I am certain that the Jews would have been nodding in
agreement until Stephen’s accusation.
Luke tells us that Stephen was “full of the Holy Spirit,” so we know his
recitation was spirit-guided; the question I asked myself is why Stephen was
prompted to attack them at that point in his history lesson. Here’s my thought:
the temple in Jerusalem was at the center of Jewish politics and worship. First
century Jews operated under a semi-theocratic government that their Roman
occupiers tolerated. King Herod was little more than a puppet allowed by Rome
as a concession to Jewish idiosyncrasies. It was the Sanhedrin that held the
reigns of power at the grass roots level. The Sanhedrin was chaired by the High
Priest and populated by numerous priests, making it a virtual arm of the
temple.
Stephen saw what we
may be missing because of our distance theologically and chronologically. He
saw that what Jesus had done was to make the temple an irrelevant religious
institution – along with all its political significance. Absent the temple, the
Jewish leadership had no power, and it was that power they sought to protect by
having the upstart Galilean Rabbi killed. Twenty centuries later, we might not
see the true impact of Jesus’ prophecy that the temple would be destroyed. We
correctly understand His metaphorical reference to His physical body; we may
misjudge how essential the
literal statement, “Not one stone left here on another” is to His
proclamation. Just as Christ’s death on the cross put an end to the sacrificial
system, the total destruction of the temple in 70 AD put, “It is finished” on
the entire Old Covenant.
It is probable that when Paul wrote that believers’ bodies
were the temple of the Holy Spirit, the temple in Jerusalem was still standing.
Paul’s early commitment to the entire Jewish system surely would have left him
with a deep reverence for the word “temple.” He would not use it lightly. By
calling believers’ temples, he was underlining the contrast between the two
temples. Jesus’ death paved the way for God to dwell in us. The center of our
lives, the true source of any power we may have is the God-in-us Emmanuel. Thus
Paul
says, “I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ
lives in me, and that life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith
in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
Many people today have a problem similar to the one the
Jewish leadership had with Jesus. The Jews were trying to protect a temple that
was no longer home to God’s earthly presence. People who claim to be Christians
but live as practical atheists are making a similar mistake. The
Psalmist tells us “the fool says in his heart ‘There is no god.’” In
biblical Hebrew, the heart symbolized the core of a person’s being. By saying
there is no god, the fool is admitting that the “temple” is empty. John
MacArthur writes, “A fool, then, begins by living as if there were no God,
substituting himself as god and determining his own style of life…. The world
is full of the opinions of fools—fools who have denied God in their living, who
have become their own gods, and who mock the reality and consequences of sin.”[1]
Sadly, this tendency is too prevalent among many who claim
to be teachers of the Word. But then, this is precisely what Paul
told Timothy would happen: “Now the Spirit explicitly says that in the last
times some will depart from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits
and teachings of demons.” One might say the teachings of fools. MacArthur
continues, “In contrast to fools, you as a believer are blessed to have the
Spirit of wisdom indwelling you and illuminating your understanding of His
Word. Your words to others are based on the wisdom of Scripture, not empty
speculation.”
Jesus
said, “From the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.” We need to pay
close attention to what people are saying – even those who claim to be
Christians. Paul
explains how one can descend into foolishness: “For although they knew
God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks, but they
became futile in their reasoning, and their senseless hearts were darkened. Claiming
to be wise, they became fools.” We need to be discerning people, guarding the
temple of our hearts – renewing our minds.
At the close of the Revelation of John, the New Jerusalem is
revealed as a city without a temple. Why? It’s for the same reason there is no
sun: God’s light is universal. In the same way every resident in the heavenly
Jerusalem is a temple: God
has made His dwelling in man. Here’s the shocker: according to the writer of Hebrews, we have already come to that New Jerusalem. The verb tense used for
“come” indicates a past action with present, continuing results. It is obvious
why Stephen turned the corner when he got to the temple. He knew where the true
temple was. He knew the Jews did not know. Do you?
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