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Jesus Fulfilled the Law

Lesson 2: Jesus is the New Temple

Published in The Jesus Study

“And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son.”
2 Samuel 7:12–14
Who is Jesus?
That is the question we are trying to answer in The Jesus Study.
Last week, we discovered that the early Christians believed Jesus to be the fulfillment of promises given to Abraham and David. Therefore, the early Christians believed they weren’t starting a new religion, but rather continuing forward in the Jewish religion, believing that Jesus was their new King, whose kingdom and throne would be “established for ever.”

This is an interesting belief, especially since their King was no longer present, at least in the visible sense. Additionally, another part of God’s promise to David does not appear to have been fulfilled: God said that this descendant of David, or future Messiah, would “build a house for my name.”
According to the New Testament Gospel account writers, during Jesus’s lifetime, He did many notable miracles, made a lot of people angry, and gathered a small following, but we never read of Jesus building a house for God’s name.

So how did these early Christians understand this to be fulfilled through Jesus?
And if it wasn’t fulfilled, can we really claim Him to be the figure mentioned in 2 Samuel 7:12?
What Is This “House”?

“House” in the promise to David referred to a temple built for the name of the LORD (2 Samuel 7:13). This would be a place where the presence of God would dwell. God would be represented by the temple, and people would come to this temple to confess their sins and have them atoned for through animal sacrifices. Without a functioning temple and priesthood, Israel could not administer the sacrificial system prescribed in the covenant.

Originally, this was a tent called the tabernacle, but David desired to build something more worthy for a God like his to dwell in. The first temple was constructed by David’s son Solomon. However, because of Israel’s covenant unfaithfulness, that temple was later destroyed by Babylon under King Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings 25:8–10; 2 Chronicles 36:17–19). After being exiled for 70 years, Cyrus, king of Persia, issued a decree allowing the Jews to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the house of the LORD. This effort was led by a man named Zerubbabel, who was also a descendant of David (Ezra 1:1–3). This marked the beginning of what is commonly called the Second Temple period (Ezra 6:14–15).

Though Zerubbabel was a descendant of David, he couldn’t have been this promised seed of David. Not only did the temple he built fail to stand forever, but prophecy spoken during the time of Zerubbabel also pointed toward a future King and Priest who would build the temple of the LORD, while Zerubbabel himself was neither king nor priest.
Zechariah 6:12–13:
“Behold the man whose name is the BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD: Even he shall build the temple of the LORD; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both.”

“The BRANCH”

This title points back to prophecy given beforehand in Isaiah 11:1 and Jeremiah 33:15.
Isaiah 11:1–2:
“And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.”
Jeremiah 33:15:
“In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land.”
In fact, the idea of anyone being both King and Priest for God was a strange one, since the only person who had ever occupied this role was a mysterious figure named Melchizedek, who appeared during the days of Abraham (Genesis 14:18–20).
Afterward, the priesthood was to come through the descendants of Aaron (Exodus 28:1; Numbers 3:10), while the kingship of Israel was not to depart from Judah (Genesis 49:10; cf. 2 Samuel 7:12–13).

So this prophecy was proclaiming that the Messiah would be both King and Priest, which under the Law would have been impossible.
We will discuss this more in the next lesson.

Discussion

  • What were some problems associated with having a physical temple?
  • What were some benefits associated with having a physical temple?
How Did the Early Christians Interpret the Fulfillment?
Let’s examine how the New Testament writers interpreted this part of the promise given to David and determine whether or not we believe it to be reasonable or a stretch of Scripture.
In the Gospel account of John, he records a moment where Jesus referred to Himself as a temple in John 2:19–21:
“Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? But he spake of the temple of his body. When therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this unto them; and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said.”
So John recounts that the disciples understood Jesus’s body to be the temple of God and, after His resurrection, an eternal temple raised again from the dead.
Early Christians understood that the temple of God was no longer merely a building, but Jesus Himself.

But it doesn’t appear to stop there.
In 1 Corinthians 3:16, Paul refers to the church he is writing to in Corinth as the “temple of God”:
“Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?”
He even says in 1 Corinthians 3:9:
“…ye are God's building.”
It is quite an incredible idea to think of the Spirit of God dwelling in humans instead of in a temple made of precious metals.
And again, to the church in Ephesus, Paul writes in Ephesians 2:19–22:
“Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household 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 a holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.”
Paul says that the church he is speaking to is “fitly framed together” and grows “unto a holy temple in the Lord.” He even calls them “an habitation of God through the Spirit.”
So it is apparent that the early Christians understood themselves to be a new temple built for the name of the Lord.

