So Jeff and I had a nice long conversation last nite about the idea of the Third Temple being built to reinstitute sacrifices, temple worship, etc. The Dispensationalists need this because in their viewpoint, this brings Antichrist into the picture, which by default would mean the Rapture prior to that. The question really is: Is it likely that it will happen? Will God allow it, knowing that it's the wrong way? Or did Jesus, Stephen in Acts 7, Paul in Galatians 3, or the author of Hebrews all say back then, "you've got it all wrong! All these things leading up to Jesus were but a shadow and a type of things to come."
I also don't need to explain that the prosperity gospel loves the Left Behind idea, because God doesn't want any of us to suffer. He wants us to have our BMWs and be whisked away, right?
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Rich,
ReplyDeleteIn response to your first question, is it likely that a third Temple will be built, I say "yes", mainly because there are Jewish people who are working towards this. A (‘The’?) Sanhedrin has been reconstituted and unlike previous efforts at reestablishing this ancient body, this time it appears to have taken hold: http://www.thesanhedrin.org/en/index.php/The_Nascent_Sanhedrin. It seems apparent that there is a significant faction within Judaism that desires to restore temple worship (http://www.templeinstitute.org/main.htm), though this is by no means universal (http://www.jcpa.org/jpsr/s99-yc.htm). It’s my understanding that about a third of Mosaic Law cannot be practiced without a Temple. Thus it seems only logical that the restoration of Temple worship would be an objective of some within Judaism.
Your second question, “Will God allow it?”, is a nonstarter. “Why wouldn’t he?” seems to be a better question. Based on the NT scriptural support that you provide following your question, I assume your response to the rhetorical question of “Will God allow it?” is “No, because Christ was the ultimate sacrifice – Once and for All”. And that *is* an accurate answer to the question “Would God be honored by or accept restored Temple worship?”
The thing is, we know God allows all sorts of things which are contrary to his prescriptive will. God prescribes, or desires, that all people worship him as the only true and living God, and yet we see that he permits people to follow the dictates of their fallen hearts.
Moreover, the support you provide means zilch to the folks who would be rebuilding the Temple. That is, I doubt the Sanhedrin will be consulting the book of Hebrews before breaking ground on a new Temple. So the question remains, why wouldn’t God allow the Jews to rebuild the Temple. I can see no reason why not.
Now, one might also ask the question of whether a restored Temple figures into the eschatology of Matthew 24. At a minimum, it would seem fitting given Matthew 25 and its three parables of folks who missed the boat (sleepy virgins, lazy servants, and goats). People busily distracted with restoring Temple worship and other external forms of religiosity when Jesus returns? Seems quite apropos.
All of the above argumentation aside, I don’t know if the Temple will be restored or if it figures into the return of Christ, but it would certainly be a poetic scene to witness Christ, the embodiment of the New Covenant return to (restore?/implement?/impose?) true worship of God on earth just as the means of worship under the Old Covenant was being reestablished.
-Archie
Rich - I forgot to add 2 Thessalonians 2 to my list of supports for a third Temple. It seems that the man of lawlessness will appear in the Temple before the coming of Christ. You could make the point that Titus fulfilled that, but I think that'd be a pretty weak argument.
ReplyDelete- Archie
The alternative of course is that Nero is the Man of Lawlessness. Another interesting point is that "temple" used in 2 Thess. 2:4 is not the same "temple" used in describing Jesus' thrashing of the money changers, and is more an allusion to Antiochus, or Caligula, or the people that desire God's place. Rather than a physical temple, which Jesus said is his body, it typifies the desire to be god, like the Caesars did.
ReplyDeleteThat seems thin. Mighty thin, and well beyond my level of hermeneutical elasticity. The genre of the letter (general epistle) and context of the passage scream K.I.S.S. and militate against any sort of nuanced interpretation.
ReplyDeleteThe Thessalonians were worried that they'd missed Christ's return and the Resurrection and Paul is saying "Don't worry, when He returns, you'll know it!".
Don't tell me you've one-upped Harold Camping and think the Resurrection has already occurred? ;)
On the flip side, the temple of God could refer to the Church, in which case this passage would be referring to a leader within the Church who sets himself up as Christ/God. That would go well with the language about "falling away". Wait - you're supposed to be making that argument....
So I've come to the conclusion that it's anyone's guess about 666 and the 3rd Temple. On Wiki, though, some thoughts:
ReplyDeleteBen F. Meyer, also, argued that Jesus applied prophecy regarding Zion and temple to himself and his followers:
[Jesus] affirmed the prophecies of salvation with their end-time imagery Zion and the temple—belonging to the eschatological themes that the "pilgimage of the peoples" evoked. But contrary to the common expectation of his contemporaries, Jesus expected the destruction of the temple in the coming eschatological ordeal (Mark 13:2=Matt 24:2=Luke 21:6). The combination seems contradictory. How could he simultaneously predict the ruin of the temple in the ordeal and affirm the end-time fulfillment of promise and prophecy on Zion and temple? The paradox is irresolvable until one takes note of another trait of Jesus' words on the imagery of Zion and temple, namely, the consistent application to his own disciples of Zion- and temple-imagery: the city on the mountain (Matt 5:14; cf. Thomas, 32), the cosmic rock (Matt 16:18; cf. John 1:42), the new sanctuary (Mark 14:58; Matt 26:61). The mass of promise and prophecy will come to fulfillment in this eschatological and messianic circle of believers.[10]
OK Rich (aka The Tommy Gun of Amillenialism),
ReplyDeleteYour last post was the theological equivalent of "sweep the leg". I've blown a fuse and will have to move on to a more pedestrian subject after the swelling in my cerebral cortex goes down.
Humbly,
-Archie
Starchy Archie, I didn't comment on your quick ability to find an obscure reference to Judges last Friday, but I thought it was very impressive:)
ReplyDelete