Cleansing the Entire Temple

Gary walks through the book of Matthew pointing out the important passages that relate to preaching the Gospel and the impending judgment awaiting the temple standing in the first century.

Does the Bible, especially the New Testament, predict that the temple will be rebuilt? It does not. Why are Jews wanting to rebuild the temple? For the same reason that the temple was maintained prior to its destruction in A.D. 70—apostate Jews do not believe that Jesus is the promised Messiah. If the Jews once again build a temple and begin to offer sacrifices, this will only confirm their rejection of the atoning blood of Jesus. It was this rejection that led to the destruction of the temple that was standing in Jesus’ day.

Because of the consistent futurizing of the events of Matthew 24, contemporary prophetic speculators who teach the imminency of the rapture envision the need for a rebuilt temple. Supposedly in this rebuilt temple the Antichrist will set up a statue to be worshipped, the “abomination of desolation” that Jesus said would be “standing in the holy place” (Matt. 24:15). This is a past event. The temple was still standing in the “holy city” called Jerusalem (4:5; 27:53) when Jesus spoke of the “abomination of desolation.”

The temple had been pointed out by the disciples, the very temple that Jesus said would be left desolate and the same temple that Jesus walked away from (23:38). Jesus’ disciples would have immediately thought of the temple that they had pointed out to Him, not a temple that had to be rebuilt. To propose that Jesus was describing a rebuilt temple must be proven from Scripture. The New Testament mentions nothing about a rebuilt temple. There is nothing in Matthew 24 that even hints at the rebuilding of the temple. Why would Jesus confuse His listeners and those of us who read His recorded prophecy by leaving out a crucial detail like a rebuilt temple?

The Gospel of Matthew must be read in the context of the first century and not the 21st. Beginning in Matthew 10, Gary walks through Matthew pointing out the important passages that relate to preaching the Gospel and the impending judgment awaiting the temple standing in the first century.

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American Vision’s mission is to Restore America to its Biblical Foundation—from Genesis to Revelation. American Vision (AV) has been at the heart of worldview study since 1978, providing resources to exhort Christian families and individuals to live by a Biblically based worldview. Visit www.AmericanVision.org for more information, content and resources