One Greater than the Temple

BY Nicole Smithee

Where do you feel closest to God? Some might answer while hiking in the woods or sitting at the beach listening to the waves crash against the shore. Others might say they feel closest to God while attending their local church service, worshiping the Lord alongside their brothers and sisters. A number of believers might describe sitting at their kitchen table in the first minutes of their morning, sipping coffee and reading Scripture. Some might describe feeling nearest to God at the dinner table, laughing and eating amongst the family they love. 

For God’s people during Jesus’s time on earth, the answer would have been obvious—they would experience God’s presence at the temple. This is where they had worshiped and sacrificed to the Lord since the days of old, when Solomon reigned over a united and prosperous Israel. But Jesus boldly declared to God’s people that He Himself was the temple they were looking for—one not made by human hands but the Word made flesh dwelling among them (John 1:14). The implications of this message are extraordinary! Our experience of God’s presence is no longer restricted to a physical location but now is a forever reality through the person of Jesus. 

Jesus not only declared Himself to be the temple in which we encounter God’s presence but said that He was the One who would be destroyed and raised back up in three days (John 2:19). Truly, Jesus was destroyed—betrayed, arrested, accused, beaten, ridiculed, and crucified (Matthew 15:33-39). Christ’s body was broken for our transgressions, and He overcame death and the grave to offer anyone who would believe in Him eternal life. As magnificent and holy as the temple of the Lord was in Jerusalem, Jesus is the One greater than the temple (Matthew 12:6). The temple offered a place of momentary atonement and nearness to God. Jesus offers eternal salvation and continual intimacy with God. 

It’s this incomprehensible sacrifice and incomparable triumph that makes dwelling with God in every moment of our lives—and for all eternity—possible. Jesus has reconciled us to God. We have been brought into right relationship with God, not by our works but by God’s extravagant grace. Jesus shows us who God is and what it means to truly abide in Him. And Jesus promised us the gift of the Holy Spirit—the Spirit of God alive in us, our ever present Helper and Comforter. 

Certainly, there are moments as followers of Jesus in which we feel closer to God than others. In truth though, because of Jesus, God is always with us. Our prayer need not be, “God, draw near to me.” Through Jesus, He already has. Instead, our continual prayer can be, “Lord, help me draw near to you and to grow in my awareness of your presence.”