Chapter 11
Rebuilding the Temple In the Last Days
Matthew wrote: "And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? Verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down. And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?" (Matt. 24:1-3). Matthew also recorded: "And Jesus answered, and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you (with false teachings). For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.., and there shall be FAMINES, and PESTILENCES, and EARTHQUAKES, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. And then shall many be offended (fall away), and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.
And many FALSE PROPHETS shall rise, and shall DECEIVE MANY. And because INIQUITY SHALL ABOUND, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. And THIS GOSPEL of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come" (Matt. 24:4,5, 7,8, 10-14).
Again, Matthew said: "When ye therefore shall see the ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION (the powers of darkness) spoken of by Daniel the prophet, STAND IN THE HOLY PLACE (whoso readeth, let him understand [let him understand that the bodies of men were created by God to be His holy place])... For then shall be GREAT TRIBULATION, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. For there shall rise false Christs and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect" (Matt. 24:15, 21, 23, 24).
Peter wrote: "Wherefore also it is contained in the Scripture, Behold, I lay in Zion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth in him shall not be confounded (ashamed). Unto you, therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, and a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense" (1 Pet. 2:6-8). The elect of God will come to Jesus". . . as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, ye also, as LIVELY STONES, are built up A SPIRITUAL HOUSE (THE TEMPLE OF GOD), an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ" (1 Pet. 2:4,5).
The remnant will be living stones which are the members of the body of Christ which are used to build the temple of God, "And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone, in whom ALL THE BUILDING fitly framed together groweth unto an HOLY TEMPLE in the Lord: in whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit" (Eph. 2:20-22). The building of the temple today is the responsibility of the craftsmen; the true apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers "For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of ......... From whom the whole body joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth... maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love, till we all come in the unity of the faith... unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (Eph. 4:12, 16, 13). The body of Christ becomes the temple of God be- cause it is the exact representation of the measure and stature of Christ. "For we are laborers together with God: ye are God's husbandry (field), ye are GOD'S BUILDING" (1 Cor. 3:9).
Mark wrote: "And as he went out of the temple, one of his disciples saith unto him, Master, see what manner of stones and what building are here! And Jesus answering said unto him, Seest thou these great buildings? There shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down" (Mark 13:1, 2). False teachers still admire and build beautiful buildings for God, while the true craftsman will build up and fit together the body of Christ in love. From Amos: "For, lo, I will command, and I will sift (shake) the house of Israel among all nations, like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth. All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword (curse), which say, The evil shall not overtake nor prevent us. In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old" (Amos 9:9-11).
Just as the law had been lost in the day of Ezra and Nehemiah, it has been lost to us today. They found themselves in disobedience to God's law just as we have found ourselves in disobedience to God's law today. Their wall (hedge of protection) was gone and they had been led into captivity as we are today. God's grace brought reviving and restoration so they could rebuild the wall and the house of God in the midst of distress.
The temple today will also be built in the midst of distress and opposition. This is an example for our instruction to rebuild the wall and temple today. Ezra wrote: "AND NOW FOR A LITTLE SPACE GRACE HATH BEEN SHEWED FROM THE LORD OUR GOD, TO LEAVE US A REMNANT TO ESCAPE, and to give us a nail (to secure us) in his holy place, that our God may lighten our eyes, and give us a little reviving in our bondage" (Ezra 9:8). For just as God granted them a brief moment of grace, He is doing the same today to give us understanding to escape from the traditions and the bondage of a harlot church (Babylon) and from the powers of darkness. "For we were bondmen; yet our God hath not forsaken us in our bondage, but hath extended mercy unto us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to give us a reviving, to set up the house of God (the temple, our bodies), and to repair the desolations thereof, and to give us a wall (a hedge of protection from the powers of darkness) in Judah and in Jerusalem" (Ezra 9:9).
