Transition is a huge challenge! People like the way things have been. The older people become, the more their desire for important things to remain unchanged tends to increase. People like the familiar. They like needed improvements they understand, but they do not like radical change.
That is especially true in the practice of religion. A religious practice may not be very old. The practice may involve questions older than the practice itself. However, the questions do not matterif the religious practice is as old as parents or grandparents, the religious practice is ancient. The practice is not to be questioned or changed, and is without doubt correct.
If we think religious change is challenging today, can we begin to imagine the challenges religious change produced 2000 years ago?
Some of those challenges involved truly ancient practices. There was holy ground, holy sites, holy geographical turf, temples, multiple gods, and idolatry. Temples were not built anywhere and everywhere like todays church buildings. They were built at an appropriate site on appropriate geography. If a church building is built, the two primary questions are, Is cheap land available? Is the place big enough for the buildings now needed, for future expansion, and for the vehicles we will bring? Their questions might be, Has the god touched this place? Is the site located on holy ground? We think about convenient parking; they thought about pilgrimages. We think about ease and accessibility; they thought about meaning and difficulty.
Lest you think such considerations are strictly pagan, Moses stood on holy ground and was commanded by God to remove his sandals in Exodus 3:4, 5. A cloud (not people) determined when the tabernacle would travel and where it would go (Exodus 40:34-38). A cloud showed Gods acceptance of the tabernacle and the temple (Exodus 40:34, 35 and 1 Chronicles 5:14). The Jewish temple seemed to be built on the site where Abraham was called to offer Isaac (Genesis 22:1, 2, 14), and the site where King David sacrificed to keep a plague from entering Jerusalem (2 Samuel 24:15-25). Sacrifices were not to be offered at cultic sites (which were numerous in Canaan), but at one geographical place selected by God (Deuteronomy 12:1-14). The place the devout Jew performed a religious act definitely mattered to God.
That is drastically different from the Christian concept of today. Evangelistic Christian thought stresses that there are no holy places, no holy sites, and no divine geography. Evangelistic Christian concepts stress that it is not a matter of WHERE but a matter of WHAT. Evangelistic Christians stress divine acceptability is based on peoples behavior, not on place. Evangelistic Christians often quote Matthew 18:20 noting where two or three are gathered in Jesus namethe emphasis is on people, not geographical place.
The gospels make it quite evident that Jesus did not shun the Jewish temple area in Jerusalem. Matthew made these points: (1) Part of Jesus early temptation occurred in the temple environment (4:5). (2) He is greater than the temple [Gods presence in him is more significant than Gods presence in the temple] (12:6). (3) The temple was a place of prayer [recall Solomons dedication], not a place of commerce (21:12, 13). (4) The temple area was one of the places Jesus healed (21:14). (5) The temple area was one of the places Jewish leadership challenged Jesus (21:23). (6) Jesus declared that the temple area, as impressive as it was, was temporary (24:1, 2). (7) Jesus taught publicly in the temple complex (26:55).
Mark made these points: (1) When Jesus visited Jerusalem, he taught in the temple complex and emphasized the original purpose of that complex (11:15-18). (2) He confronted the Jewish leadership there (11:27-33). (3) It was a site for Jesus discussing the Christ, hypocrisy, and the basis of generosity to God (12:35-44). (4) Jesus presented the temporary nature of the temple (13:1-8). (5) During the last week of his physical life, it was the site of daily teaching (14:48, 49).
Luke made these points: (1) Jesus was presented at the temple as any Jewish firstborn male was to be. Jesus mission [when he was a baby] was confirmed then by Simeon and Anna (2:22-38). (2) When Jesus was 12, he was in the temple area learning and questioning (2:41-51). (3) The temple complex was the site of one of Jesus early temptations (4:9-12). (4) The temple area was the setting for some of Jesus parables (18:10). (4) The temple was to be a place of prayer, not a place for taking advantage of people (19:45, 46). (5) The last week of his physical life, Jesus taught daily in the temple area, and was extremely popular with the people (19:47, 48; 21:37). (6) Jesus was confronted in the temple area by the leaders of the temple complex about his teaching and actions (20:1-8). (7) He stressed the temple was temporary (21:5, 6). (8) The last week of Jesus physical life, people came early to the temple complex to hear Jesus teach (21:38). (9) Those who controlled the temple including its Jewish security force were among those who arrested Jesus (22:52, 53). The disciples [11 of the 12] continued in the temple praising God after Jesus ascended (24:53).
These things are mentioned by John: (1) Jesus cleansed the temple area (2:14-16). (2) Jesus talked to the man he healed at the pool of Bethesda in the temple area (5:14). (3) Jesus taught in the temple area (7:14, 28ff; 8:2, 20, 59; 10:23). (4) The arrested Jesus affirmed he taught publicly in synagogues and the temple (18:19, 20).
Acts documented the role the temple played in the life of the early Jewish Christians (all converts to Jesus Christ were Jewish in Acts 2-10). (1) The original converts visited the temple area daily (2:46). (2) The first recorded miracle performed by Christians was performed as Peter and John went into the temple area (3:1, 2). (3) The first arrest of Christians occurred because Peter and John were teaching in the temple area affirming Jesus was an example of resurrection (4:1-3). (5) When the arrested apostles were released by an angel, they were commanded to teach in the temple area, which they did (5:20, 21). (6) The apostles taught daily in the temple area (5:42).
Consider the enormous change for both Jewish and gentile Christians to understand that the Christian temple was not a geographical place with a structure, but the Christian temple was people who were in Jesus Christ , who placed their trust in Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 3:16,17; 6:19; 2 Corinthians 6:16; Ephesians 2:19-21; 1 Peter 2:5-10). That was a radical change!
For Thought and Discussion
1. Discuss this: People, by Gods direction, recognized holy sites to be geographical sites.
2. Discuss Jesus physical association with Israels temple in Jerusalem.
3. Discuss the early converts association with the Jewish temple.
4. What was a radical change for Christian converts?
Link to Teacher's Guide
Lesson 6