What new testament scripture teaches us to interpret the old testament where Christians will build a future physical brick and mortar temple?
Keras, if we use scripture to interpret scripture, we can see that the New Jerusalem is the Ezekiel Temple/City:
1.)BOTH the New Jerusalem and the Ezekiel temple have a river flowing from it that bears fruit each month for healing.
revelation 22:1-2 Then the angel showed me a river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the main street of the city. On either side of the river stood a tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit and yielding a fresh crop for each month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.
Ezekiel 47:1 Then the man brought me back to the entrance of the temple, and I saw water flowing from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar.
Ezekiel 47:12 Along both banks of the river, fruit trees of all kinds will grow. Their leaves will not wither, and their fruit will not fail. Each month they will bear fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will be used for food and their leaves for healing.
2.) BOTH the New Jerusalem and the City in Ezekiel have 12 gates with 12 tribes of Israel inscribed on them
Revelation 21:12 The city had a great and high wall with twelve gates inscribed with the names of the twelve tribes of Israel
Ezekiel 38:30-34 Beginning on the north side, which measures 4,500 cubits long, the gates of the city will be named after the tribes of Israel. On the north side there will be three gates: the gate of Reuben, the gate of Judah, and the gate of Levi. On the east side, which will be 4,500 cubits long, there will be three gates: the gate of Joseph, the gate of Benjamin, and the gate of Dan. On the south side, which will be 4,500 cubits long, there will be three gates: the gate of Simeon, the gate of Issachar, and the gate of Zebulun. And on the west side, which will be 4,500 cubits long, there will be three gates: the gate of Gad, the gate of Asher, and the gate of Naphtali.
3.) BOTH the New Jerusalem and the Ezekiel temple are where God dwells.
Revelation 21:3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying: “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man, and He will live with them.
Ezekiel 43:7 7and He said to me, “Son of man, this is the place of My throne and the place for the soles of My feet, where I will dwell among the Israelites forever
Incorrect, there is no physical brick and mortar temple in the new Jerusalem
Revelation 21:22
But I saw no temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.
your opinion is not backed by scripture. So you are going to have to explain:
1.) Why, that even though
BOTH the Ezekiel temple/city and the New Jerusalem have a river running from the throne of God AND have trees that produce crop each month with leaves for healing, they are not the same.
2.) Why, that even though
BOTH the Ezekiel city and New Jerusalem have 12 gates (3 on each side) with the names of the 12 tribes of Israel, they are not the same
3.) Why, that even though
BOTH the Ezekiel temple/city and the New Jerusalem are where God dwells with his people forever, they are not the same.
By simply reading the Bible.
God took away the old covenant through Christ. Under the new covenant sacrifices are not desired or needed, for Christ sanctified us ONCE FOR ALL.
Hebrews 10:3-10 Instead, those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins, because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and of goats to take away sins. Therefore, when Christ came into the world, He said: “
Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You prepared for me. In burnt offerings and sin offerings You took no delight. Then I said, ‘Here I am, it is written about Me in the scroll:
I have come to do Your will, O God.’”
a In the passage above He says, “
Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings You did not desire, nor did You delight in them” (although they are offered according to the law). Then He adds, “Here I am, I have come to do Your will.”
He takes away the first to establish the second. And by that will, we have been sanctified through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
True worshippers, because of Christ, must worship God in spirit and in truth. We do not worship God through the old covenant laws, regulations, ordinances, sacrifices, and washings, because they have been done away with.
John 4:21-24 Believe Me, woman,” Jesus replied, “a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. But a time is coming and has now come
when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for the Father is seeking such as these to worship Him. God is Spirit, and His worshipers must worship Him in spirit and in truth.”
The old covenant law was only imposed until the time of Christ and the sending Holy Spirit.
Hebrews 9:9-10 According to this arrangement, gifts and sacrifices are offered that cannot perfect the conscience of the worshiper, but deal only with food and drink and various washings, regulations for the body
imposed until the time of reformation.
Correct. There are.
It's important to understand the immediate context of the passage and the ultimate purpose of the sacrifices in order to appropriately interpret scripture.
Sacrifices were required by God as part of the old covenant. What was the purpose of the sacrifices? TO POINT TO CHRIST. The sacrifices are NOT THE TRUE REALITIES.
Hebrews 10:1 For since
the law has but a shadow of the good things to come
instead of the true form of these realities.
Many foreigners did join themselves with Israel. During the time of Christ, the temple had a court for the gentiles and their sacrifices were accepted.