Nehemiah wrote: "And all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the street that was before the water gate; and they spake unto Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses which the Lord had commanded to Israel. And Ezra the scribe stood upon a pulpit of wood, which they had made for the purpose; ... And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people; (for he was above all the people;) and when he opened it, all the people stood up: and Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God. And all the people answered, Amen, Amen, with lifting up their hands: and they bowed their heads, and worshipped the Lord with their faces to the ground" (Neh. 8:1, 4-6).
Nehemiah also wrote: "So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading. And Nehemiah, which is the Tirshatha (governor), and Ezra the priest, the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy unto the Lord your God; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept (in repentance), when they heard the words of the law" (Neh. 8:8, 9).
The Lord is giving His remnant understanding as He did then. When the people began to have understanding of the law, they saw the darkness and sin they had been living in and began to repent.
Again from Nehemiah: .... the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackclothes, and earth upon them. And the seed of Israel (remnant) separated themselves from all strangers, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers. And they stood in their place, and read in the book of the law of the Lord their God one fourth part of the day; and another fourth part they confessed, and worshipped the Lord their God" (Neh. 9:1-3).
Nehemiah added: "And they said unto me, the remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire... When I heard these words, I sat down and wept, and mourned.., and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven, and said, I beseech thee, O Lord God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love Him, and observe His commandments, and do them, though there were of you cast out unto the uttermost part of the heaven, yet will I gather them from thence, and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to set my name there" (Neh. 1:3, 5, 7-9).
The Lord's promise stands today to those who return and become doers of the law through Christ. God is gathering His elect today. The remnant the Lord is calling out recognizes the ruin of Jerusalem, the desolate condition of the harlot church today: "Then said I unto them, Ye see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lieth waste, and the gates thereof are burned with fire: Come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach. Then I told them of the hand of my God which was good upon me... And they said, LET US RISE UP AND BUILD. So they strengthened their bands for this good work" (Neh. 2:17, 18).
From Ezra: "And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, they set the priests in their apparel with trumpets... And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto the Lord.. . And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid. But many of the ancient men that had seen the first house... wept with a loud voice; and many shouted aloud for joy: so that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people" (Ezra 3:10-13).
Again from Ezra: "Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the children of the captivity builded the temple unto the Lord God of Israel,... they came... and said unto them, Let us build with you: for we seek your God, as ye do;... But Zerubbabel, and Joshua, and the rest of the chief of the fathers of Israel, said unto them, Ye have nothing to do with us to build an house unto our God; But we ourselves together will build unto the Lord God of Israel" (Ezra. 4:1-3). Once again from Ezra: "Rehum the chancellor and Shimhai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem... Be it known unto the king that the Jews which came up from thee to us are come unto Jerusalem, building the rebellious and the bad city, and have set up the walls thereof, and joined the foundations. Be it known now unto the king, that if this city be builded, and the walls set up again, then will they not pay toll, tribute, and custom, and so thou shalt endamage the revenue of the kings" (Ezra 4:8, 12, 13).
From Nehemiah: "But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian, heard it, they laughed us to scorn, and despised us, and said, What is this thing that ye do? Will ye rebel against the king? Then answered I them, and said unto them, The God of heaven, He will prosper us; therefore we His servants will arise and build: but ye have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in Jerusalem (Neither will the ungodly have any part in building God's temple today)" (Neh. 2:19, 20). The false teachers who oppose restoration to God's real church today will be completely cut off unless they repent! Those who will not repent and come to God's light will become furious and angry as they see people leaving their fleshly kingdoms to become a part of the remnant of restoration. "But it came to pass, that when Sanballat heard that we builded the wall, he was wroth, and took great indignation, and mocked the Jews.
