Thrown Down
“And Jesus said to him, ‘Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.’"—Mark 13:2
It has been said that contemporary American Christianity doesn’t suffer from the Oedipus complex, but the Edifice complex—that is, we are more interested in constructing nice edifices (buildings) than we are in reaching the lost with the Gospel. The American church seems more interested in being popular and drawing large crowds than it does in building the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God is not about the three B’s: buildings, budgets, and bodies. It’s not about constructing nice buildings, putting on a good show, and making increasing numbers of people feel good about themselves. No, the kingdom of God is about the Lordship of Christ being epitomized in our lives. We need to be constantly reminded that this world is not our home and the kingdom that we are building is not an earthly kingdom, but a heavenly one (cf. John 18:36).
As Jesus came out of the temple, His disciples were amazed at many of the buildings around the temple complex—their size, beauty and grandeur. They said, “Look, Teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!"—Mark 13:1. The original temple was destroyed in 586 B.C. by the Babylonians and was rebuilt in 516 B.C. under the leadership of Ezra. Herod the Great, the ruler of Jerusalem during Jesus’ birth, had expanded the temple, doubling its size and creating a building of great beauty and splendor.
Jesus said, “Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.” Jesus was foretelling the destruction of the temple that would occur in 70 A.D. by the Romans, because of misuse by the Jewish leaders (Mark 12:9; Luke 19:41-44). It was God’s judgment on the nation as well as an opportunity for them to see what God had done in and through Christ. God was not inhabiting a building constructed by human hands, but had come near to His creation in the person of Christ. And once Christ died, was buried, rose from the dead, and then ascended into heaven, He sent His Holy Spirit to dwell in us so that we may now be God’s temples (cf. 1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19).
The kingdom of God means living out Christ’s command to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength, and love our neighbor as ourselves. If we are trying to build any other type of earthly kingdom, we can be assured that it will be thrown down. Don’t be impressed with the things of man, his creation, his ability, and his power. They are nothing in comparison to Almighty God! His is the only kingdom that will last for eternity and His is the kingdom that we long for.
May we not seek first the things of this world, or to merely construct bigger buildings, greater budgets, or gather more warm bodies, but may we seek to have Christ shine forth from lost sinners who turn to Him in repentance and faith, living their lives in the joyful knowledge of who God is and what He has done! Amen.
It has been said that contemporary American Christianity doesn’t suffer from the Oedipus complex, but the Edifice complex—that is, we are more interested in constructing nice edifices (buildings) than we are in reaching the lost with the Gospel. The American church seems more interested in being popular and drawing large crowds than it does in building the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God is not about the three B’s: buildings, budgets, and bodies. It’s not about constructing nice buildings, putting on a good show, and making increasing numbers of people feel good about themselves. No, the kingdom of God is about the Lordship of Christ being epitomized in our lives. We need to be constantly reminded that this world is not our home and the kingdom that we are building is not an earthly kingdom, but a heavenly one (cf. John 18:36).
As Jesus came out of the temple, His disciples were amazed at many of the buildings around the temple complex—their size, beauty and grandeur. They said, “Look, Teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!"—Mark 13:1. The original temple was destroyed in 586 B.C. by the Babylonians and was rebuilt in 516 B.C. under the leadership of Ezra. Herod the Great, the ruler of Jerusalem during Jesus’ birth, had expanded the temple, doubling its size and creating a building of great beauty and splendor.
Jesus said, “Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.” Jesus was foretelling the destruction of the temple that would occur in 70 A.D. by the Romans, because of misuse by the Jewish leaders (Mark 12:9; Luke 19:41-44). It was God’s judgment on the nation as well as an opportunity for them to see what God had done in and through Christ. God was not inhabiting a building constructed by human hands, but had come near to His creation in the person of Christ. And once Christ died, was buried, rose from the dead, and then ascended into heaven, He sent His Holy Spirit to dwell in us so that we may now be God’s temples (cf. 1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19).
The kingdom of God means living out Christ’s command to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength, and love our neighbor as ourselves. If we are trying to build any other type of earthly kingdom, we can be assured that it will be thrown down. Don’t be impressed with the things of man, his creation, his ability, and his power. They are nothing in comparison to Almighty God! His is the only kingdom that will last for eternity and His is the kingdom that we long for.
May we not seek first the things of this world, or to merely construct bigger buildings, greater budgets, or gather more warm bodies, but may we seek to have Christ shine forth from lost sinners who turn to Him in repentance and faith, living their lives in the joyful knowledge of who God is and what He has done! Amen.
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