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the temperature in here, one 
of the deacons thought, I liked it this cold because it makes 
everybody stay awake. I'm not against that, everybody 
staying awake, but we don't typically have it this chilled. So God 
willing, we'll be able to get that sorted out. Well, if you 
would please turn with me in your Bibles to John's gospel, 
John chapter two. John 2, after a lengthy prologue 
in chapter 1, verses 1 to 18, where the apostle goes behind 
the scenes as it were. He doesn't start with the economy 
of redemption, but rather he shows the relation between the 
father and the son in chapter 1, verses 18. the life and ministry 
of the public ministry of our Lord Jesus begins in chapter 
one at verse 19 through the testimony of John the Baptist. And then 
we see his first disciples come to him at the middle and at the 
end of chapter one. Chapter two, we saw in verses 
one to 12, the wedding at Cana of Galilee. And then last Sunday, 
we considered the cleansing of the temple. So this morning, 
we're gonna look at what I call the anti-type of the temple. 
And if you've never heard that word, I hope to define it in 
just a few moments, but I do want to read the chapter beginning 
in chapter two at verse one. On the third day, there was a 
wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 
Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. 
And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, 
They have no wine. Jesus said to her, Woman, what 
does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet 
come. His mother said to the servants, 
Whatever He says to you, do it. Now there were set there six 
waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification 
of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. Jesus 
said to them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them 
up to the brim. And he said to them, Draw some 
out now, and take it to the master of the feast. And they took it. 
when the master of the feast had tasted the water that was 
made wine, and did not know where it came from, but the servants 
who had drawn the water knew, the master of the feast called 
the bridegroom. And he said to him, every man at the beginning 
sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then 
the inferior. You have kept the good wine until 
now. This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, 
and manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him. 
After this, He went down to Capernaum, He, His mother, His brothers, 
and His disciples, and they did not stay there many days. Now 
the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to 
Jerusalem. And He found in the temple those 
who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing 
business. When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out 
of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out 
the changers' money and overturned the tables. And he said to those 
who sold doves, take these things away. Do not make my father's 
house a house of merchandise. Then his disciples remembered 
that it was written, zeal for your house has eaten me up. So 
the Jews answered and said to him, what sign do you show to 
us since you do these things? Jesus answered and said to them, 
destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up. And 
the Jews said, it has taken 46 years to build this temple, and 
will you raise it up in three days? But he was speaking of 
the temple of his body. Therefore, when he had risen 
from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this 
to them, and they believed the scripture and the word which 
Jesus had said. Now, when he was in Jerusalem 
at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in his name when 
they saw the signs which he did. But Jesus did not commit himself 
to them, because he knew all men, and had no need that anyone 
should testify of man, for he knew what was in man. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our Father, 
we thank you for the written word of the living and the true 
God. We thank you for the incarnate word, the word who became flesh 
and dwelt among us. And as John says, we saw his 
glory, we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten 
of the Father, full of grace and truth. We thank you for our 
Lord Jesus Christ. We thank you for his mission, 
his ministry. We thank you for his redemptive 
work on our behalf, even his life, his death, and his resurrection. 
God, we praise you and we adore you and we glorify you for that 
amazing grace that you have given to us. We know we're not saved 
because of our good works, we're not saved because of our righteousness, 
because we have none. But according to your graciousness 
and your riches of mercy, you have saved us and called us out 
of darkness into marvelous light. and help us to proclaim Your 
praises and Your excellencies. And even now, guide us by Your 
Spirit as we consider the ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ, and 
do forgive us for all of our sins. Wash us in that precious 
blood of the Lamb, and we ask in His most blessed name. Amen. Well, as I said, last week we 
saw where Jesus cleansed the temple, and we saw in that study 
that Jesus does this twice in his ministry, at the outset or 
the beginning of his ministry, and then again at the end of 
his ministry. So the Synoptic Gospels, Matthew, 
Mark, and Luke record that final cleansing. They put it at the 
beginning of the Passion Week. Well, here John the Apostle gives 
us this first cleansing. Now notice specifically what 
happens, Jesus comes, and he sees commerce occurring in the 
temple of God Almighty. And then he makes a whip of cords, 
he drives them all out of the temple with the sheep and the 
oxen, and he pours out the changers' money and overturns the tables. 
And he said to those who sold doves, take these things away, 
do not make my father's house a house of merchandise." So what 
they were doing was wrong. What they were doing was lawless. What they were doing deserved 
cleansing on the part of the Son of God. His disciples, reflecting 
upon this, realized that he's acting consistently with Psalm 
69, verse 9. Zeal for your house has eaten 
me up. Zeal for your house has consumed 
me. In other words, when Jesus comes 
into the house of God Most High, it is simply unacceptable for 
that kind of lawlessness to be going on. So that explains or 
gives the rationale for his actions. Now, when we move into verses 
18 to 25, we see a question concerning his authority, or rather, a challenge 
to his authority in verses 18 to 20. Then we have an explanation 
of his words by the apostle himself, and then finally, something concerning 
the extent of his knowledge in verses 23 to 25. So that's where 
we'll go. First, the challenge to his authority, verses 18 to 
20, the explanation of his words in verses 21 to 22, and then 
the extent of his knowledge in verses 23 to 25. Now, I mentioned 
this by way of the title of the sermon, Jesus is the anti-type 
of the temple. Now, don't let that word scare 
you off. It's a very simple word. It corresponds to what we find 
in the Bible itself as a type. And simply, a type occurs 15 
times, or the word rather, in the New Testament. And a type 
refers to an impression, an image, an example, or a pattern. As well, a type can be a person, 
office, place, institution, event, or thing in salvation history. So there's things in the Old 
Testament that are types, of New Testament realities. Or we 
might say they are typical or they are typological of New Covenant 
realities. We considered this on Wednesday 
night in our Bible study. In our study of the book of Exodus 
in chapter 12, there is a detailed instruction given for what was 
called the Passover feast. Well, in 1 Corinthians chapter 
5, the apostle says that Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed 
for us. So you have the type in the Old 
Testament, which is the Passover, and then you have the anti-type 
in the New Testament, which is our Lord Jesus Christ. As we 
move through this particular passage, we see that the temple 
was a type, or it was typical, or it was typological of our 
Lord Jesus Christ, and he is the anti-type. So the antitype 
is simply that which was foreshadowed by the type. And when we hear 
that word antitype, we typically mean or think something against 
the type. We think of the antichrist, and 
he is against Christ or in opposition to Christ. And that's not wrong, 
but the word anti also means in the stead of or in the place 
of. So the Passover is typological 
of Jesus Christ, our Lord. As well, the temple is typical. He's the reason for its existence. It is not an end in and of itself, 
but rather it pointed forward to what Christ would do in terms 
of the redemption of his people. So let's look first at this challenge 
to his authority in verses 18 to 20. You have the Jews' request 
in verse 18. Notice, he's just cleansed the 
temple. They cannot be happy about this. I mean, imagine if 
somebody got up right now and started driving all of us out 
with a whip, and they overturned tables, and they said, it's not 
lawful for you to do what you're doing in this particular place. 
