"Temples Will Come Down"

Have you ever heard someone say "if my church closes I’ll probably just stop going".   Or I don’t think I could go to another church if mine were to close?   That brings to mind a question:  Have you ever considered the question:  Why do I go to Church?

Nov 13 2016 Readings:  2 Thessalonians: Luke 21: 5-19

The buildings or temples of Jesus’ time were seen as the place where God resides.   In fact when I was a young boy growing up in the Anglican Church the sanctuary was the holy place.   You were to sit in silence, nar to uttering a word less you be scolded or struck with a hand.   These godly buildings were considered sacred places where one encounters the ONE holy God.   Therefore it was blasphemous for Jesus to suggest that God would allow the destruction of his house.  Yet, it was becoming more and more difficult to distinguish who or what was actually being worshiped in these temples.   Was it God, was it the building, the donated plaques on the walls, or was it the spiritual leader.  Often Clergy, Priest, Rabbi, or the building is the real reason many attend.   Now does any of that this sound familiar?  This problem continued on through out the centuries and the same question is often asked of the modern church today.  What and who are we worshiping, and why are there so many houses for God.  Doesn’t God only need one house?    I don’t know about you but I often hear these comments from people both inside and outside the Church.  Why then, are we not asking this same question of ourselves?   WHY DO WE COME TO CHURCH!  Many today still feel that the building where we worship is more important that the church family that occupies it.  Religions are in a sad state of affairs folks.

That in fact if a particular worship space were to somehow come to its end many would also walk away from their church family.  For them it becomes the end of Church but yet we have stood and sung to children. I am the church, you are the Church we are the church together, all who follow Jesus, all around the world, yes were the church together.  The church is not a building; the church is not a steeple; the church is not a resting place; the church is a people.

The bigger question then, becomes more personal and should be explored.  What motivates you to come, the building, the speaker or the people?  Jesus is not trying to save buildings folks.  This truth is so simple it’s hard to teach!

Jesus tells his listeners, both then and now that the walls of the temple as we know it, will meet its end.   He is telling them the winds of change and the flood waters will come for every generation, and we will not know the time or the day when change will come, for Jesus himself declares, that even He does not know the moment, but assures them and us, that there will be signs that change is coming.   To use a modern day quote “ The writing is on the wall folks.”

In verse 13 of the passage, Jesus says something very peculiar and these passages are often interpreted as if he was speaking of Armageddon or the end times. That is one interpretation but may I suggest that Jesus was not predicting for us the end of our world but was speaking to the early disciples about his physical death on the cross and its aftermath?  Telling them that there would will be trouble, persecution, and eventually death for him and those whom He chose to forge the shape of a new Church.  He goes on to say that the outcome of their witness to his gospel, his death, and their time of precaution would lay the foundation of a new church.   Either way, He was talking about major change, and when this change comes, it will be our chance to bear witness to others about Him during our end time.  

We in the church today do not necessarily have to face such trial or tribulation but it is much easier for us to tell others about the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ when things are going well in our lives or in our church family.   May I suggest these passages are speaking to us today: that the real test of faith is going to be your ability to testify when things are not so good, when the temples of your life are being threatened or torn apart, when disaster or death strikes?   The question then becomes not about temples but will you anchor hold in the storms of life.     

Nothing gets our attention any quicker than statements concerning change.  Especially when someone suggests that, what we have, will be taken away, or will turn to ashes in the blink of an eye.   Nature has its own mind and will often shake us at the very core of our being.   You can be guaranteed that the winds of change will continue to come no matter what we do or how we try and protect ourselves.   Anyone who has lost a loved one, lost their job, their home or their savings can testify to this gospel truth.   I recent weeks many Nova Scotians, especially Cape Breton had a firsthand experience of this.   Some families have had to accept the loss of everything they owned, houses destroyed, personal belongings gone.   Some may begin to realize that they can no longer live the way they have always lived, and it all seems to have happened overnight.   This was the case for Sim and Carolyn Rushton of 52 Ellis Street in Oxford N. S. in the year 2000.   The street on which our house was located was now a small lake, there was over 3’ of water in our basement and rising.   How could this be happening to us, in the 37 years we had lived there it had never happened before!   No one could get in or out of the down town areas in which we lived, and everything we had in our basement was completely destroyed. The freeze was floating door opened and it contents somewhere on the floor, tools, furnace, sports equipment, everything was under water.  The power company had shout of the power so all we could do was watch as the water came.  For many neighbors it was now over the first floor of their homes.  This had been our home for over 30 years and had been in Carolyn’s family for over 100 years.   Not only was there great loss for everyone but after the flood had receded our area of town was now labeled flood plain and so the values of the homes in that area of town plummeted, along with everyone’s hopes for a recovery.  It was one of the darkest times in our lives.  Nothing is more gut-wrenching than that feeling of hopelessness and loss.   Yet Jesus said in verse 13 tells us that this is the very time for us, the faithful to testify.  This is the time when our faith must kick in, we will survive because God has been good to us in the past and God will continue to give us opportunities to continue in the future.       This was the hope for those who endure the exodus from Egypt, and for those struggling with great change today.  Have faith in God and turn your thoughts towards gratitude for God will make a way for you, you can trust God.   

Yes end times will come, when your temples will be torn down, be they physical buildings, churches, or our bodies.  But let us remember that we worship a God of Hope, a God of Possibilities.  Let us praise God, for God will make Good out of every situation.   

                                   WHO IS THE CHURCH?