God had promised through his prophet Jeremiah that he would bring his people back from captivity. See Jeremiah 29:10-14. The book of Ezra describes God’s faithfulness to his people and the events surrounding their return.
Upon their arrival, the priests rebuilt the altar and reinstituted sacrifices; then came the rebuilding of the temple; and finally (as we will see in Nehemiah) the Israelites rebuild the wall. I find this sequence significant: first, comes a need for forgiveness and a way to get right with God; second, they need a means for worship and a place to meet with God; and then the people need security and protection from external threats.
Carrying out God’s plan was not without its challenges for the Israelites. Enemies began opposing the temple rebuilding. Notice their tactics: initially, the enemies pretend to offer their help to the Israelites, then they frustrate their plans, then they slander them to the authorities, and finally threaten them. But, God’s will finally prevails and the temple is completed.
Of this same temple, Jesus said in Matt 12:6, “I tell you, there is one here who is even greater than the temple!”
How could Jesus make such a bold claim about himself?
God is immense. Paul says in Acts 17:24, “He is the God who made the world and everything in it. Since he is Lord of heaven and earth, he doesn’t live in man-made temples”. In fact, Solomon says after building the first temple in Jerusalem, “But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!” (1 Kings 8:27)
And yet, in Jesus, “God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood , shed on the cross.” (Col 1:19-20)
Not only that, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to all who put their trust in him. 1Cor 3:16 says, “Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you?”
Col 1:13-14 says, “For he has rescued us from the one who rules in the kingdom of darkness, and he has brought us into the Kingdom of his dear Son. God has purchased our freedom with his blood and has forgiven all our sins.”
So, how is Jesus greater than the temple? He accomplished what the altar, the temple, and the wall could never do. Those were symbols pointing us to the way, the truth, and the life. Jesus brought us out of captivity from the kingdom of darkness and established us in his kingdom. Jesus himself was the sacrifice once for all, that all who would believe in him would receive forgiveness of their sins. He made a way for God to dwell in our hearts, and for us to worship him in Spirit and in truth. And, he protects us; for nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (see Rom 8:39)
Let us worship God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.