[This sermon makes extensive use of its accompanying Powerpoint presentation. This can be downloaded here (1.61 Mb) and should display as a viewable (.pps) file without the need for powerpoint software on your PC]

Introduction

[Slide] The most impressive place of worship for Jewish people in Biblical times was the Temple in Jerusalem. The building Jesus knew was huge and we know several incidents from his life took place here. When he was born Mary and Joseph took him to the Temple to be dedicated. When he was a child they went there - possibly for his Bar Mitzvah - and he stayed on to talk to the rabbis causing his parents some worry. Many of Jesus' sermons were given here as were some of his miracles. Towards the end of his ministry he overthrew the tables of the traders in the Temple. But, as we shall see over the next few weeks, the Temple played a huge part in Jewish religion too.

What follows is a computer generated impression of the Temple that Jesus knew.
[4 minute clip from BBC Son of God programme]

The Temple

[Slide] The crowning achievement of King Solomon's reign was the erection of a magnificent Temple in Jerusalem. Whilst this was much smaller than the Temple Jesus would have known, it was still a magnificent building as the artist's impression on the slide shows. Solomon's father, King David, had wanted to build a great Temple for God a generation earlier, as a permanent resting place for the Ark of the Covenant containing the Ten Commandments. A divine edict, however, had forbidden him from doing so. "You will not build a house for My name," God said to him, "for you are a man of battles and have shed blood" (I Chronicles 28:3). The Bible's description of Solomon's Temple suggests that the inside ceiling was 180 feet long, 90 feet wide, and 50 feet high. The highest point on the Temple that King Solomon built was actually about 20 stories or about 207 feet.

When the Temple was completed, Solomon inaugurated it with prayer and sacrifice, and even invited non Jews to come and pray there. He even urged God to pay particular heed to their prayers. For the next 400 years the Temple became the central place for Jewish worship until it was destroyed by the Babylonians. The Temple was rebuilt and greatly expanded by the time of Jesus.

The Layout of the Temple

[Slide] In Biblical times the Jewish people worshipped at home, in the Synagogue and also in the Temple in Jerusalem. The courts of the Temple were always busy and were seen by the Jewish people as a symbol of the unity of their people. The Synagogue was seen as a place of instruction, the Temple a place of sacrifice. Temple worship happened in the morning and the evening and involved the sacrifice of animals - depending on the type of sacrifice, the priest or the person giving the animal may be given back some of the meat or fat. Sometimes the sacrifice was a holocaust in which case the whole animal would be burned.

[Slide] The entire Temple compound was considered holy, but it became increasingly more holy as one entered farther in, from east to west. King Herod had enclosed the outer court with colonnades and it was referred to as the Court of the Gentiles because the "gentiles" (non-Jews) were permitted to enter the Temple area. They could walk within in it but they were forbidden to go any further than the outer court. They were excluded from entering into any of the inner courts, and warning signs in Greek and Latin were placed that gave warning that the penalty for such trespass was death.

[Slide] This is a picture of a surviving but very worn sign! The Romans permitted the Jewish authorities to carry out the death penalty for this offence, even if the offender were a Roman citizen. It was for this alleged crime that Paul was attacked and nearly beaten to death by an angry crowd during his last visit to Jerusalem (Acts 21:27-32).

[Slide] The next court one would come to as one headed east was the Court of the Women. On the photo it's the larger court to the top of the screen with the large lampstands in it. Its name is derived from the fact that Jewish women were admitted thus far (but no farther). In this court, at the west end, was the 'treasury', the section where there stood thirteen trumpet-shaped containers for voluntary offerings of money. Jesus was sitting 'opposite the treasury' when he saw the widow put into one of the containers the two copper coins which were all that she had (Mark 12:41-44).

The next courtyard was the Court of Israel which was open to Jewish lay men. This is the section in the middle of the picture below the court of women.

