By Amitabh Singh

It was the place of God’s presence for the Jewish people during Jesus’s time. The temple held the “Holy of Holies.” It was here that Jesus was circumcised on the eighth day. We see him at the temple as a boy. He appeared in the Temple early in his public ministry. As part of the temptation, the devil brought Jesus to the Temple.

In John 2:19 (NLT), Jesus says: “All right…Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”

Here, Jesus overturns the concept of worship being based on a location to worshipping him “in spirit and truth. The Father is looking for those who worship him that way.” (John 4:23 NLT)

In 2020-21, COVID-19 was a blessing in disguise. It woke us up to the possibility of accepting a change in the way we do religion. It made us think about our relationship with the creator of this universe.

In Europe, God’s temples became museums where tourists replaced worshippers. Admission fees are collected instead of alms. Alter ropes cordon off the fragile from the sacred. Our location-based temples and European cathedrals have become empty buildings, evoking the absence of God.

So where is God if there is no temple in the city?

It is impossible to understand God through a structure made by hands. A relationship with God is not confined to a place or location. 

In Revelation 21:22-27 (NLT), John gives us something to ponder about:

“I saw no temple in the city, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temples. And the city has no need of sun or moon for the glory of God illuminates the city, and the Lamb is its light. The nations will walk in its light, and the kings of the world will enter the city in all their glory. Its gates will never be closed at the end of the day because there is no night there. And all the nations will bring their glory and honor into the city. Nothing evil will be allowed to enter, nor anyone who practices shameful idolatry and dishonesty – but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.”