Julian the Apostate is a name given to a certain Roman emperor, the nephew of Constantine the Great, who turned from Christ after his ascent to power and attempted to persecute and humiliate the members of his former faith. One of the ways he sought to do this was to restore the temple in Jerusalem. Julian knew, of course, that Christians believed Christ was the true temple, and that the destruction of the earthly one was a sign of this. So to show them how worthless and hopeless they were, he paired up with the Jews in Jerusalem to rebuild what the Romans tore down in 70 AD. The plan never came to fruition, however, not only because of Julian’s early death, but also because, according to several ancient historians, as soon as work began, fire kept erupting from the foundations of the temple. Mighty emperors, it turns out, are nothing compared to the might of the God who will not let His will be undone.
The temple was destroyed because the true temple has now arrived in Christ. To rebuild the temple in Jerusalem would be a profound act of blasphemy. God may allow it to happen in fulfillment of His will at some point. He may never. But either way, as Christians, we have something infinitely greater than a building made with brick and mortar, a structure that can be torn down, shattered and burned. We have the Temple who cannot be destroyed because when He was destroyed, He rose from the grave. We have the Temple who welcomes us into His presence every day, who gives us light that we may see the face of God smiling upon us. We have the true temple, Jesus Christ, who invites us into the holiest of places to dwell with our God forever. Because of Christ, because of His blood, His forgiveness, His victory, His undying love for you, the fires erupting from the foundation of that temple will never keep you out of His presence but will always welcome you in and keep you warm in the embrace of your God.
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