And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.
Matthew 24:1-2
And as he went out of the temple, one of his disciples saith unto him, Master, see what manner of stones and what buildings are here! 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.
Mark 13:1-2
And as some spake of the temple, how it was adorned with goodly stones and gifts, he said, As for these things which ye behold, the days will come, in the which there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.
Luke 21:5-6
The Temple, no doubt, was an impressive structure. There were stones used in the walls that were over 60 feet long. It had pillars around its porches that were nearly forty feet high. All of these were made of shining marble and adorned with ornaments of precious metals. It had to be a wonder to behold, especially for a group from Galilee that may have only seen it a few times during their lives!
But the sobering fact is…the disciples were in awe and wonder over a temple and an entire city that was already under the judgment of God and would soon be destroyed.
As we saw yesterday, the glory of the Temple was not its natural construction and architecture. It was glorious because the Lord was there. And the disciples missed that.
We are in danger of missing the glory of the Lord in our lives and worship as well. A focus on superficial worldly beauty robs us of seeing the glory of the presence of Jesus in simple New Testament worship.
I am not saying that we should not take care of our personal property or houses of worship. But I am saying that an inordinate focus or desire for worldly comfort and beauty is misplaced.
There is nothing in this world that should hold our attention or devotion. Peter tells us the end result of all of it:
But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
2nd Peter 3:10
Consider what the commentator Matthew Henry says about affection for earthly things:
“A believing foresight of the defacing of all worldly glory will help to take us off from admiring it, and overvaluing it. The most beautiful body will be shortly worms’ meat, and the most beautiful building a ruinous heap.”
If we put our trust, confidence, or devotion in manmade structures, institutions, or systems, we are devoting ourselves to things that will all be destroyed at the end of time when the Lord returns.
We need to set our affections higher (Colossians 3:2). And if we glory in anything, let us glory in the Lord (1st Corinthians 1:31)!
Let us be thankful for His presence in our humble worship of the King of peace and grace. The Bride of Christ is truly glorious because of her Bridegroom!
Lowrance Ministries 