We would probably be a bit surprised. If we happen to be the leaders 
of this place, we might be a bit more than just surprised, we 
might be a bit angry. Who does this man think he is 
to engage in this kind of activity? So look at verse 18. So the Jews 
answered and said to him, go back to John 1, 19. Now this 
is the testimony of John when the Jews sent priests and Levites 
from Jerusalem to ask him, who are you? It's probably the same 
group. It probably refers to the religious leaders in the 
time of our Lord Jesus Christ in this first century setting. 
So the Jews ask him a question. One man says, although the Jews 
appear without explanation, their intentions are clear after the 
narrator's inclusion of Psalm 69.9. Remember in Psalm 69.9, 
he is responding in terms of zeal for your house has consumed 
me. And he is actually expressing grief in that instance because 
that zeal for God's house has brought reproach upon him and 
has brought shame to his name. So this man Klink says, they 
are the revilers who both revile God and shame Jesus. What sign do you show to us since 
you do these things? It's essentially a question of 
his authority. They don't question his zeal. 
They don't question that. They say rather, who do you think 
you are? What gives you the right to come 
into our temple and to engage in this kind of activity? Notice 
that they don't inflict violence upon him. Jesus met with that 
in his ministry in Nazareth in Luke chapter four. He goes in, 
he preaches, they love the words that are proceeding from his 
mouth until he preaches to them sovereign grace and election 
and the predestinating act of God and the bypassing of some 
in ethnic Israel. So how do they respond to that? 
They want to throw him off of a cliff. Well, here in Jerusalem 
at this particular time, they don't respond that way. But as 
well, they don't deny his indictment. They don't say, oh no, this isn't 
a house of merchandise. They had seen it for themselves. 
They had seen the money changers. They had seen the various animals 
being sold. And they had seen that, in fact, 
this was the case. They don't offer a defense of 
their actions. They don't say, why is it that 
you're doing what you're doing? they're doing, but rather they 
want to know who do you think you are? And by doing so, or 
in doing so, they ask for a sign. What sign do you show to us since 
you do these things? In Matthew 12, Matthew 16, and 
then the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians underscores that the Jews always 
were seeking after signs. Now again, that's not necessarily 
wicked and evil and bad. When Moses, or rather God sends 
Moses to the children of Israel, he gives him the ability to engage 
in signs to confirm that Moses is in fact the spokesman for 
God Almighty. We see that the apostles engage 
in signs. We see that Jesus engages in 
signs. And again, it is to authenticate or confirm that the man engaged 
in the sign is actually lawfully called by God and a speaker of 
God's truth. So they're not so outlandish, 
but the essence of their question is a challenge to his authority. 
Now notice the Lord's response in verses 19 and 20. He announces 
a definitive sign. What sign do you show to us since 
you do these things? Now notice in verse 19, Jesus 
answered and said to them, destroy this temple and in three days 
I will raise it up. In the first place, he doesn't 
dazzle them with an immediate sign. He doesn't do something 
like he did in Cana of Galilee. He doesn't say to the servants 
at the temple, bring the water pots full of water with the purifying 
water and let me change that into wine to let everybody know 
here that I have the authority to engage in the cleansing of 
the temple. But what he does is he announces the definitive 
sign concerning his death and resurrection. Destroy this temple 
and in three days I will raise it up. Now the Jews will misunderstand 
that, we'll see that in verse 20, but the apostle, the evangelist, 
the theologian will explain the significance of his words for 
us in verses 21 to 22. But this isn't the only occasion 
that Jesus used this definitive sign to underscore his authority. Turn back to Matthew chapter 
12 for just a moment in a similar sort of a situation where they 
want a sign. So Jesus speaks concerning the 
definitive sign. Notice in Matthew 12 verse 38, 
then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered saying, teacher, 
we want to see a sign from you. But he answered and said to them, 
an evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign and no sign 
will be given to it except what? The sign of the prophet Jonah. So again, Jesus is doing what 
he does in the temple on that first cleansing. He's pointing 
to his death and his resurrection. The prophet Jonah functioned 
typically as well. The prophet Jonah and the event 
that he underwent in terms of being in that whale's belly was 
typological of the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus 
Christ. Again, you can't escape typology 
when you come to scripture. There's things spoken of in the 
Old Testament that have significance and meaning in the Old Testament 
context, but as well, they point forward to New Testament reality 
that will be brought about by our Lord Jesus Christ. Notice 
in verse 40, for as Jonah was three days and three nights in 
the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three 
days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of 
Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn 
it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and indeed 
a greater than Jonah is here. The queen of the south will rise 
up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for 
she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, 
and indeed a greater than Solomon is here. Christ is a greater 
king than Solomon. Christ is a greater prophet than 
Jonah. Christ is a greater priest than 
even the temple and the priesthood itself. And so when Christ indicts 
or upbraids these men, he points to that definitive act that will 
underscore his authority as the Messiah of God. Never forget, 
that's the dispute, that's the debate, that's the controversy, 
that's the issue in the first century with our Lord Jesus Christ. 
