Voice of the Kingfisher speaks out …from a different perspective
by Elinor Montgomery
January 24, 2010
Let us take a serious look at the word temple. Did the ancient pagan nations not build extravagant temples for their gods and goddesses, an example of this being the great and imposing temple built in honor of the goddess Diana in Ephesus? Remnants of these temples dot Greece and the entire middle-eastern countryside – great marble and stone structures built by pagan worshipers.
These lifeless gods and goddesses often took the form of carved images, remnants of which still exist. It was believed that they had power but there has never been any historical evidence whatsoever that a carved image of a god ever accomplished a feat or miracle of any sort.
To the contrary, the God of Israel commanded His people to build an ark symbolizing His covenant with Abraham and His people, Israel. At best, it could be described as a portable box on poles, carried by Levitical priests. It was covered in a pure form of gold, housing within it the tablets of the Law written on stone, the budding rod of Aaron and a small pot of manna. Every detail of its construction was recorded in the Old Testament as given to Moses by God, Himself.
The interesting thing about this ark was the evidence of God’s presence over it (not in it), as a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. The presence of God with His people was clearly visible to the surrounding pagan nations as they made their way along the wilderness trek. Of note was the fact that victory over their pagan enemies accompanied the Israelites in so far as they went into battle in obedience to God, carrying the ark of His presence with them as directed.
Nowhere did they journey through the wilderness without the ark, except when God allowed the Philistines to capture it in victory over a rebellious Israel. When the Philistines placed the ark of God on the altar beside the carved image of the pagan god, Dagon, the image fell on its face to the ground. On the second morning when the ark was placed beside Dagon, it was discovered on the ground again and this time it was broken. The Philistines feared the power of Israel’s God and desperately wanted the ark of His presence removed and returned to the Israelites.
Did God ever commission a temple to be built of stones where He was to be worshiped? It was the tabernacle God commissioned the young liberated nation of Israel to build according to His design and plan, by those He empowered to do so. Like the ark, it was portable not a rigid structure on an immoveable foundation.
David had it in his heart to build a house of cedar, like his own house, in which God could dwell. God refused David this right through the prophet, Nathan, who prophesied of Jesus, who would come in David’s kingly line. He would be the One to build the house in God’s name, seated on a throne, which would be established forever (see 2 Samuel 7:10-17). This would be at a future, appointed time when God’s people, Israel, would no longer have to deal with the evil of Satan’s sons of religion or move anymore, as was previously the case. It would be the time of Jesus’ Second Coming, which would usher in a reign of peace for the entire world.
Now Solomon built a temple, believing himself to be that son, but there were two problems with this. His throne was set in place before David died (see 2 Samuel 7:12), and the reign of his line over Israel was terminated except for a remnant kept to honor God’s promise to his father David.
The temple Solomon built was destroyed, not once but twice, by the invading pagan armies of the Babylonian system. The second time, not one stone was left standing upon another when the restructured temple was demolished. It was a mere, man-made temple like all the other temples built by man. However God will pour out His glory any place where He alone is worshiped and the people have no idols before or beside Him. The departure of His glory is assured when, once having experienced His presence, there follows a lapse into apostasy and idol worship.
When the Lord God said the prophesied Jesus would build the temple (see 2 Samuel 7:13), was He talking about a building? No, not at all! He was talking about the temple of the body, into the first of which He breathed the breath of life (the Spirit of life) and Adam became a human being created in the image of God. He had the potential for eternal life, depending on the choices he made. He was a living temple that housed the Spirit of God, like Jesus, until he disobeyed God and sinned by rejecting the truth for the lie of religion.
Henceforth, the temple of man was doomed to destruction and death, that is to say, until the temple of Jesus came as God to dwell among men. He came as the sinless temple, which could not be destroyed by death, for it would be rebuilt in three days so that all who accepted Him as their Lord of salvation might also experience the rebuilding of their own temples after death.
The apostolic stones of the church became very important, compared to the lifeless hand-cut stones of the destroyed temple of Jerusalem. They were as living stones, individual, moveable temples, un-cut by man, but rather shaped by God, working together as a unit to make up the apostolic church of which Jesus was the Chief Cornerstone. The church’s great commission of witnessing to the truth became a moveable witness directed only by the Spirit of God working within her throughout the entire history of her wilderness journey in this world of nations.
Masonry is the masonic work of men, which builds buildings of bondage to house religious systems of men. Attached to these masonic works are occultism and paganism, just as it was attached to the temple of Solomon when Solomon enlisted the help of the Prince of Tyre to provide the building materials and the laborers from his kingdom.
The King of Tyre is depicted by the prophet Ezekiel (see Ezekiel 28:11-19) as being the symbol of Satan, the former angel Lucifer who was cast out, as a profane thing, from the mountain of God. Most of the great Christian cathedrals around the world have gargoyles and demonic symbols of the occult carved within their stone structures making them temples of Satan rather than of God.
Jesus spoke ever so clearly declaring His body to be the temple of the living God. The church He formed only went into action once it, like Him, was filled with the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. They were living stones, not buildings of any masonic order.
Thus says the Lord: “Heaven is My throne, and earth is My footstool. Where is the house that you will build Me? And where is the place of My rest? For all those things My hand has made, and all those things exist,” says the Lord. “But on this one will I look: on him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and who trembles at My word (Isaiah 66:1-2).”