Pastor's Page: Marvelous in Our Eyes: How the Despised Remnant Becomes God's Eschatological Temple

Pastor's Take-away

Marvelous in Our Eyes

Solomon’s temple was thought to be one of the great wonders of the world. It stood several centuries before it was destroyed by the Babylonians. It was soon rebuilt, using the old foundations, but lacked its Solomonic splendor. Centuries later, King Herod the Great destroyed a major section of it as he usurped the Jewish throne. This gave him the opportunity to become a great temple builder. He expanded the temple’s original borders and integrated the temple walls into Jerusalem’s fortifications. The new temple was spectacular, a remarkable testimony to human engineering.

Herod completed the main temple structure about the time of Jesus’ birth, but the construction process was not brought to completion for another 50 years. Ironically, the temple itself was tragically destroyed by the Romans in A.D. 70, just a decade after its completion, underscoring the truth of the psalmist’s claim, “Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain” (127:1).

Ultimately, no matter the grandeur, no matter the time or circumstance, the Jerusalem Temple is but a shadow of God’s heavenly temple. In fact, the Bible depicts a magnificent eschatological (end-time, ideal) temple in Ezek 40-48. The language is highly figurative and stresses the essence of Temple theology, that God dwells in the midst of his people. Indeed, just verses after describing the New Jerusalem (Rev 21), the Revelator declares that there is no temple there, “because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.”

Jesus himself appropriated the essence of Temple theology for himself and his Church. Since Temple theology is encapsulated as God’s dwelling among his people, Jesus makes his disciples into the new, eschatological temple, for where two or three are gathered in the name of Jesus, God is present with them. Thus, Peter writes, “You are coming to Christ, who is the living cornerstone of God’s temple. He was rejected by people, but he was chosen by God for great honor. And you are living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple” (1 Pet 2 NLT).

Accordingly, we believers, united together in Christ, are God’s new temple. Thus Paul writes, “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst?” (1 Cor 3). To be sure, God’s Temple is in need of continuous cleansing, just like the Jerusalem temple. Nonetheless, this eschatological New Temple, God’s Church, is built upon the great CORNERSTONE. It is marvelous to our eyes, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.

Pastor's Page: ALL GLORY, LAUD, AND HONOR (Palm Sunday)

Pastor’s Take-Away

Our processional hymn is ancient, written by Theodolph of Orleans (A.D. 820). It celebrates Jesus’ coronation as king over God’s kingdom, reflected in Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. The Triumphal Entry is ironic in that five days later this same Jesus was crucified as a pathetic pretender to the throne. The irony was not lost on Theodolph since this piece celebrating of God’s rule was written while he himself was imprisoned.

There is a strong tension between the confident assertion of God’s kingship and the sin that pervades our humanity. As Longfellow wrote, despite life’s chaos, illness, grief, and death, the Christmas bells peal loud and deep:

"God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;

The Wrong shall fail, the Right prevail,

With peace on earth, good-will to men."

Jesus himself declared that the kingdom is indeed come in his own person as he raised the dead, healed disease, and cast out demons. All this reflects the inauguration of the kingdom. Christ’s death might have falsely flagged his own defeat, but his resurrection guarantees the future culmination of the kingdom when God will wipe away every tear;

Theodolph’s hymn became popular in medieval times. Christians would celebrate Palm Sunday by gathering outside the city gates. Children would sing the verses, and the crowds echo the refrain “All glory, laud, and honor to thee redeemer king.” The city gates would then open to the crowd and the worshipers would proceed to the parish church or cathedral.

But the tradition is even more ancient. The text behind the events of Palm Sunday come from Psalm 24:

Lift up your heads, you gates;

    lift them up, you ancient doors,

    that the King of glory may come in.

Who is he, this King of glory?

    The Lord Almighty—

    he is the King of glory.

We think that the ancient Israelites enacted this text in worship, like medieval worshipers. The king and his entourage outside of the city would call for the gates to be opened, and the gate keepers would ask who this glorious person is, with the crowd responding that he is the glorious king.

So also in today’s service, we open up the gates of our hearts to welcome Jesus Christ, God’s own Son who brings to us the kingdom of God.

Pastor Jim