It was the case, essentially, that every step of the way, the 
religious leaders were saying, who do you think you are? Who 
do you think you are to engage in the sorts of things that you 
are doing? Well, if they had read their 
Old Testament scriptures properly, they would have been looking 
for a man. They would have been looking for that particular man, 
because scripture was not silent in portrayal of what Messiah 
would look like. He would be born in Bethlehem, 
Ephrathah. They missed that. He would come 
into Jerusalem in that triumphal entry on the back of a donkey. They miss that. He would do signs 
and wonders and glorious things in the name of God most high. 
They miss that. So you see, it was as it were 
that they had a veil over their eyes in the reading of their 
own scriptures so that when the fullness of the time came and 
God sent forth his son, born of a woman, born under the law 
to redeem those under the law, He was not received by them. And we've already been prepared 
for that in the prologue in John 1. He came to his own and his 
own received him not. This shouldn't surprise us, but 
rather it should underscore and affirm to us that these men were 
ignorant. These men were spiritually dead. 
These men were engaged in lawlessness and rebellion against their professed 
God because they rejected the son of his love. Now, one man 
makes this observation concerning the link between the temple and 
Jesus Christ. Ritterbost in his commentary 
on the Gospel of John says, "...in Jesus Christ has become manifest 
the truth of what in all sorts of ways was foreshadowed and 
predicted in Israel's history." Again, types. foreshadows, announcements, 
pointers, sort of indicators that good things were going to 
come. He says, in the law of Moses, in the holy institutions 
of Israel as the people of God, and in the prophets' future expectation. In other words, just as Jesus 
is the Lamb of God, John 1, 29, behold the Lamb of God who takes 
away the sin of the world. Again, another typological relationship. the blood of the bulls and the 
goats that could never take away the sin of the world, nevertheless 
pointed forward to the Lamb of God who does take away the sin 
of the world. Now, brethren, may I just encourage 
you to read your Bible this way? You'll see the organic connection. 
It's not a bunch of sort of disjointed stories. I haven't read the Quran. 
I don't see in my future a reading of the Quran. But from what I've 
understood, it's just kind of thrown together. And I think 
people approach the Bible in that manner. That couldn't be 
further from the truth. It's not just thrown together. 
There is a consent of all the parts. There is a scope of the 
whole. There is an organic unity between 
the two testaments and what Moses wrote of concerning our Lord 
Jesus Christ. Jesus is able to indict the religious 
leaders in his day by saying to them, you search the scriptures 
for in them, you think you have eternal life. But these are they 
which testify of me. Not some nebulous, undefined 
concept of Messiah, but Moses wrote of me in John 8, when Jesus 
says, before Abraham was, I am. The Jews understand his claim 
there in terms of the I am of the bush, and they pick up rocks 
to stone him. But prior to that, Jesus says, 
Abraham rejoiced to see my day. It wasn't some, again, nebulous, 
undefined, messianic figure, but it was the Lord Jesus Christ. 
So back to Ridderbos. So just as Jesus is the Lamb 
of God, so he is also the temple that will replace the existing 
temple, and in whom the indwelling of God among people will be truly 
and fully realized. That's a good quote, except for 
one word. Ritterbosch uses replace. And 
sometimes people accuse us, those who hold to covenant theology, 
as holding to what's called replacement theology. I don't like that choice 
of language. I prefer anticipation and realization. I prefer promise and fulfillment. Replacement almost sounds like 
God's original plan failed, so he sends in the A-team now to 
replace it. But that's not the relationship 
that obtains between the temple and between our Lord Jesus. The 
temple did what it was supposed to do. The temple wasn't bad. It was the people's approach 
to the temple that was bad. It became their badge of national 
identity. It became a source of pride. 
It became a source of encouragement to them in such a way that they 
concluded, as long as the temple's standing, everything's okay with 
us. You can see that in the prophet Micah. As long as the temple 
is standing, then everything is just peachy keen between God 
and us. The temple was not problematic. 
The Old Covenant sacrificial system was not problematic. Those 
things were not replaced. Those things, however, were fulfilled 
by our Lord Jesus Christ. So it's not a replacement theology. It is rather understanding that 
the things promised and anticipated in the Old Covenant are fulfilled 
and realized in the New Covenant. So again, you may not have confronted 
that when persons get sort of negative on covenant theology, 
oh, that's replacement theology. Again, it seems to smack of this 
idea that God failed initially, and so now the A team comes in 
and corrects it. No, the temple, the tabernacle 
prior, the sacrificial system under Moses, all of that existed 
under the ordinance and plan of God for a specific reason, 
to point Israel forward to the coming of the Messiah who would 
take on our humanity, who would identify with us. He would have 
all the essential properties and the common infirmities associated 
with men and yet without sin. He would live for us. He would 
die for us. He'd be raised again for us so 
that we might have everlasting life. And as we unpack that very 
simple sentence, why does He live for us? I mean, isn't it 
the case that we just need the Lamb of God to take away the 
sin of the world? Oh, we desperately need that. 
But we also need the righteousness of Christ. We need to be cleansed, 
yes, from our sins, but we need an actual righteousness by which 
we enter into the presence of God Most High. Going all the 
way back to 1 Samuel chapter 15, all the way through Scripture, 
you'll see this emphasis by God concerning sacrifice I have not 
desired, but rather righteousness, obedience. doesn't mean sacrifice 
is bad, but it's highlighting or underscoring the point that 
obedience and righteousness are necessary to enter into the presence 
of God. That's why this preach, this 
sort of cheap-wish Christianity that we face today, oh yeah, 
Jesus came to make you happy, Jesus came to fulfill your life, 
Jesus came to complete you. You're telling that to North 
Americans who make six digits, who have summer homes, who have 
winter homes, who have every toy, every accouterment that 
can make man happy. Oh, Jesus is gonna increase my 
happiness. I'm already quite happy. Thank 
you very much. It's not Jesus' happiness that 
we need. It's His righteousness. The Apostle 
in 2 Corinthians 5.21 says, God made Him, Christ, who knew no 
sin, to be sin for us that we might become the righteousness 
of God in Him. Galatians 2.21, the apostle says, 
I do not set aside the grace of God. For if righteousness 
comes to the law, then Christ died in vain. Yes, we need the 
Lamb of God. Yes, we need the precious blood. In whom, Paul says in Ephesians 
1, we have redemption through his blood. The apostle John tells 
us that the blood of Jesus Christ, his son, cleanses us from all 
sin. But let's just suppose for a 
moment we believe the gospel right now. We're forgiven of 
our sin. What does that mean practically? 
