:1-11 para.)

The people of Israel had bought into a lie that went something like this: God is powerful. God saved us from slavery in Egypt. God put us here, in this land with this temple. So long as we have the temple, no one will enslave us.

It doesn’t matter how we live. It doesn’t matter what we do. So long as we have this temple, no one will enslave us.

And just as surely as Jeremiah uttered those words – the Hebrew people were carried off into slavery, into bondage, into exile at the hands of the Babylonians.

The Temple. The Temple. The Temple!

I don’t think we need to stretch our imaginations very far to see some points of similarity and intersect with the ancient Hebrew people.

Are you sitting too comfortably in your Christianity? Do you think that the Church and your Traditions will protect you? Do you use an hour once a week in a special place as a talisman to ward off bad circumstances throughout the week?

Maybe another way to say it: Do you fear God’s wrath if you miss a Sunday morning? Do you think that your prayers are for God’s benefit? Do you think the bad things in your life are related to your lack of faith?

Are you in slavery? Sold into a deceitful way of thinking that says “God can only be found in a church.” Do you find yourself in exile, awaiting rescue from a promised Messiah?

Then pray it again: O come, O come Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel!

~ by sholander on October 8, 2008.