They were therefore concluding that this eternal temple of God, which the promised seed of David would build for God’s name, was the church. And this is another strange belief for a religious group to have. They would not worship God by building temples of gold and elaborate marble. Instead, they would worship God through their lives, and a temple made of precious materials would no longer be the primary representation of God.
Instead, the church would represent God.

Discussion

  • Do you think it is reasonable to believe that the temple God promised the Messiah would build for His name would be built with living people instead of cedar, gold, and other precious materials?
  • Has this new temple of believers stood ever since the time of Jesus?
  • If this is the case, did Jesus fulfill the promise given to David?
How Did Early Christians Believe People Became Temples of God?
When we look at temples built in the Old Testament, there was a specific process for sanctifying them so that the presence of God could enter (see 1 Kings 8:10–11).
Not just any building could be declared to be the temple of God.

And this sign of God’s Spirit filling the temple was not one of imagination. It is recorded in 1 Kings 8:10–11 that a visible cloud filled the house of the LORD:
“And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD, So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD.”
So it would seem unreasonable to believe that this new promised temple would be established without something visible and supernatural happening.

The question is: How did the early Christians believe people became temples of the Lord?
Did they simply imagine God’s Spirit filling them, or was there a physical sign, as there had been with previous temples?

If they imagined it and there wasn’t a physical sign of God’s Spirit filling these people, can we reasonably conclude that Jesus fulfilled the promise given to David that He would build a house for the name of the LORD?

And how did the first Christians know when people became temples of God?
To answer this, we should go to a place where the New Testament writers claimed people were added to the church.

We find this first mentioned in Acts 2:41:
“Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.”
This came after Peter preached a convicting message to the Jews who had gathered together to learn what was happening after they heard people speaking “in tongues.”
Let’s first dive into what these early Christians believed this speaking “in tongues” to be.
This dialogue in Acts 2 began with all the followers of Jesus waiting in Jerusalem until they received what Jesus called “power from on high” (Acts 1:4–5).

As they prayed:
“Suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”
We read that the people were literally speaking other languages that could be understood by others—languages which these men had never learned.
After the commotion began, Peter stood and declared what it meant, saying that these men were not drunk, as some supposed, but:
“This is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel.”
Peter then quotes Joel 2:28 in Acts 2:17:
“And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.”
So Peter connects this Spirit being poured out on people, as spoken by the prophet Joel, with what was happening among them as they spoke in other tongues. Similarly to how there was a physical sign, such as the cloud filling the temple after it was sanctified in the Old Testament, there was a physical and observable sign of something supernatural happening when the Christians claimed they were being filled with the Spirit.

Peter continues to proclaim that Jesus, whom they crucified, has been made both Lord and Christ—or, in other words, their Messiah, the promised seed of David.
After this came upon the people’s ears, they cried out:
“Men and brethren, what shall we do?”
Acts 2:37
Peter’s response was:
“Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.”
And after he finished this declaration, it says:
“Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.”
Acts 2:41
We also know that the early Christians recognized speaking in other tongues as evidence of Spirit infilling because, in Acts 10, Peter learned that God had also filled Gentiles—non-Jews—with His Spirit when he heard them begin to speak with other tongues.
This showed that Gentiles could also become a part of this new temple of God, just like the Jews.
Therefore, the proclaimed method of being added to this new temple built for the name of the Lord was repentance and baptism in the name of Jesus.
And just as the Spirit of God filled the temple in the Old Testament with a visible sign when it was sanctified, the early Christians believed that the initial sign of someone becoming a part of the temple of God and being filled with the Spirit of God was speaking in other tongues.

Discussion

  • Why do you think God would want a temple made of people to represent Him instead of a temple made of stones and gold?
  • When looking at the Old Testament, do you think a temple made of living people is what God always desired to dwell in?

Conclusion

In conclusion, we have learned in this lesson that the early Christians believed Jesus was the temple of God. Not only Jesus, but also those who were baptized in His name were understood to be part of this temple. In this way, the early Christians believed Jesus fulfilled the promise God originally made to David when He said that David’s seed would build a house for God’s name and that God would “stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever.”

To Christians today, this can be interpreted as evidence that God has remained faithful to His word, seeing that Christianity has continued since the time of Jesus. For Jews today who do not believe Jesus was the Messiah, however, the fulfillment of this promise given to David is still understood to be awaiting its completion.

In the next lesson, we will dive deeper into this idea of the future Messiah, or “The BRANCH,” being both King and Priest, and examine how the early Christians interpreted this prophecy and applied it to Jesus.

Join us next time!