It means we're back at the tree of the knowledge of good and 
evil, and we have to perform well or else we're never gonna 
enter in to the presence of God most high. This is the glory 
of the gospel. This is the glory of the last 
Adam. He not only forgives us, but 
he gives us a righteousness that avails with his father, such 
that when we by grace believe in him, we're both forgiven, 
and accepted in his sight as righteous only for the righteousness 
of Jesus imputed to us and received by faith alone. So if you are 
not a believer here this morning, perhaps you've missed all of 
that big language. Just know this, God is a holy 
God. You're a sinful man, a sinful 
woman, a sinful boy, or a sinful girl. Scripture tells us that 
those who sin against God are deserving of God's curse and 
God's wrath, both in this life and that which is to come. The 
only way to escape that wrath, to escape that punishment, to 
escape that everlasting perdition, is to flee in faith to our Lord 
Jesus Christ. It is to believe on Him and you 
will be saved. That's John's emphasis when he 
summarizes the purpose for his gospel narrative in John 20 at 
verses 30 and 31. These things are written so that 
you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and 
that believing in His name you may have what? you may have everlasting 
life. It is most blessed, most wondrous, 
most encouraging. And for those of you perhaps 
who are not believers, as you come in here on a Sunday morning 
and you see people looking their Sunday best, they have their 
clothes nice and, you know, typically it's a bit warmer in here, they're 
not shaking and, you know, chattering their teeth, we look like we 
have our act together. We don't. Every single one of 
us is a miserable sinner, deserving God's wrath and curse, both in 
this life and that which is to come. The only distinguishing 
mark is God's amazing grace. How sweet the sound. Amazing 
grace, how sweet the sound that saved what? A wretch like me. He doesn't say a wonderful, beautiful 
specimen of a human being. Amazing grace, how sweet the 
sound that saved a wretch like me. If you don't know anything 
about the author of that particular hymn, you should. His name was 
John Newton. He had a godly mother and he 
rejected and rebuffed her at every step of the way in terms 
of her calling him to repentance and faith. He was a slave trader. He was a shipman that trafficked 
in slaves. Ultimately, God saves him. So 
is it any wonder that he takes pen to paper to celebrate not 
his own existing righteousness, but the amazing grace of God? 
That he celebrates the reality that God in Christ is reconciling 
the world to himself. It's not us. It's not our good. It's not our perfection. It's 
not our righteousness. It's not our merit. Again, we 
deserve wrath and curse and hell and damnation. But God, in grace 
and mercy, reaches down and saves us by His grace. So back to John 
2. Jesus said to them, destroy this 
temple and in three days I will raise it up. Notice the misunderstanding 
of the Jews. Verse 20. The Jews said, it has 
taken 46 years to build this temple and will you raise it 
up in three days? Now, with reference to their 
misunderstanding, you might be surprised, but I'm going to tell 
us that we shouldn't be shocked, and we shouldn't get mad at them. 
I mean, the explanation that John gives to us, he didn't give 
to them. So, Jesus is standing in the 
actual physical temple, and all Jesus says is, destroy this temple, 
and in three days I will raise it up. What do you think they 
concluded? They concluded that this man 
was calling for, or at least acknowledging, the situation 
where that physical structure may be destroyed. This comes 
up later in the trial before the Sanhedrin. False witnesses 
pony up this data, only they twist it a bit. Jesus is said 
to have said, that I will destroy this temple. That's not what 
Jesus says. But in terms of the common misunderstanding, 
again, we don't get bent out of shape over them in terms of 
not getting the point, because John hadn't explained this to 
them. But notice, it has taken 46 years 
to build this temple, and will you raise it up in three days? 
What are they doing? They're living in light of Psalm 
69. In Psalm 69, the psalmist says, Zilphir house has consumed 
me. Zilphir house has eaten me up. And what kind of a response did 
that invite from his family? From his friends? From those 
closest to him? They shamed him. They reproached 
him. They despised him. They disdained 
him. The Jews are trying to engage 
in public mockery of our Lord Jesus at this point. They say 
it's taken 46 years to build this temple. Most likely they're 
talking about the second temple. After Solomon's temple was destroyed 
by the Babylonians in the 6th century BC, there was a period 
of time where there was no temple. And then God calls the prophets 
Haggai and Zechariah as the prophets to preach for the encouragement 
of Israel to rebuild their temple. You have the religious reformers 
at that time, Ezra and Nehemiah. And we see the beginning of that 
second temple in that time frame. Now, with reference to the 46 
years, they're probably speaking of the renovation of the temple 
or the reconstruction of the temple under Herod. It was often 
referred to as Herod's Temple. And he commissioned the reconstruction 
of it in about the 18th year of his reign, so about 20 to 
19 BC. So 46 years later would have 
been around AD 27 or 28. So that brings us to this particular 
vantage point. So you get their mindset. You 
really think that we could destroy this temple or that you could 
destroy this temple and in three days you could build it up? I 
mean, I doubt they were contractors. I doubt they were men that were 
skilled in terms of tools, but they had enough wherewithal to 
understand. You ain't gonna rebuild this in three years. It's just 
not gonna happen. But three days. So that is the 
emphasis in this particular section. The Lord Jesus underscores that 
definitive authority or that definitive sign, which will show 
his authority as the temple cleanser. It is his death and his resurrection. Now that part of the narrative 
concludes. We don't know what happens after 
that. Most likely, Jesus just departed, because we find that 
in verse 23, he seems to be milling about in Jerusalem at the time 
of the Passover. But let's look secondly at the 
explanation of his words that John the Apostle gives to us. 
