Skip to main content

Are The Temple Courts Still In Place?


Have we merely exchanged one place for another, one attitude transported from the Temple of old to our Church today? Have we denied access to people and issued invisible passes for entry? Have we sinned by marking off the territory between people and God and made it much bigger, much more difficult than it really is? Do we surround our churches (and our hearts) with "courts" limiting admittance to people? Do we wear looks on our faces that betray our sinful hearts which speak to people, “You may come THIS far but no farther!”

The court of the Gentiles is where we marginalize our children and our youth. We have sent them out of our adult worship communicating to them that access is for adults only. We have told people who work on Sundays they are to be in church but then feast at their tables and in our hypocrisy banish them to the outer courts. We must repent and tear down the gates of our attitudes.

The court of the women has become the boundaries of where the aged who were once like us are now made to feel useless, worthless, outdated and have nothing to contribute. And for some churches it is still where people must wear the labels of the opposite sex, the weaker sex, the helpers of those who are the really important. This is where the gates are not opened, but if they are they are up a stairs and out of reach so those with any kind of disability cannot enter. We must repent and build bridges.

The court of men made up of proselytes and those called “Israel” is a boundary felt by those who have sinned but are kept on probation and made to feel their shame for a just a little while longer. If they can just stick it out then will be forgiven (maybe), they will be incorporated (possibly), they will be restored to the fold completely (if they don’t fail again). In the meantime, we want them to hear “please keep coming” but what we are really saying is “don’t forget to bring your tithe.” We must  remove the beam from our own eye and use it to make a ramp for others.

The court of the priests and the holy place are where those who have voted the same way we do are allowed to enter in, who are in the same denomination we are; where those who look like we look, talk like we talk, know all of the secret handshakes and nods and winks. It is where those who have paid their dues come in and so no longer need to pay anything but their time in showing up to be a model, a presence, giving a word to the keeper of the gates showing they know how to gain access by their importance, prestige, power, influence, and money. We must repent and then be still.

The Temple proper and the most holy place is really forgotten. Even though the Gate Beautiful opens for one to see straight through the courts to the Temple curtains themselves, there are too many things in the way, too many barriers, too many rules, too many hoops to jump through, too many right signs and signals to know, too many distractions, too many "too manys" to name. Everyone is so busy with everything else the Temple isn't seen anymore. So the Beautiful Gate is renamed “the Exit”.

The Temple courts, which limited people’s access, have really  been turned upside down and made to go in reverse. God isn’t in the Temple, but outside the courts. And the further you go towards the Temple the further you go away from God. Are the Temple courts still in place? 

So walk out of the rules, the regulations, and away from the mirage the "acceptance of people" creates; walk in the other direction of the weights placed on you and the chains of others who "think they know something" and seek to hold you to them for they believe "the one with longest chain wins!" But you want to go where there are no chains, where there is something else, something like freedom and a limitless reality. And as you turn to look outside, you are instilled with a desire to not walk, but to run.

Popular posts from this blog

I Wish We'd All Been ... Left Behind

  Perhaps you have heard the group DC Talk sing the remake of Larry Norman’s’ song, “I Wish We’d All Been Ready”? There is something tragically deceptive about the lyrics though. As we sing along, we find ourselves participating in a couple instances where we wish we had been ready to be taken instead of left behind. But that is not how Jesus tells his side of the story. The words are inspired by Matthew 24:40-41. But let’s look more closely, shall we? MATTHEW 24:37 As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39 and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away . That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left. ...

A Joshua-Veneered Judges

Without challenge there will be no growth. Without expectation there will be no challenge. Why is it that we think if we expect "too much" out of people they will turn away? Didn't Jesus issue commands and ultimatums? Why should His Church not remind His people of these things? I was challenged by a statement from someone in Sunday School that people "like" the way things are going. This "liking-ness" caused me to ponder the "state of the union" and internalize a "declaration of dependence" for the name of Christ. I repeat, Without challenge there will be no growth. Without expectation there will be no challenge. I do not want to bow down to "likingness" as the test for spiritual growth. What I see in fruitfulness is sporadic unquestionable commitment .An abandonment to the statements of Christ across the board. This is reflected in the hard work of hospitality we lack in our home-model of being the body of Christ. W...

Start With The Second Coming In Mind

If you could only answer questions, “Yes,” or “No,” and couldn’t ever use the word “maybe” again, would it make that much of a difference to your life? Take a moment and read James 5:1-12--it is especially very interesting to read in The Message translation. So often we are told to begin with the END in mind. The END is whatever or where ever the certain project we are working on is heading until we say it is DONE. We do need to begin with the END in mind, but James has a different END in mind. There are several things the people have done wrong in James’ mind: laid up treasures in the last days,  kept back wages by fraud,  lived in luxury and self-indulgence,  fattened their hearts,  condemned and murdered people. When James tells the rich to “weep and howl” what is he getting at? What good does it do? What does “the cry of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of the Hosts” mean? What does it mean for "the wages of those abused by fraud...

Family Time Videos