HISTORY OF DESTRUCTION OF THE TEMPLE
It is helpful at this point to remember that the destruction of the temple in 70 AD was not the first time that the temple had been destroyed. It was prophesied in Ezekiel 21, and reported in 2-Chronicles 36:11-23 , 2-Kings 25:1-21 and Isaiah 1. From these scriptures we learn that Israel’s leaders had a history of rebellion that deserved God’s discipline. Part of that discipline was the destruction of the temple. It is clear from this history that the religious leaders of Jesus’ day did not learn from the experience of earlier leaders. It is no surprise, therefore, that Jesus would do what He did in the temple and that the temple would later be destroyed.

So what are we to learn from this history? First, God does not have any attachments  to buildings. He is more concerned with what goes on inside the people than the building or what the people are doing in the building. To be more accurate, He is concerned with what goes on inside the hearts of His people. But since His people choose to practice their religion inside buildings, the buildings are also targeted for destruction.

Second, we learn that the sins of the leaders (religious and civil) affect everyone. Third, we learn that sinful practices carry over from one generation to another. And fourth, we learn that God will discipline His people for their sins.

These lessons should be a warning for us to take all sin seriously. In particular, we should take the sin of commercial religion seriously. Having a salvation testimony is not a guarantee that we will not sin.

COMMENTARY: Just to sketch out those lessons in more detail, here is what we see what religious people can expect to receive from God if they do not repent for the sin of engaging in commercial religion — or any religion: God will destroy the structures (buildings, organizations) in which the sins are conducted, and He will send His people into exile again. He did this twice before, and there is no reason to expect that He will not do it again. We don’t know when, or how it will all happen, but it will happen.

In response to this prediction, Christians will be inclined to say, “That is not possible. That history is all about the Jews. We have Jesus. We would never do the kinds of sinful things that Jewish priests would do.”

To that way of thinking we say, “You are deceived. Having Jesus, whatever that might mean to you, does not immunize you  against deception or sin. It is spiritual arrogance to think that you are cannot be deceived and that you would not commit the same kind of sins that Israel did.”

Jesus’s disciples, as spiritual as the were, did not always understand what Jesus was saying about the temple system. Like the rest of the Jews, they also admired the temple for its beauty and it traditions. Jesus set them straight and warned them about being led astray. Modern day disciples  should learn from this teaching as well.

We also remind you of what God said in Deuteronomy 29 and Psalms 36:1-4, and warn you against blessing yourself in your heart, saying , I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine heart.