The innermost court was the Court of the Priests, which excluded all laymen. In the eastern part of this court, opposite the main gates leading from the other courts, and opposite the eastern entrance into the Temple area, so that it could be seen from a distance, stood the great altar of burnt offering this was a huge stone, 45 feet long and 22 feet high, and was where the animals would be sacrificed each morning and evening. You can clearly see this altar at the bottom of the picture.

[Slide] At the Temple's west side stood the sanctuary proper, comprising the porch, the holy place, and the holy of holies. In this picture you can see the Holy of Holies from the Women's court. It's the large building rising up at the back. Into the holy place the priests entered to discharge various duties, in particular to offer incense on the golden-incense altar, as Zechariah did on the occasion when an angel appeared to him and announced the forthcoming birth of his son, John the Baptist (Luke 1:8-23).

Inside the Holy Place there was the Porch, the Hall and the Holy of Holies. The back wall of the porch was overlaid with gold and a golden lamp was hung on it. In the centre of the facade was the main entrance. The entrance was covered by a veil. In the Hall stood a Golden Altar, a Golden Table for bread, on which were two frankincense cups and a Golden Lampstand.

[Slide] A double veil separated the Hall from the Holy of Holies, which only the High Priest could enter, once per year on the Day of Atonement. There was no furniture at all in the Holy of Holies. It originally housed the two tablets of the Ten Commandments. Unfortunately, the tablets disappeared when the Babylonians destroyed the Temple, and during the time of Jesus, the Holy of Holies was a small, entirely bare room. Only once a year, on Yom Kippur, the High Priest would enter this room and pray to God on Israel's behalf asking forgiveness of their sins and sprinkling blood as a sign of sacrifice.

The Temple A Place of Inclusion

Now the last Jewish Temple was destroyed by the Romans around the year 70; since then the Jewish people have had no Temple and worship instead in Synagogues. Sacrifice is no longer part of the Jewish tradition. The Biblical writers made many links between the death of Jesus on the cross and the sacrificial system of the Jewish people and we will hear more about these over the next few weeks.

[Slide] What strikes me, however, is that even when the first Temple was built, Solomon went to great efforts to include non-Jewish people. This was surprising; Solomon was criticised for taking gentile wives and at the time the Jewish people believed that their God was God of only the Jewish people. However, through the Scriptures we see signs of a more inclusive view of God being developed - Jonah being sent to preach to the people of Ninevah whom God clearly loves is just one such example. In the layout of the Temple we see the Jewish people try to include others - gentiles were allowed into one of the courtyards to pray, women were given their own space too. Whilst this level of inclusion is not quite what we would expect for modern people, it was quite remarkable in a time of religious exclusion and clearly shows the increasing understanding of the Jewish people that God was the God of all people, not just of the Jewish people.

[Slide] In an age of increasing religious intolerance, where the ownership and use of the site of the Temple is fiercely contested between Jews and Muslims, it is important to assert the inclusive love of God which reaches all people.

The Church claims to be inclusive - indeed the description of the Church in the classic creeds as being "catholic" means "universal" or "inclusive". When various denominations seek to exclude people they show they do not understand the love of God which reaches everyone nor the fundamental character of what God intends the Church to be.

[Slide] In MCC we are called to show what it is to be "catholic" or "inclusive". We are called to welcome all people into the courts of the King - just as all people were welcomed into the courts of the Temple. However, since the death of Jesus there are no "no go" areas for different types of people. In the new temple, the Church, all are welcome and no where is off limits. We are called, again and again, to welcome people who come here, accepting them as they are just as we were accepted as we are.

Sometimes it is easy to get disenchanted with our local church or even the denomination to which we belong. Sometimes we wish things were different, easier or better. On these occasions I am reminded of the gay free thinker Erasmus who, at the time of the Reformation, was asked why he stayed in the Roman Catholic Church instead of joining the Protestants. He said, "Oh I put up with a lot in the Catholic church; after all it puts up with a lot in me!". We are called to welcome all people into these courts of the King just as we ourselves were welcomed.

Amen.

This sermon was first preached in the Metropolitan Community Church of Manchester. Click here for further information.