This happens often. Notice in verse 21, but he was 
speaking of the temple of his body. So the Jews challenge him, 
the Jews attempt to shame him, the Jews obviously don't understand 
him, so John the narrator comes to our aid and says, this is 
what's happening. John the narrator does that throughout 
this particular book. Turn to chapter 6 in verse 64. 
Chapter six at verse 64, for Jesus knew from the beginning 
who they were who did not believe and who would betray him. And 
then in chapter six at verse 71, he spoke of Judas Iscariot, 
the son of Simon, for it was he who would betray him being 
one of the 12. And then again in chapter seven 
at verse one, After these things Jesus walked in Galilee for he 
did not want to walk in Judea because the Jews sought to kill 
him. Verse 5, for even his brothers did not believe in him. And then 
in chapter 7 at verse 39, but this he spoke concerning the 
spirit whom those believing in him would receive for the Holy 
Spirit was not yet given because Jesus was not yet glorified. 
Again, you see this in chapter 11, you see it in chapter 12, 
you see it in chapter 20. So John the Apostle, the author 
of this book, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, wants to 
make sure you and I don't mess up in our interpretation. He 
wants to make sure that we don't side with those Jews in their 
misunderstanding. Now, brethren, this isn't a contest 
between the spiritual meaning and the literal meaning. A lot 
of times people lambast, again, those of us who hold the covenant 
theology as engaged in spiritualization. Brethren, we read the Bible under 
the power of the Spirit and we interpret it literally, even 
metaphor and even simile. I think the best way to describe 
literal interpretation is to uncover the meaning that the 
Holy Spirit intends. Not a wooden literalism, not 
a, well, it says that Jesus, or Jesus says, I am the vine. Well, we don't expect to pick 
grapes off of him. When Jesus says, I am the door, 
we don't expect to see hinges. When Jesus says, this is my flesh 
and this is my blood, in contrast to Romanism and Lutheranism, 
we understand the literal understanding is metaphorical. He doesn't actually 
mean we're ingesting his body and we're ingesting his blood. 
So the contest here isn't between a literal understanding and a 
spiritual understanding. It is the literally true understanding 
and John the Apostle highlights that for us. Notice verse 21, 
he was speaking of the temple of his body. He wasn't speaking 
about Herod's temple. He was speaking about the anti-type 
to Herod's temple, to Solomon's temple, to the tabernacle in 
the wilderness. He is speaking in terms of fulfillment. He is speaking in terms of realization. He is speaking in terms of God's 
plan having come to pass. The apostle Paul sort of summarizes 
what we have in our Lord Jesus in 2 Corinthians 1. He is the 
one in whom all the promises of God are yea and amen. So John tells us he was speaking 
about the temple of his body. He interprets the typology for 
the reader. You have the type in the Old 
Testament, the temple. You have the anti-type in the 
New Testament, the Lord Jesus Christ, the one to whom the temple 
pointed. Now notice, he not only highlights 
or gives us that specific comment, but he tells us what the disciples 
remembered. Verse 22, therefore, when he 
had risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he 
had said this to them. You see, that event spoke volumes 
to the disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Jewish leaders 
knew that it would, that's why they tried to deny it. That's 
why in Matthew's gospel they take pains to try to eradicate 
the thought that Jesus had risen from the dead. Because if Jesus 
had risen from the dead, then everything he testified was true. The definitive sign was legit. And see, they didn't want that, 
because they knew that if it was the case that the disciples 
believed that he had been raised from the dead, then this would 
really shake things up in Judaism at that particular time. That's 
why they bribe guards. They tell the guards. that, you 
know, tell the authority that someone came and stole his body 
while you were sleeping. I mean, you hear how foolish 
that is? If I'm sleeping, I'm not cognizant as to whether somebody 
has come to steal his body. I'm sleeping. Choose one or the 
other, moron, but you can't have both. And so when it comes to 
this reality, with reference to the empty tomb, the disciples 
were taught Not that they had never heard, not that they had 
never read, not that they had never learned, but now it has 
been brought home with power and with authority. The death 
and resurrection of Jesus, as well, is announced here by the 
author, John, very early in his earthly ministry. Notice what 
we've had. Prologue, testimony of the Baptist, 
the first disciples, the wedding at Cana of Galilee, this cleansing 
of the temple, and now this announcement that he's going to die? Now this 
announcement that he's going to be raised again from the dead? 
John, this is such a negative way to comment on the early days 
of Jesus' public ministry. But this was the point, this 
was the focus. Of course Christ came to heal 
the blind, to feed the hungry, to raise the dead. But the primary 
purpose for which the Savior came was to save His people from 
their sins. And He does that through His 
death and His resurrection. So that's announced at the outset 
here by John in terms of what the disciples remembered. Therefore, 
when he had risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that 
he had said this to them and they believed the scripture and 
the word which Jesus had said. Now, brethren, I don't think 
this means they hadn't believed the word or they hadn't believed 
Jesus up to this point. I think it probably means they 
were confirmed, they were strengthened, they were helped, What scripture 
would they now believe in terms of the life, death, and resurrection 
of the Lord Jesus? Psalm 16. On the day of Pentecost, 
Peter the apostle invokes Psalm 16 as proof of the resurrection 
of our Lord Jesus Christ. Isaiah 53, the suffering servant 
of Yahweh, ultimately triumphs in that chapter, which implies 
that he's raised from the dead. Daniel chapter 9, in the prophecy 
concerning the 70 weeks, and that Messiah would be cut off, 
but Messiah would then be enthroned and glorified and magnified. 
So it wasn't the case that the Old Testament didn't announce 
the coming and the death and the resurrection of our Lord. 
They just lacked that hermeneutical help in terms of understanding 
it. And when that empty tomb obtained 
and they saw the risen Christ, they remembered, they understood. 
