GOD WANTS HIS HOUSE BUILT!
Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin? Haggai 1:4
The original temple or house that Solomon built was beautiful, grand, and glorious. It was the chosen meeting place for God and his people. Unfortunately, that beautiful and holy temple was eventually defiled because of the people’s sins. God allowed that temple to be destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BC, and his people were taken into captivity. After 70 years in Babylon, the remnant of Judah returned to the land according to the prophet Jeremiah’s word (Jer. 29:10). God then allowed them to begin rebuilding the temple. They laid the foundation and built the altar, but the temple was not completed. It remained in that unfinished state until around 520 BC. During that time the people were happily building and furnishing their own houses while the house of God was neglected. Finally, under the leadership of Zerubbabel, and with the encouragement of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, the temple was completed in 516 BC.
It seems to me that our situation in the Christian church today is somewhat similar to the situation in the days of the return from Babylon. Because of the people’s sin and the rejection of their Messiah, the temple was destroyed again in AD 70. Once more the people of God were dispersed. This time when the temple was destroyed the Jewish people were once more scattered over the nations with many going back to Babylon. Unfortunately, this dispersion has lasted for some 2,000 years. Somehow Christians have become a part of this situation.
THE NEW TEMPLE THAT JESUS MADE POSSIBLE
Jesus said that if the temple was destroyed he would rebuild it in three days (Jn. 2:19). Apparently, many people heard Jesus make this statement because they kept repeating it as a charge against him (Matt. 26:51; 27:40; Mk.14:58; 15:29). He also may have made that same statement on several occasions in his teaching. However, the temple he spoke about was the temple of his body. We remember that his body ultimately became the church (1 Cor. 12:27).
When Jesus was crucified, buried in the earth for three days, and was gloriously resurrected, the new, eternal temple was completed. It began as a spiritual temple that needed to be fleshed out with believing people. God wants more than just an eternal, spiritual temple in the heavens. He wants that temple to be manifested on the earth in the lives of his saints.
THE NEW TEMPLE IS PICTURED ON EARTH
In Ephesians chapter 2 we learn that the manifestation of that temple on earth is the salvation and union of redeemed Jews and Gentiles. This is a new humanity made up of Jewish and Gentile believers in Christ (Eph. 2:14-16, 21). Let us take a close look at these important verses.
For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups [Jews and Gentiles] one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility… In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.
The Lord had to deal with a lot of hostility. First of all, God had to keep his people separate from Gentiles for many centuries. Had they come together, the unique Jewish faith would have been compromised and absorbed into the pagan Gentile world. The Jews did not closely associate with Gentiles. They did not eat some Gentile foods and they did not accept Gentile idols. They had many biblical customs that created a lot of tension between them and Gentiles.
After Jesus came and the gospel began to be preached, many Gentiles came into the faith. This created numerous problems for the Jews because Gentile believers were not circumcised. It even created problems for believing, Messianic (Christian) Jews. The problems were so severe that the great church conference of Acts 15 had to be called to solve them. Eventually, Gentiles began to be accepted freely into the Jewish church. In time, the Jews were greatly outnumbered and the church essentially became Gentile in its makeup.
THE GENTILE CHURCH
The Day of Pentecost in Acts chapter 2 might have been our first glimpse of this glorious temple. However, it was only made up of Jewish people. It was therefore only a partial glimpse of the glorious reality. So far as we know, there were no Gentile believers present for that event. At that early point, Gentiles were not yet coming into the church. The Jewish believers by themselves were not able to give us a complete picture of the new temple.
But now almost 2000 years have passed and this wonderful temple has not been completed on earth. In fact, the Gentiles alone have done a very poor job of bringing this new temple into existence. There have been some glorious moments for sure, like the great revivals that touched millions of lives along the way. Yet, the temple was not completed. Perhaps we were too busy building our own houses, church buildings, denominations, etc.
Tragically, as early as the second century, the church began to loathe its Jewish counterpart. Many church leaders spoke ill about the Jews and even encouraged their persecution. Soon Jewish people were being discriminated against, persecuted, and even murdered in the name of Christ. By the time of the Spanish Inquisition, beginning in 1391, the persecution greatly expanded. It is estimated that some 30,000 “heretics” were burned at the stake. Sadly, many of these were Messianic Jews. Others were just Jews in general. It is said that in those days even lighting a candle on Friday evening could consign one to the Inquisition. Eventually, all the remaining Jewish people were expelled from both the Christian countries of Spain and Portugal.
Then came the Holocaust where six million Jews were slaughtered. Many fell in Germany, which was the source of the persecution. That was also the land of the great Reformation and of Martin Luther, who himself at times sounded very antisemitic. Today many Christians have a cool attitude toward Jews. Antisemitism is now rising all over the world, even in Christian nations. Some of our oldest and largest Christian denominations are now avid supporters of the BDS movement. They seek to boycott, divest, and sanction Israel in order to destroy the nation.
It appears that the church has had a stay in Babylon, the land of bondage and confusion. Only, we have not just been there 70 years but almost 2000 years.
COMING OUT OF BABYLON
God wants his people to come home to Zion. He wants his heavenly temple to be built on earth and he wants the building to begin now. Interestingly, one of the largest and most important sections of the Book of Revelation is the destruction of Babylon. We must realize that Babylon was never just a city, but a powerful spiritual force that has kept believers from their heritage. Revelation deals with Babylon’s judgment from chapter 14 through chapter 18. Perhaps one of the most important verses is the announcement of the fall of Babylon in Revelation 14:8. It is clear that the harlot Babylon had to fall before the true Bride of Christ could be revealed.
Even the Reformer Martin Luther, wrote of the Babylonian Captivity of the Church. We would have to say “Amen!” The church has been in Babylonian captivity for most of the last 2000 years. Now we can understand that Babylon is beginning to fall. It’s over. We can now come out of Babylon and let the Lord free us of our antisemitism and many other false ideas. It is time to go home! It is time to construct God’s house, the real temple on earth that is made up of believing people, both Jews and Gentiles. The time has come for us to leave Babylon and go up to Zion. Many Jewish people have sensed this and have returned to the natural land of Israel.
And the ransomed of the LORD shall return and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. (Isa. 35:10 ESV)
This does not mean that everyone has to go to Israel, even for a visit. It certainly does not mean that we have to become Jewish and place ourselves under the law. It does mean that we need to acquire a Jewish heart. Now is the time to set our hearts on pilgrimage to Zion (Psa. 84:5). We need to learn all we can about Israel and yes, even visit Israel if possible. We need to do some serious spiritual ancestry study. Certainly, we need to pray continually for the peace of Jerusalem (Psa. 122:6) and all Israel as well. Then, we need to publish the good news of redemption to the ends of the earth (Isa. 48:20). We should give God no rest until he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth (Isa. 62:7).
It is time we uncovered the two best-kept secrets in the church. 1. Jesus is Jewish! 2. Our Christian family tree is Jewish! (Rom. 11:17). It is time to understand, proclaim, and celebrate this wonderful reality. It is time to let God’s temple be built. Back in the days of the 70s and 80s spiritual movement, we used to sing this little song written by an unknown believer:
Let there be singing,
let there be joy,
Let there be praise,
in the house of the Lord.
Let there be dancing,
Rejoice! Rejoice!
We’re building together
the house of the Lord.
-Jim Gerrish
Published 2025