And he spake before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, What do these feeble Jews? Will they fortify themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they make an end in a day? Will they revive the (living) stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned? (The burned living stones are being revived today, those who have been burned by the fires of Satan)" (Neh. 4:1, 2). "So the wall was finished... And it came to pass, that when all the enemies heard thereof, and all the heathen that were about us saw these things, they were much cast down in their own eyes: for they perceived that this work was wrought of our God" (Neh. 6:15, 16). As God put it into the mind of an escaped remnant to rebuild the ruins in those days, God is doing the same today. The temple and the wall (hedge) is built today through repentance and dealing with all the sin in the body of Christ.
This wall of protection is the Lord Jesus Christ: "For I, saith the Lord, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and will be the glory in the midst of her" (Zech. 2:5). "And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of hosts... The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the forever... and in this place will I give peace (a wall), saith the Lord of hosts" (Haggai 2:7, 9). In the midst of these days of destruction, God's glory and power will be on the remnant as has never been in the history of mankind. "Behold, I will gather them out of all countries, whither I have driven them in mine anger, and in my fury, and in great wrath; and I will bring them again into this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: And I will give them one heart and one way" (Jer. 32:37-39). "At the same time, saith the Lord, will I be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people. Thus saith the Lord, the people which were left of the sword (curse) found grace in the wilderness; even Israel, when I went to cause him to rest. The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee. Again I will build thee, and thou shalt be built, O virgin of Israel: thou shalt again be adorned with thy tabrets, and shalt go forth in the dances of them that make merry. For there shall be a day, that the watchman upon the mount Ephraim shall cry, ARISE YE, AND LET US GO UP TO ZION unto the Lord our God.
For thus saith the Lord; Sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout among the chief of the nations: publish ye, praise ye, and say, O Lord, save thy people, the remnant of Israel. Behold, I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the coasts of the earth, and with them the BLIND AND THE LAME... a great company shall return thither. They shall come with weeping, and with supplications will I lead them: I WILL CAUSE THEM TO WALK BY THE RIVERS OF WATERS IN A STRAIGHT WAY, wherein they shall not stumble... He that scattered Israel will gather him, as a shepherd doth his flock. For the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and ransomed him from the hand of them that was stronger than he" (Jer. 31:1-4, 6-11).
From Isaiah: "Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and show my people their transgressions, and the house of Jacob (the church) their sins. Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways, as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the Ordinance of their God (a form of godliness)... Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not?... Behold, Ye fast for strife and debate" (Isa. 58:1-4). Is it such a fast that have chosen? A day for a man to afflict his soul (to humble himself). Is not this the fast that I have chosen? To loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke. Is it not to deal thy bread (the Word of God) to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? When thou seest the naked (the lost), that thou cover him (with garments of salvation) and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh (you deal with all the works of your flesh)?" (Isa. 58:5-7).
Isaiah continues: "Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory Of the Lord shall be thy reward. Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, "Here I am (because your prayers have been answered). thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger (criticism, slander, faultfinding, gossip, etc.), and speaking vanity; and if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul (by doing the works of Jesus); then shall thy light rise in obscurity (veil removed from your eyes), and thy darkness be as the noon day" (Isa. 58:8-10). "And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought (fiery trials), and make fat thy bones (healing); and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not. And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places (rebuild the wall and the temple); thou shalt raise up the foundations (the Word of God) of many generations; and thou shalt be called THE REPAIRER OF THE BREACH, THE RESTORER OF PATHS (the highways of holiness and righteousness) to dwell in" (Isa. 58:11, 12).
From Ezekiel: "Thus saith the Lord God; When I shall have gathered the house of Israel (remnant) from the people among whom they are scattered, and shall be sanctified in them in the sight of the heathen, then shall they dwell in their land that I have given to my servant Jacob. And they shall dwell safely therein, and shall build houses, and plant vineyards; yea, they shall dwell with confidence, when I have executed judgments upon all those that despise them around about them; and they shall know that I am the Lord their God" (Ezek. 28:25, 26). From Zephaniah: "In that day shalt thou not be ashamed for all thy doings, wherein thou hast transgressed against me: for then I will take away out of the midst of thee them that rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt no more be haughty because of my holy mountain. I will also leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people, and they shall trust in the name of the Lord. The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies; neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth: for they shall feed and lie down (in peace), and none shall make them afraid (because the remnant will have a hedge around them and will walk in holiness and peace)" (Zeph. 3:11-13).
