How was Jesus the fulfillment of the temple? 

2 Corinthians 1:20 – For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. 

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Jesus’ visit to the temple represented a new epoch in human history. When Jesus and the temple come together, we see the fulfillment of the Old Covenant and the inauguration of the New Covenant taking place. 

  1. The temple was the connecting place between heaven and earth. God is in heaven as Creator, we are on earth as created, and God’s very presence dwelt in the temple, in the Holy of Holies, making it the most sacred place on earth. Jesus came to connect the two realms.
  2. The temple was the place of God’s presence. In the Old Testament, if you wanted to be near God, you had to go to the temple. Now we can go to Jesus Himself as our Great High Priest and mediator.
  3. The temple was where God’s people would come to meet with him. We no longer need a place to meet God. We can talk to Jesus whenever we want.
  4. The temple was the place where sin was atoned for. Priests would perform sacrifices, but Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice, atoning for sin once and for all.
  5. The temple was the center of life and faith and worship. Four-hundred years before Jesus’ birth, the prophet Malachi prophesied that the Messiah would come to the temple. The temple was destroyed in 70 A.D., just like Jesus said it would be (Matthew 26:61; Mark 14:58; John 2:19). Why? We have no need of it any longer. It has served its purpose. For hundreds of years, the temple prepared people for the coming of Jesus. And then He came.

Thank God that, while going to church is important and beneficial, we no longer have to go to a place, like the temple, to be close to God. Thank Him that we can talk to Him and the Holy Spirit can be with us anywhere we are.

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