Enjoy the sights, but worship the Lord! ~ Mike MacIntosh

Then as He went out of the temple, one of His disciples said to Him, "Teacher, see what manner of stones and what buildings are here!" And Jesus answered and said to him, "Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone shall be left upon another, that shall not be thrown down." Mark 13:1-2

Have you ever been to a place that has caused you to be in awe? Maybe it was seeing the White House or the Lincoln Memorial. Or maybe it was the Eiffel Tower, or the London Bridge, or even Walt Disney World. Here the disciples (a bunch of fishermen) are in complete awe and amazement when they see the temple. Indeed it was a beautiful sight to behold. Huge marble stones, shining and glistening in the sun with gold edging and leafing all around. You couldn't help but recall the Old Testament accounts of God revealing to David and Solomon how this temple was to be constructed. And here it was in all of its glory, right in front of them. All the disciples could say was, in effect, "Wow! This is amazing!" But while it was an incredible edifice, the disciples missed the point.

You see, the purpose of the temple was to provide a place to worship God and to enjoy His presence. But the disciples failed to see the fact that God's physical presence was with them, right then and there: Jesus Christ was walking and talking with them! God Himself was teaching and instructing them how to live. The Lord was with them every step of the way. Yes, the temple was beautiful, but it wasn't meant to be worshiped.

I think there are things, and places, in our lives that distract us from worshiping the Lord. It may be material possessions, or homes, or oceans and lakes. God created so many incredible things to allow us to experience enjoyment and to see God's handiwork in them, but it doesn't mean that we ought to worship them and forget about Jesus. As Jesus said, the temple would be destroyed so that not even one brick would be standing on another. And that's exactly what happened just forty years after Jesus said this. The Romans came into the city and totally ransacked it.

The things of this world are temporary, so don't put all of your hopes and dreams into them. All things should point us to the Lord and to see how amazing He is. So this should be a great lesson for us today. May we truly love the Lord, worship Him, and give Him all of the glory that He deserves. Enjoy the sights, but worship the Lord!