From Jeremiah: "In those days, and in that time, saith the Lord, the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Judah together, going and weeping: they shall go, and seek the Lord their God.
They shall ask the way to Zion with their faces thitherward, saying, Come, and let us join ourselves to the Lord, in a perpetual covenant that shall not be forgotten. In those days, and in that time, saith the Lord, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I reserve (the remnant)" (Jer. 50:4, 5, 20). "The Lord hath taken away thy judgments, he hath cast out thine enemy: THE KING OF ISRAEL, even the Lord, is in the midst of thee: thou shalt not see evil any more" (Zeph. 3:15). From Isaiah: "And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem (the true Church), shall be called holy... every one that is written among the writing in Jerusalem (the heavenly Jerusalem). When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment and the spirit of burning" (Isa. 4:3,4).
"Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of the Lord the cup of his fury" (Isa. 51:17). "But I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee (the powers of darkness); which have said to thy soul, Bow down, that we may go over (lie down that we may walk over you): and thou hast laid thy body as the ground, and as the street, to them that went over" (Isa. 51:23). "AWAKE, AWAKE (SLEEPING VIRGINS), put on thy strength, O Zion (Church)... Shake thyself from the dust; arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem: loose thyself from the bands (yokes) of thy neck, O captive daughter of Jerusalem" (Isa. 52:1, 2).
From Ezekiel: "As I live, saith the Lord God, surely because my flock became a prey, and my flock became meat to every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my flock; Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and shall require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock.., for I will deliver my flock from their mouth" (Ezek. 34:8, 10). Thus saith the Lord God; "Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out... and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day (of spiritual darkness). And I will bring them out from the people, and gather them from the countries ... I will feed them in a good pasture.., there shall they lie in a good fold (in peace).., they shall feed upon the mountains of Israel" (Ezek. 34:11-14). From Jeremiah: "I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the Lord" (Jer. 23:4).
From Ezekiel: "And I will make them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil beasts (powers of dark- ness) to cease out of their land... I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing. And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit.., and they shall be safe in their land, and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them. And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen, neither shall the beast of the land devour them (the powers of darkness); but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid" (Ezek. 34:25-28). "I will feed my flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord God. I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgment" (Ezek. 34:15, 16). From Jeremiah: "Set thee up waymarks, make thee high heaps: set thine heart toward the highway (of holiness).., and turn again, O virgin of Israel, turn again to these thy cities.
Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; As yet they shall use this speech in the cities thereof, when I shall bring again their captivity; The Lord bless thee, O habitation of justice, and mountain of holiness" (Jer. 31:21, 23). From Isaiah: "Thy watchmen (true shepherds) shall lift up the voice; with the voice together they shall sing: for they shall see eye to eye, when the Lord shall bring again Zion" (Isa. 52:8). "Depart ye, depart ye, go ye out from thence, touch no unclean thing; go ye out of the midst of her; be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the Lord" (Isa. 52:11). "But Zion (the church) said, The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me. Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands (the nail prints of the cross); thy walls (the covenant promises) are continually before me" (Isa. 49:14-16).
The Psalmist wrote: "Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me, I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart" (Ps. 40:7, 8). From Isaiah: "The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it" (Isa. 40:3-5). From Revelation: "Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready (pure, spotless, holy, and blameless). And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints" (Rev. 19:6-8). "AND THE REDEEMER SHALL COME TO ZION, AND UNTO THEM (REMNANT) THAT TURN FROM TRANSGRESSION IN JACOB (the Church)," saith the Lord. (Isa. 59:20) "O Zion, that bringeth good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God! Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd; he shall gather the lambs with his hand, and carry them in His bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young" (Isa. 40: 9-11).