Parable of a Church Building

There once was a town that had no church building. In that town there was a group of Christians who decided to erect a church building for their meetings. They told the town’s board members about their plans.

“We have zoning laws and building codes that you will need to follow if you erect a church building and use it for meetings,” the town officials told them.

The mayor handed the Christians a book that listed all the details of the laws they were required to follow.

There were lots of laws. The building had to be set back from the highway a minimum distance. There had to be at least one parking space for every four seats in the main sanctuary. The parking lot had to be paved, and a stop sign had to be placed at each exit.

There were laws and restrictions regarding which types of building materials could and could not be used. The wiring and plumbing had to meet certain specifications. Smoke detectors had to be installed and fire extinguishers had to be in each room.

The size of the building determined how many exit doors were required, and each exit door had to have an exit sign above it.

These and many other state and local laws had to be followed if the Christians wanted to erect and use a building for their meetings.

These Christians had their building erected according to all the state and local laws. They met in the building for several years. Then one night the building was struck by lightning and burned to the ground. Now once again there was no church building in that town.

Now here is an important question that this story raises:

Did the destruction of that church building cause all the zoning laws and building codes to disappear? Did the destruction of that building abolish the building codes and make those laws null and void? Did those laws about church buildings pass away because of the absence of a church building?

Of course not. All of those zoning laws and building codes were still on the books and were still valid. Not a single one of those laws was made void by the absence of a church building. Those laws did not pass away. And if those Christians ever decided to rebuild their church building in the future, they would be required to obey those laws like they did before.

Some readers might be thinking, “Okay, Captain Obvious, what is your point? Why are you telling us this story?”

Let me tell you what prompted this story. Two times in the same week, I heard two different Christians claim that when the Temple was destroyed in AD 70, all of the God-given laws that govern sacrifices offered by Levitical priests in the Temple passed away.

Both of these Christians made this claim in direct response to the words of Jesus in Matthew 5:17-18, “Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.”

“But what about the Levitical sacrifices in the Temple?” these Christians said. “All of those laws obviously have passed away.”

My response to this claim is: No, those laws have not passed away. They are still in the Book, and they are still valid. Not a single one of those laws, not a jot or tittle, was made void by the absence of a Temple, just as the zoning laws and building codes for a church building are not made void by the absence of a church building. And if the Jews ever rebuild the Temple in the future, they will be expected to obey those laws like they did before, just like the Christians in the above story would be expected to obey the zoning laws and building codes if they ever wanted to rebuild their church building in the future.

Just because a God-given commandment cannot be kept today does not mean that that commandment has passed away. Why is it important to know this? Because if you take the typical view of most Christians (i.e., the view that “all the laws governing sacrifices in the Temple passed away”), then in effect you are saying that Jesus was wrong.

Jesus said that not one jot or tittle of the Torah would pass away until heaven and earth pass. Heaven and earth have not passed away. Yet many Christians claim that some of the law did pass away. These Christians probably do not realize it, but they are saying that Jesus was wrong and they are right.

Why do so many Christians claim that some of the law passed away? From what I have seen, this claim is most often made in response to someone else quoting Matthew 5:17-19 to show why it is important for followers of Jesus to obey commandments like the Sabbath and dietary laws. If the Christian claims that “some of the law obviously passed away,” then he can further claim, without any proof, that the Sabbath and dietary laws are included in that “some of the law” that allegedly “passed away.”

But Jesus said that none of the law will pass away, not a jot or tittle, until heaven and earth pass. Who will you believe and follow, Christian friend? Jesus, or those who say that Jesus was wrong?

| DB