Same with the apostle Paul. Brethren, Paul as a rabbi, before 
his conversion, probably forgot more Old Testament theology than 
all of us collectively will ever know. He forgot more Old Testament 
theology than you or I will ever know. He had more in his pinky 
in terms of understanding the Old Testament. But he lacked 
this fundamental key to open the Old Testament, which he gets 
on the road to Damascus. when he sees the risen and the 
glorified Christ, and when he asks, who are you, Lord? And 
Jesus says, I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. Guess what 
happens in the mind and in the heart of the Apostle Paul? Oh, 
that's what the Old Testament means. Oh, that's where it pointed. Oh, that's the significance. 
Oh, that's the fulfillment and the realization of the promise 
and anticipation of Old Covenant reality. And so they believed 
the scripture and the word which Jesus had said. Klink, the commentator, 
his name's Edward. I shouldn't probably always call 
him Klink. It sounds like a bit odd, but the disciples had come 
to see as authoritative and complimentary the word of God and the word 
of God. By Word of God, he means the 
scripture of the Old Testament, and by that second use of the 
Word of God, he is referring to the prologue in John 1. In 
the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the 
Word was God. That one who is co-eternal with 
the Father, distinct from the Father, and consubstantial with 
the Father, when he takes on our humanity, and he announces 
in Matthew 16, Matthew 17, and Matthew 20, that he must go to 
Jerusalem, he must be tried at the hands of godless men, he 
must be delivered up to be crucified and to be raised again from the 
dead, it all dawns on them. They understand it in a most 
powerful and confirming way. And so what do they do as a result? They go and they preach. They 
go and they testify. They go and they propagate. Paul 
the Apostle invoking the psalm says, we believe, therefore we 
spoke. Brethren, you want to know what 
the reflex is in terms of those who've been conquered by sovereign 
grace? They proclaim the excellencies of the conqueror. They testify 
of His glory. They sing amazing grace, how 
sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me. They tell others about 
Jesus Christ. They shine His lights in the 
language of the Apostle, in a crooked and perverse generation, and 
they hold forth the word of truth. Brethren, look around our generation. Look around this particular situation. Look around, not simply at North 
America, but to the uttermost parts of the earth. What does 
the world desperately need? It needs Jesus Christ and Him 
crucified and resurrected. The Lord Jesus Christ needs to 
be proclaimed in Nigeria, as our brother prayed. I prayed 
for this brother in Saudi Arabia. We have a prayer meeting at 9.30. 
Anybody wants to come, please come. The apostle entreats Timothy. 
First of all, prayer, supplications, intercessions, and givings of 
thanks must be made for all men. The church must be praying. The church must be serious to 
go to the throne of grace. But we prayed for this man, Adam, 
who's been having, had to have left Saudi Arabia. The crime? Because he's trying to convert 
Muslims to the Lord Jesus Christ. Brethren, praise God for Adam. Praise God for Leah in Nigeria. Praise God for the people in 
China. Praise God for the various nations of the earth. Praise 
God for Peter in Myanmar. What does the world desperately 
need right now? Now, we're gonna say medical 
help, and we need safety, and we need provision. We need Christ 
and his gospel. We need the knowledge of Jesus. 
The apostle says, I'm not ashamed of the gospel, for it alone is 
the power of God unto salvation for everyone who believes, to 
the Jew first and also to the Greek. Why? For in it, for in 
that gospel, the righteousness of God is revealed from faith 
to faith, that just as it is written, that just shall live 
by faith. This is what our fellows need. 
This is what our community needs. This is what people need. So 
when these men were conquered by God's grace, when they had 
believed the Savior, when they had witnessed for themselves 
that empty tomb, when they gazed upon the Son of God, they went 
forth testifying. They went forth proclaiming and 
propagating the glorious gospel of free and sovereign grace. 
Now let's look thirdly and finally at the extent of his knowledge. 
versus 23 to 25, and this provides a transition. We've seen already 
the beginning of his public ministry, right? He starts off in the wedding 
at Cana of Galilee. It's a public place. He then 
moves to the temple and he cleanses it, and then he has this dispute 
or this debate with these religious leaders. But now he's going to 
meet Nicodemus, the private individual. Then he's going to meet the woman 
at the well, John 4. Then he's going to meet this 
paralytic in John 5 at Bethsaida. And so it's sort of an announcement 
to help the reader understand that as Jesus moves from these 
public places to these private parties, he still is who John 
tells us he is in verses 1 to 18 of the Prologue. In other 
words, he is, in fact, the Son of God. He is, in fact, omniscient. He is, in fact, the one that 
knows the hearts of men. So let's look at verses 23 to 
25. Same setting. Notice. Now, when 
he was in Jerusalem at the Passover during the feast. Look at verse 
13. Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up 
to Jerusalem. So here in verse 23, during the 
feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs which 
he did. Many believed on him. We might 
do air quotes here, because as we'll see, he doesn't entrust 
himself to them. He doesn't commit themselves 
to them. Sometimes, I don't want to rock your world, but sometimes 
we see that there were those who believed or those who followed 
for a time or those who were called disciples that really 
weren't. In the history of theology, they 
call that a temporary faith. That's not a bad sort of identifier. There's times where people get 
caught up in the moment. Hebrews 6 seems to indicate this. Persons come into churches, they 
meet nice people, they hear the word of God, the powers of the 
age to come break in, they might see some evidence or fruit of 
the Holy Spirit at work, and they taste of that good word. 
but they don't swallow it, they don't ingest it, they don't internalize 
it. And so this is the likelihood 
of what we find here. So many believed in his name 
when they saw the signs which he did. And that's interesting 
because he's only done one sign up until this point. He's changed 
the water into wine. But look at chapter 21 for just 
a moment. Chapter 21, the apostle tells 
us he didn't record everything. Well, chapter 20, notice the 
ones that are recorded according to verses 30 and 31. And truly 
Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, 
which are not written in this book. But these are written that 
you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and 
that believing you may have life in his name. and then at chapter 
21 at verse 25. And there are also many other 
things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, 
I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the 
books that could be written. Amen. So going back to John chapter 
2, we see this plurality of signs in verse 23. But intriguingly, 
look at the encounter with Nicodemus. According to chapter three, verse 
two, this man came to Jesus by night and said to him, Rabbi, 
we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can 
do these signs, plural, that you do unless God is with him. 