Isaiah 56:6-7 And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord, to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord, and to be his servants, everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it,
and holds fast my covenant—these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar;
for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.”
During the time of Jesus, the temple was to be a house of prayer for all nations.
Mark 11:17 and he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My
house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’?
***This was prior to the cross, when the old covenant still existed between God and man. This would be called the type (immediate context).
The antitype (ultimate fulfillment in Christ) is found in the body of Christ, where gentiles (foreigners) are now one with the people of God. This new creation:
1.) is the temple
2 Corinthians 6:16 For we are the temple of the living God
2.) worships God in spirit and truth through spiritual sacrifices
Romans 12:1 Therefore I urge you, brothers, on account of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.
1 Peter 2:5 you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
3.) now comes to the mount zion, the city of God, the heavenly Jersualem
Hebrews 12:22 Instead, you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem.
The Ezekiel temple was never built under the old covenant. The only reason to read it literally (according to flesh), would be if the old covenant still existed.
Ezekiel 45:20 You must do the same thing on the seventh day of the month for anyone who sins unintentionally or in ignorance. In this way you will make atonement for the temple.
However, The old covenant was made obsolete by Christ and was ready to vanish away during the first century
Hebrews 8:13 In speaking of a new covenant,
he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.
Because the old covenant (type) no longer exists, we should read Ezekiel 40-48 with an unveiled mind in the context of the new covenant (antitype). If you have an understanding that the law was a shadow of Christ, not the reality, then you can apply this same unveiled understanding to the Ezekiel temple under the new covenant.
Just as the sacrifices of the law pointed to Christ, so to do the sacrifices in the Ezekiel temple.
Jeremiah 33:18 For this is what the LORD says: nor will the priests who are Levites ever fail to have a man before Me to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings, and to present sacrifices.”
This prophecy is fulfilled in Christ.
Immediate context under the old covenant (type). God states the Levites will never fail to have A MAN before God offering sacrifices.
Now the type was "set aside by God", but ultimately fulfilled in Christ (antitype), as He became that MAN on behalf of the levites to stand before the Lord.
God changed the law because Christ is not a descendent from Levi
Hebrews 7:11-12 Now if perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood (for on this basis the people received the law), why was there still need for another priest to appear—one in the order of Melchizedek and not in the order of Aaron? For
when the priesthood is changed, the law must be changed as well.
God set aside the former commandment of using levites as priests because it could not make anything perfect.
Hebrews 7:18-19 So the former commandment is set aside because it was weak and useless (for the law made nothing perfect), and a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God.
And Jesus became an eternal high priest for us
Hebrews 7:21 but Jesus became a priest with an oath by the One who said to Him: “The Lord has sworn and will not change His mind: ‘You are a priest forever.’”
b
Now, do the Levites lack a man before God as a high priest? No, they don't and they never will because of Christ. Do we lack a man to stand before God? No, we don't and never will because of Christ.
Christ offered the ultimate sacrifice before the Lord.
Hebrews 7:27 Unlike the other high priests, He does not need to offer daily sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people; He sacrificed for sin once for all when He offered up Himself.
Zechariah 14:21 Indeed, every pot in Jerusalem and Judah will be holy to the LORD of Hosts, and all who sacrifice will come and take some pots and cook in them. And on that day there will no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the LORD of Hosts.
Again, interpreting scripture requires knowledge of the type (immediate context) and antitype (ultimate fulfillment in Christ).
Zechariah wrote under the old covenant (type). However, its true understanding (antitype) comes from the new covenant.
Using scripture to interpret scripture, we can see that from zechariah verse 8 and onward, the Jerusalem is in regards to the New Jerusalem because:
1.) BOTH the Jerusalem from Zechariah 14 and the New Jerusalem have no more curse
Zechariah 14:11 (septuagint) they shall dwell in the city;
and there shall be no more any curse, and Jerusalem shall dwell securely
Revelation 22:3
No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be within the city, and His servants will worship Him.
2.) BOTH the Jerusalem from Zechariah 14 and the New Jerusalem have living water flowing from them.
Zechariah 14:8 And on that day
living water will flow out from Jerusalem.
revelation 22:1-2 Then the angel showed me a r
iver of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the main street of the city.
Thus, the sacrifices in Zechariah 14:21 should not be taken as the reality, because it is the shadow (Hebrews 10:1), but only the type (immediate context under the old covenant).
If the sacrifices (shadow) are to be taken as the true reality, then we should have new testament scripture that mention the church performing animal sacrifices again. However, we don't.
There is no new testament scripture that states the church will again perform the rituals, sacrifices, regulations, etc...in a temple building.