Please make time to read Luke 21.5-24

Good Morning!

My dad had an old expression, "You asked for a drink of water, but you got the hose turned on you." 'Meaning you got more than you were asking for! The disciples might have felt that way in Jesus' response to them in verse 5 that some of them "were remarking about how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and with gifts dedicated to God." Indeed, the temple was an exquisitely beautiful structure in the ancient world. ?[please don't nod off here--the temple and the Temple Mount figure prominently in future events--so it is valuable to have a brief working knowledge of her history]? The grand temple Solomon built had been destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar in 587 b.c., and rebuilt on the same site, about 515 b.c. Herod the Great began a refurbishment about 20 b.c. and it was still going during the time of Jesus--enlarging the surrounding area to twice its former dimensions, erecting new foundation walls, etc., giving it even greater prominence in the city of Jerusalem. Josephus (1st century Jewish historian) describes the gold overlays, the great white columns of solid marble, luxurious tapestries, golden spikes atop the temple to prevent birds from settling upon it, and the massive size of some of the stones used in its building--some weighing as much as 180 tons.** Magnificent it was! Well, the temple refurbishment was complete in 67 A.D.----built to last. . . but would it?

The disciples comment on the beauty of the temple, to which Jesus says, "As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another; every one of them will be thrown down." Then Jesus embarks on a lengthy discourse of things to come, relative to Jerusalem and the temple. It is important to note that Jesus' teaching is prophetic in nature and describes two events--the coming fall of Jerusalem, in verses 8-24; and also His return, the second coming, in verses 25-36.

The disciples want to know how they will know when the destruction is about to happen; in verse 20, Jesus answers, "When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near." Here again, history is our friend, because we see that what Jesus predicted happened. Roman general Titus and his armies surrounded the city of David, and as Jesus had said 'not one stone will be left on another,' so great was her destruction in late August or early September A.D. 70., including that of the treasured temple. Not one of the mighty stones remained on another. The Romans ransacked Jerusalem and burned it to the ground; Josephus said that 'Titus so destroyed Jerusalem that, except for certain towers and wall portions deliberately left, one would scarcely have guessed that it had been inhabited.' And the people? One million, one hundred thousand Jews were killed, and 97,000 carried away captive into all nations--the prophecy of Jesus was fulfilled. The Jewish people were further dispersed from their homeland--the first diaspora taking place at the hands of the Assyrians, hundreds of years before, UNTIL 1948, when Israel became a state. Why does this matter?? Because this is why the Jews are ready to give up their lives in 2009, some 51 years after becoming a state, to maintain their homeland! This is why Jewish people around the world send money into Israel to support her and strengthen her military. And the temple? The Jews have not had one since A.D. 70, though there is a groundswell to rebuild the temple currently. Dr. Assur Koffman, a professor of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem has been involved in extensive research to locate the exact site of Solomon's Temple; his team has concluded that it stood some 322 feet north of the Dome of the Rock, which sits on the Temple Mount today. (The Dome of the Rock is the muslim holy place, dating back to the seventh century, which sits atop the Temple Mount, the previous site of the Temple.) If Koffman is correct, the temple could be rebuilt without destroying the Dome of the Rock--this is significant.

You know, when you think of Jesus and prophecy, the mind goes first to the prophecies about Jesus, the Messiah, in the Old Testament, that Jesus fulfilled when He was born--where, to whom, how He would not be received, etc. All of those point with certitude that Jesus was/is our Messiah, the One who had been foretold, and perfectly fulfilled the prophecies to the detail, hundreds of years after the prophecies had been given. But also as He taught His disciples, Jesus prophesied as well of things that would take place--the destruction of Jerusalem was one of those. But remember, here in Luke's gospel, we have had Jesus telling the disciples that He would be mocked, flogged, tried, and killed, but would rise again, which we will read of in these last couple chapters What He said would happen DID. So, not only does the fact that in Jesus was the fulfillment of prophecies spoken of Him 700+ years earlier make Him worthy of our consideration, so does what He said of Himself (and coming events) which happened as he said they would. He foreknew that Judas would betray Him and Peter would deny Him three times, and He spoke of these--they happened.

Besides having a little more understanding about the temple, and the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, what can we take from today's Scripture reading? #1) God is in control--not you, not me, and nothing happens but what His hand has ordained it. #2) Jesus Christ is a trustworthy God. What He said would happen, happened; what He said He would do, He did. He was the fulfillment of 60 prophecies and issued prophetic words Himself. Jesus Christ is worthy of our trust, and furthermore, we ought heed His words, as well as His warnings. He is not just nice little Jesus, He is God Almighty and nothing we do matters more than knowing Him.

So that you may know,

Christine **Flavius Josephus, The Wars of the Jews - book 5, chapter 5, A.D. 75.