Day 274, Year 1

Which is More Important? The Gold or the Temple?

“You fools and blind men! Which is more important, the gold or the temple that sanctified the gold?” (Matthew 23:17 NASB)

Today’s verse is a wake-up call from the Lord Jesus to those who seek wealth alone. In this era of materialism, Jesus undoubtedly wants to awaken us to value God’s blessings and His transforming power to purify the unclean, becoming a channel of grace in this world. Those who blindly pursue wealth are not only described as blind in the eyes of their heart, but also “fools.” The word “fool,” moros in Greek, also means “impious, godless, dull, or stupid,” which is equivalent to the foolishness mentioned in the Old Testament. In other words, those who focus solely on pursuing wealth while neglecting God’s principles and the means by which He sanctifies people are foolish. Sanctification means becoming holy and meet for the Lord’s use; and being used by God certainly brings about even greater blessings from Him.

God is more important than gold—theists will agree on this. However, Jesus goes further to state that “the temple that sanctified the gold” is more important than gold itself, which is tremendous. According to His assertion, everything that can sanctify gold is greater than gold itself. Although the Jerusalem temple that Jesus was referring to was destroyed in A.D. 70, forty years after He said this, as He mentioned, “not one stone here will be left upon another” (Matthew 24:2 NASB). What, then, is the point of today’s passage? In my opinion, Jesus encourages us to seek the means of sanctification rather than a certain place.

To begin with, the temple is not the only place that can sanctify people or things. If only the temple could sanctify gold, Jesus would not have brought up that God’s truth sanctifies the disciples (John 17:17). Although Jesus mentioned that the altar in the temple sanctifies the offerings, He also emphasized that His temple should be a house of prayer for all nations (Mark 11:17), which carries even greater significance. Indeed, effective prayers not only remove the curse on objects but also make them holy and ready for God’s use. Hence, in today’s verse, Jesus compares gold to the temple to highlight the temple’s greater importance as a place for sanctification. By extension, this indicates that people need to learn spiritual doctrines, use their offerings and prayers to God to purify everything for Him to use. In a nutshell, God’s truth is more important than any silver and gold, for His truth can sanctify us.

Reflection questions:

1) How important are material possessions to you? Is material wealth or the means to sanctification that the Lord has mentioned more important? Why?

2) Have you ever dedicated yourself to God through prayers and become sanctified by obeying God’s truth?