My first trip to Europe many years ago was to attend Amsterdam 2000, a conference organized by the Billy Graham organization and held in the Netherlands. On my way home I arranged to stay in London for a couple of days – my reasoning was that I didn’t know when I would have a chance like this again and I wanted to make the most of it. I was determined to take in as much of London as I could and at the top of the list was a trip to the Tower of London. I’m an unashamed history buff and the Tower had long been on my “bucket list” so I spent the entire day there, in awe as I ran my hands over stones that had been laid centuries before, marveling at the beauty and majesty of the Crown Jewels and laughing at the size of Henry VIII’s armour!

When you travel to a special destination, it’s common to have a “must see” list or be told by others, “You must make sure you visit such and such a place!”

This was also common in the days of Jesus.

Travelers to Jerusalem would have penciled in on their “Must See” list a visit to the Jewish Temple, one of the most magnificent buildings of its day. Known as the “Second Temple”, construction began in 516 BC when Israel returned to her homeland following 70 years in exile.

Around 20 BC, King Herod began a major upgrade and expansion of the Temple as a way of trying to gain favour with the Jewish population. The Temple’s area doubled in size and when it was largely completed, it was regarded as one of the most outstanding buildings of the ancient world.

However, on the evening when Jesus “looked around” the Temple, He was not there on a sight-seeing tour. As Lord of the Temple, He was there to see if it was fulfilling God’s plan and purpose for it.

What happens the next day makes this abundantly clear!

Today’s Bible reading: Mark 11:12-14