Architecture

Temple Thrown Down

/ Tim A. / Leave a comment

“And as He went out of the temple, one of His disciples saith unto Him, ‘Master, see what manner of stones and what buildings!’And Jesus answering said unto him, ‘Seest thou these great buildings? There shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.’ And as He sat upon the mount of Olives over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, ‘Tell us, when shall these things be, and what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled?'” Mark 13:1-4  (KJB)

From the past…

This was the last time that Jesus would be in the temple.  He had just applauded the widow as she gave all she possessed, and chided the religious leaders because they had only given according to their riches.  What matters to God is the attitude of one’s heart not the amount one gives or their prestige, or position.

There was nothing in all the world like this temple in its grandeur.  It had beautiful marble stones with gold ornamentation which reached a height of 100 feet, there were colonaded walkways, courtyards, and stairways that filled 20 acres of the most prominent landscape in Jerusalem.  From our human perspective it is no wonder the disciples made such a statement.

“These buildings”  were those of the temple and probably surrounding area which were marvelous architectural wonders.  They would not be able to endure the “wrath” that would come showing God’s disapproval of the Hebrew’s rejection of their Messiah.  When the temple would fall their sacrifices would cease, and they [the Hebrews] would be scattered to the “ends of the earth”.

When looking at this time and the situation they were in we must ask ourselves, “What is important in life?”  Is it buildings and lands?  Is it money and finances?  Maybe it is science and technology?  Wilfred Hahn a global portfolio manager has dubbed these as MOFI and SCITE.  There is a third one called GLOBO, which is a growing desire for global unity and tying of all nations to one another in the above things.  To explain these names are an acronyn for MOFI = Money/Finance; SCITE = Science/Technology; GLOBO = Global orgainization and unity.

The Jewish leaders; religious and otherwise; would learn in the years to come that what they held so dear would not stand.  What about us?  Can we learn from their foolishness?  I pray so.

The Laughter Of The LORD

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The rulers of earth under the crafty counsel of the serpent, and many times without their notice, or care seek to overthrow the direction of the Almighty God.  We looked at this in the first three verses of the Second Psalm.  The rage of the nations against the Almighty will come to naught. Our “science” and technology are given to us because our Creator has created.  Without God there would be no science or technology.  There would be no man; nor would there be any part of creation.

“He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision.  Then shall He speak unto them in His wrath, and vex them in His sore displeasure.” Psalm 2:4-5 (KJV).

Have you ever thought of God as laughing?  There is no doubt that He laughs.  I do not believe, as a matter of fact, I know I would not want Him laughing in this matter toward me.  This concerns the puny efforts of men. It kind of reminds me of the idea of man creating life, and God says, “Get your own dirt”.  We cannot create life without that which God has already given.

We humans are many times awed by the work of our own hands.  The architectural designs of buildings, our cities skylines are sometimes beautiful in the evenings lit by electrical power; but nothing compares to the beauties of God’s creation.  The automotive designs of our automobiles; but what about the design of the human body; designed by our Creator.  The books and articles that are written; what about the book He has breathed for us to read, and heed.  These other things are the works of men.  It can be seen even in the religions of mankind.  “Look at what I have done” is too many times in the hearts of men.

God, the LORD, is the One who sits in the heavens.  He is the one who laughs at our petty attempts at being god.  That is what is on display here.  Attempts similar to that of the devil when he five times proclaimed “I will” (Isaiah 14:12-15).  In this God, the LORD, will have nothing but contempt for these hateful designs of godhood.  It is the arrogance and pride of the human will that keeps them from calling on the name of our Creator for salvation; or sometimes even acknowledging that He exists.

In His love He has given us His Son, and struck Him (judging all sin) on the cross that all who will call on His name will be saved.  In His wrath He speaks to them and shows His great displeasure.  There is only one way to give pleasure to the LORD God, and that is through His gift to us of His Son Jesus.  He does not laugh at those who are in Him.

-Tim A. Blankenship