So, though John doesn't record it, he had done other signs. 
And as far as the Maba people there in Jerusalem, they saw 
those signs and they were intrigued. They saw those signs and they 
said, wow, this man is from God. This is one that we should believe 
in. This is one that we should follow. Now, in terms of signs 
in the fourth gospel, they are a help to faith. But if you do 
not have faith in the person of our Lord Jesus, all of the 
belief in the signs aren't going to avail you. In other words, 
the belief in the signs should confirm your belief in Jesus 
Christ. So if you don't have Christ, 
the signs themselves are not going to help you. You see that 
in Matthew chapter 11. Verses 20 to 24, Jesus upbraids 
the cities in which he did his mighty deeds. Why does he upbraid 
them? Because they saw the miracles 
and they didn't repent. See, just seeing signs and miracles 
does not make Christians. Just witnessing the powers of 
the age to come does not convert the heart. You must be born again. That's the emphasis in Jesus' 
discourse with Nicodemus. And how do we know we're born 
again? We'll believe the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ unto 
salvation. So the Lord Jesus knows these 
men and he realizes, according to John in verse 24, that he 
doesn't commit himself to them. But Jesus did not commit or ESV 
has entrust himself to them because he knew all men. He knew that 
they weren't the real deal. He knew that they weren't legit. 
He knew that they, like the religious leaders, misunderstood the Old 
Testament. They didn't get the significance 
of his signs. You see that in John chapter 
6. Jesus tells them, you've come because of the signs and you've 
come because of the bread that I have fed you with. And later 
on in John 6 at verse 66, again, after Jesus preaches sovereign 
grace, predestination, and election, many of his followers no longer 
continued with him. See, for those who follow by 
grace through faith, they're not put off by the sovereignty 
of God. They're not put off by the reality 
that God chose us in him before the foundation of the world. 
They're not put off at the reality that in love he predestined us 
unto adoption as sons. Because when by grace they believe 
the gospel, gospel they'll know. The only way I would have believed 
is if God had ordained it. The only way that I would have 
believed is if God raised me from the dead, if God gave me 
the Holy Spirit, and if God gave me the graces of faith and repentance. 
The child of God doesn't have a problem with the sovereignty 
of God. Now, I know some of you dear 
saints are going to say, but my friend or my neighbor, they 
struggle. Struggle's not the same as an 
abject denial. Typically, brethren, if persons 
don't get it, it's because they're ignorant. I don't mean to use 
that in a derogatory sort of way, but persons need to spend 
time in scripture to understand God's salvation. And when they 
do, they typically come out glorifying him, praising him, honoring him, 
and adoring him. So the Lord Jesus knew all men, 
he was not committed to them. Gil explains, he did not trust 
himself with these persons who believed in him on the foot of 
his miracles. He did not take them into the number of his associates. 
He did not admit them to intimacy with him, nor did he freely converse 
with them or make any long stay among them. So the belief of 
these so-called disciples was not legit. It was just not the 
real deal. It was a temporary thing that 
would not hold. And then notice how John ends 
this section at verse 25. "...and had no need that anyone 
should testify of man." He didn't need for his apostles or his 
disciples to go out and interrogate with a rubber hose and a bright 
light and, do you really believe the gospel? Jesus didn't need 
that testimony. Why? For he knew what was in 
man. Now, in the Old Testament, you 
see the omniscience of God. The eyes of Yahweh are in every 
place, beholding the good and the evil. Solomon tells us that 
in Proverbs 15. Solomon, at the dedication of 
the temple, tells us the same thing as well. God knows everything, 
right? So when we move into the New 
Covenant and we see this Word who was with God, this Word who 
was, or rather the One who was in the beginning with God, the 
One who was with God distinct from Him, and then the One who 
was God, it shouldn't surprise us that He knew what was in man. 
It shouldn't surprise us that He knew because He is God. He speaks here concerning the 
divinity of our Lord Jesus. You see it in Matthew 9 at verse 
4. Remember the scribes and the 
Pharisees reasoned in their hearts, who does this man think that 
he is, conveying forgiveness of sins? It's that scene where 
the roof is opened up and the men let down the paralytic and 
Jesus gazes at him and says, son, your sins are forgiven you. 
