Centering on Jesus' proclamation "Destroy this temple" in John 2 and 18, Pastor David Jang unpacks the Bible's core message and the challenges facing today's church with penetrating insight. He does not treat the saying merely as a prophecy of the temple's demolition; rather, he highlights it as Jesus' radical call for spiritual reformation-one that tears down corrupt religious systems, human‑centeredness, and counterfeit faith structures.
Jesus' expulsion of merchants and money‑changers from the Jerusalem temple was not a momentary outburst of anger. It was holy judgment on a religious power that had turned God's house into a marketplace of personal gain. David Jang explains, "He had to shake the rotten religious structure that exploited God's name at its roots."
The families of Annas and Caiaphas monopolized enormous power and wealth at the heart of the temple economy. Jesus' action was a frontal collision with that system and ultimately set the stage for His crucifixion. "Behind Jesus' arrest and trial stood the religious authorities," Jang notes. "The cleansing of the temple was a fierce confrontation with their power."
This same theme resurfaces in Acts with Stephen's martyrdom. Stephen is executed after the charge that "Jesus will destroy this temple and build another." The accusation shows that the early Christian community had embraced a new concept of the temple that transcended traditional structures.
"We, too, harbor small temples built on self‑centeredness, materialism, and outward religiosity," David Jang warns. "'Destroy this temple' is a command spoken to us today." Through it he urges churches and believers to demolish their inner false temples daily and rebuild on the foundation of Christ's cross and resurrection.
On the cross, Jesus' death tore the temple curtain in two-a symbolic declaration that the wall between God and humanity had fallen. The era in which only priests could approach God was over; now anyone may draw near to the true Temple-God Himself-through Jesus Christ.
"The church is not a building," Jang affirms, "but a living organism with Christ as its head, being built together in the Holy Spirit." Should today's church once again become entangled in money, power, and prestige, he warns, the lash of Jesus will inevitably resound.
Ultimately, "Destroy this temple" is God's urgent plea for the church to recover its essence and a summons to personal spiritual reform. Jang reminds us that the temple we must tear down is not made of stone but of the hypocrisy, pride, and self‑righteous idols within. Just as Jesus raised a new temple in three days, we must rebuild a true temple by the power of the Spirit and the gospel upon the ruins of our old selves. This, Pastor David Jang insists, is the starting point of the "new church."
