Hebrews

When many people read Revelation 21, they immediately picture the destruction of planet Earth followed by God creating another physical universe. But Revelation was not written in a vacuum.

The expectation of a third temple comes largely from dispensationalism. This is the belief that God temporarily paused His dealings with Israel, established the Church, and will someday return to Israel’s Old Covenant system.

Every few years, it seems to happen again. A red heifer is born. Pictures begin circulating. Prophecy teachers get excited. Someone announces that the THIRD TEMPLE is getting closer.

Many Christians have been taught that one day God will destroy the physical universe in a global fire. Yet when the Scriptures are read according to their historical context, original audience, covenantal language, and time statements, a different picture is revealed.

No disrespect to John Hagee, Jewish people, or anyone else is intended in this article. This is not an attack on a man, a race, or a nation. It is a challenge to a theological teaching that has become deeply rooted in much of modern Christianity.

This is one of those passages we often read without stopping to consider the full weight of what Jesus actually said. Jesus connected three things together: Heaven and earth passing. Not one jot or tittle passing from the Law. All things being fulfilled.

When most people hear the words “the last days,” their minds immediately jump to our generation. Wars. Earthquakes. Political turmoil. Moral decline. Israel. Technology. A coming Antichrist. A rebuilt temple. The end of the world.

When most Christians hear the phrase “the Day of the Lord,” their minds immediately go thousands of years beyond the New Testament into our future.