So the scribes and the Pharisees in their noggins are saying, 
who does he think he is? Jesus just happens to respond 
exactly to what they're thinking? That's his omniscience, that's 
his ability, that's according to his divinity. Same sort of 
thing in Mark 2 at verse 8. See it in John 6, John 16, Acts 
1. Who do the apostles pray to in terms of the replacement of 
Judas? Christ. Why? Because he sees the hearts 
of all men. John in the book of Revelation underscores the 
same thing in Revelation chapter two at verse 23. Listen to Matthew 
Henry on this. He says, Jesus knew all men, 
not only their names and faces, as it is possible for us to know 
many, but their nature, dispositions, affections, designs, as we do 
not know any many scarcely ourselves. He knows all men. For his powerful 
hand made them all. His piercing eye sees them all, 
sees into them. He knows his subtle enemies and 
all their secret projects, his false friends and their true 
characters, what they really are, whatever they pretend to 
be. We get that, right? We understand that. He knows 
his enemies. He knows all men by virtue of 
the fact that he's the creator, John 1, 3. By him, all things 
were made. Nothing came into being apart 
from him. So as the creator, certainly 
he knows what's in men. But I love the note on which 
Matthew Henry ends. He says, he knows them that are 
truly his, knows their integrity and knows their infirmity too. He knows their frame. So it's 
not just something we beat people up with. God's going to get you 
because he sees you. Well, that is true. The eyes 
of Yahweh are in every place, beholding the good, the evil 
and the good. The churches and the book of 
Revelation. Jesus not only brings condemnation, but he brings commendation. I know your works. I know that 
you have tested those who said they were apostles and were not, 
he says to the Ephesians. But then he says, but you've 
lost your first love. I counsel you, I tell you to 
repent. So it's not only the condemnatory sight of Christ 
that he has upon his people, but it's his commendation. He 
knows our integrity, that which he's placed there, but he also 
knows our infirmity. And I love the way Matthew Henry 
ends that quote, he knows their frame. That's a hat tip to Psalm 
103. The psalmist there tells us that 
God knows our frame. He pities us because he knows 
that we're but dust. So let not this knowledge of 
Christ into the depths of your heart scare you from him, but 
rather may it invite you to him, especially as believers. He knows 
me and he still keeps me. He knows me and he still puts 
up with me. He knows me and he still wants 
me in his heavenly Jerusalem. Yes, by grace, that is the case. Well, in conclusion, in terms 
of the temple, We're gonna investigate a little bit more of this tonight 
if you're interested in some more temple theology. And may 
I say you should be interested. What's the concept of temple 
communicate? God dwelling with his people. That's one of the paramount themes 
in all of Scripture. That Davis quote, the God of 
the bush, Exodus 3, is the God of the mountain, Exodus 19, who 
is the God of the tent, Exodus 25. God dwells with His people. And we'll look a bit at Stephen's 
defense tonight and see how he interpreted the significance 
of the earthly temple. But in terms of the Bible, God 
dwelt with man in the garden, God dwelt with man in the tabernacle, 
God dwelt with man in the temple, God deals or dwells with man 
in the church, and God will bring His church into future glory. We are heading to that blessed 
New Jerusalem, which we looked at last Sunday night from Revelation 
21 and 22. In Revelation 21, specifically 
at verse 22, the seer, John, this man who's interpreted for 
us Jesus' words, says, I saw no temple in it, for the Lord 
God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The church can be 
referred to as the temple of God, the living stones of the 
temple of God. Why? Because we are the body 
of the head who is Christ, and we have solidarity with Him. We have unity with Him. We have 
identity with Him, such that when we look at the church today, 
prior to our translation into that future state, it is not 
wrong to refer to her as the temple of God Most High. Why? Because He dwells with us 
here. Christ is in the midst of the 
lampstands according to Revelation 1. What are the lampstands? John 
comments and interprets there for us as well. The lampstands 
are the seven churches which are in Asia Minor. Secondly, 
the sign of Christ's authority is ultimately the death and resurrection. That furnished undeniable proof, 
now I know that people try and deny it, but a literal reading, 
and I mean a spirit-led reading of scripture, will show us that 
the one promised and prophesied in Genesis 3.15 And then in Genesis 
chapter 22, and then in the sacrificial legislation given by God through 
Moses, that one prophesied by the prophets, that one celebrated 
in the Psalter, that one announced by the apostle as having come 
in the fullness of the times is our Lord Jesus Christ. He is in fact the yea and amen. All of God's promises are yea 
and amen in him. A final observation, and well, 
it won't be the final because I don't want to end on a negative 
note here, but beware of hypocrisy. Beware of hypocrisy or the danger 
of hypocrisy. And by hypocrisy, you know, we 
should really spend a little bit more time on this because 
if you stop and think about it, We're all hypocrites, right? 
People say things like, well, I'll never go to the church because 
it's filled with hypocrites. That's like saying, I'll never 
go to the hospital because it's filled with sick people. Where 
else should sick people go? Where else should hypocrites 
go? They should go to the house of God. And honestly, it's not 
hypocrisy when a man struggles with remaining corruption and 
he cries out to God for forgiveness. That's not hypocrisy. That's 
actually living the way God called us to live. But I think you get 
the drift. This idea that, oh yeah, I'm 
a follower of Jesus. I believe on the Lord Jesus. 
But there's no evidence, no fruit, no whatsoever that goes along 
with that. We're justified by grace alone 
through faith alone. Our confession goes on to indicate, 
though, that that faith is always accompanied by all other saving 
graces. So in other words, if you're 
justified by faith, there will be sanctification. Our brother 
exhorted us, let your conduct be worthy of the gospel. Not 
because we owe Jesus, but because this is the reflex of Jesus having 
saved us. Of course we want to walk in 
obedience. Of course we want to follow the lamb wherever he 
says to go. So beware of that. Children, I don't want to I almost 
said pick on you. I don't want to pick on you, 
but I want to encourage you. Don't just say, oh yeah, I believe 
in Jesus to satisfy, you know, your mom or dad. Or I believe 
in Jesus to satisfy a pastor, somebody in your life. Belief 
in Jesus is the most important thing ever. If you're not believing, 
there's a simple antidote. Believe, look to him in faith 
and receive all the benefits and all the blessings that God 
gives to sinners who come to his son in faith and repentance. So believe on the Lord Jesus 
Christ and you shall be saved. Well, let us pray. Our Father, 
we thank you for your Word. We thank you for the clarity 
of what we find here in John's Gospel. And we praise you that 
in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and 
the Word was God, and that One became flesh and dwelt among 
us. We thank you for the life and the death and the resurrection 
of our Lord Jesus, so well summarized in Romans 4. The Apostle says 
that Christ was delivered up because of our offenses, and 
he was raised for our justification. May sinners today believe on 
him, and may they taste and see and know that the Lord is indeed 
good. And would you strengthen us, 
further conform us unto his image, and grant us help and strength 
and grace to be faithful in this lower world. And we ask through 
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Well, you can turn in your 
hymn books to 568, and we'll stand by singing the doxology, 
or end our worship by singing the doxology. 568. is is is The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ 
and the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you 
all, amen. Father, thank you for this opportunity 
to gather together to come to you through your son and the 
power of the Holy Spirit. We confess that you are most 
high, most wondrous, most glorious, and God help us to serve you 
with joy and with thanksgiving. Go with us now and help us to 
know that peace of Christ that does surpass all understanding. 
And we pray in his blessed name, amen. will please be seated for 
a brief time of meditation.