The pattern will continue until Christ returns. God tears down in order to plant and bring about new life.
Fall is the time when I work in the yard. Lately, I have been working on the flower beds. I am dividing the lilies and the hostas, rearranging the plantings, and placing bulbs in the ground for blooming in the spring.
If you drive by my yard, it is a mess. Some plants are pulled up and tossed to the side. I am throwing them away. Others are being divided for better growth. In other areas, the ground is torn open awaiting bulbs to be planted or simply turned over. It is a mess.
But all this tearing down and tearing open is preparation for something more. It is a provision for something to be planted and new life to come.
I thought of that activity, of tearing things down in order to plant for something new, when I read our text for this morning.
Our text is a difficult reading. Jesus is on the Temple Mount with His disciples and, as they admire Herod’s temple, Jesus creates a world of devastation in their imagination.
Consider what the disciples see. They are walking in the midst of something beautiful and holy. Herod’s temple was constructed of massive stones. It had a beautiful, pillared colonnade and was decorated with gold. This is the place where God promised to dwell. Here is the place where all nations can gather and pray and God has promised to hear them. Here is the place where Israel can gather and offer sacrifices for thanks, for peace and reconciliation, and for the forgiveness of their sins. When walking in the Temple, the disciples could not help but speak. Luke tells us they “were speaking of the Temple, how it was adorned with noble stones and offerings” (verse 5).
Jesus, however, interrupts their conversation. He tells them that this temple, so beautiful to behold, will be destroyed. Not just destroyed but, “There will not be left here one stone upon another” (verse 6). As Jesus begins to speak of the destruction of the Temple, the prophetic vision expands, and He sees both the horrors of the end times and the suffering of the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD.
As you listen to Jesus, you watch as the world is slowly torn apart. He mentions wars and rumors of wars, nation against nation, kingdom against kingdom. There are earthquakes, famines, and pestilences. We have the fracturing of families and suffering in synagogues. There are persecutions, imprisonment, captivity, and death.
The world the disciples know, built around a temple, sure, certain, firm, and filled with the presence of God, will be torn apart. It will be fragmented, shattered, and filled with death and destruction.
But God has not left this world alone. He is still there, ruling over all things.
But God has not left this world alone. He is still there, ruling over all things. During His ministry, Jesus once said, “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone. But if it dies, it bears much fruit” (John 12:24). The breaking apart of a seed looks like certain death. Yet, in that breaking there is life. The breaking of the body of Jesus is certain death; death for Him and for all of us in Him. Yet, from His being broken will come forth the forgiveness of sins and eternal life.
As Jesus nears His crucifixion, He offers His disciples a vision of world-encompassing destruction that will be governed by God who will bring a world encompassing restoration. The world Jesus envisions, torn apart and filled with destruction, is much like a yard torn up during fall planting. God is digging into the earth, dislodging and dividing, so He can plant new life that will grow in the seasons to come.
Think about the disciples. The Temple was destroyed in 70 AD but the presence of the Spirit at Pentecost had prepared a greater temple than Herod could ever raise. The Spirit entered the hearts of God’s people and led them to testify to the things of God, even in the midst of persecution. God was building up a temple not of rock and mortar but of living stones built together in Jesus Christ (1 Peter 2:4-5). His temple would not be located in only one place but extend to the ends of the earth. God would fill the world with His people, reaching out to all nations with His promise of salvation and recreation.
These words of destruction are momentarily broken with a glimpse of God’s gracious work. Jesus promises that when the disciples are taken to trial, the Spirit will give them words to say which cannot be refuted (verse 15). Jesus promises that, “Not a hair of your head will perish” (verse 18) and, “By your endurance you will gain your lives” (verse 19). In the midst of all this destruction, “Your redemption is drawing nigh” (verse 28).
The pattern will continue until Christ returns. God tears down in order to plant and bring about new life. What has God recently torn down in your life that, by His grace, will allow new things to grow?
--------
Additional Resources:
Craft of Preaching-Check out out 1517’s resources on Luke 21:5-28 (29-36).
Concordia Theology-Various helps from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, MO to assist you in preaching Luke 21:5-28 (29-36).
Lectionary Kick-Start-Check out this fantastic podcast from Craft of Preaching authors Peter Nafzger and David Schmitt as they dig into the texts for this Sunday!
The Pastor’s Workshop-Check out all the great preaching resources from our friends at the Pastor’s Workshop!
