(remember, these are unedited/draft show notes, not a transcript — listening is always better — and if you listen AND follow along below, you’ll see why)
Conversation Starter:
What's the temple in salvation history?
Intro:
Happy Groundhog Day. Or 50 First Dates day. Or Remember Sunday day. And thanks to listener Carla for that last suggestion…loved Remember Sunday.
Hey Hopeful, welcome to ForTheHope’s Daily Audio Bible and a chance to see our stories and work in light of God’s story. Me, I’m just groundhog dude back for another day of asking God whattup.
Yesterday we took a step back to look at the idea of “salvation history” — God’s personal redemptive work in all of what we know of as time, and that the Bible is a unified story that all points to the person and work of Jesus. That said, I’m not sure I did a good job being explcitly about why the temple stories were such an important part of that.
NEW TESTAMENT SEGMENT:
In fact, today’s NT segment continues with a narrative connects Jesus’ redeeming work as the perfect sacrifice and the temple…Jesus and a his disciples have traveled to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover — the remembrance of when God struck down the firstborn in Egypt and passed over his chosen people (at least the ones who obeyed by slaughtering a lamb and marking their doors with its blood). This, of course, was done at the temple.
Passage: Luke 22:1-38
Translation: CSB (Christian Standard Bible)
Verses: 38
Words: ~812
And on that note, we’re on the cusp of Jesus being the ultimate and final sacrifice, thus ending the need for sacrifice in the temple…and we know that, as we heard Jesus prophesy yesterday, that temple was destroyed in 70AD.
ORIGINAL TESTAMENT SEGMENT:
But if that was the end of the temple, in our OT segment today we hear Solomon dedicate the beginning of the temple.
Passage: 2 Chronicles 5-6
Translation: CSB (Christian Standard Bible)
Verses: 56
Words: ~1688
THE BOTTOM LINE:
My friends, sorry, I’m going to save God’s response ‘til tomorrow. What’s the big deal about the temple in salvation history?
For His own good reasons, God chose Israel to be the nation through which He blessed the world. Their place of meeting Him relationally and sacrificially was something they went to.
But the story doesn’t stop there. Jesus' being the ultimate sacrifice ended the need for the temple and sacrificial system, and his temple is now you. The place of meeting Him relationally and sacrificially is now you and through you going.
ForTheHope is a daily audio Bible + apologetics podcast and blog. We’ve got a passion for just keepin’ it real, having conversations like normal people, and living out the love of Jesus better every single day.
Roger Courville, CSP is a globally-recognized expert in digitally-extended communication and connection, an award-winning speaker, award-winning author, and a passionately bad guitarist. Follow him on Twitter -- @RogerCourville and @JoinForTheHope – or his blog: www.forthehope.org.
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