John 2:18-19

John 2:18-19 - Then the Jews demanded of Him, “What miraculous sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this? Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple and I will raise it again in three days.”

Jesus was teaching and preaching in the temple courts and many of the Jews were troubled by it. They felt that in order to teach the things of God you had to be raised in a certain way and receive the right schooling, and they did not know where Jesus had come from. He didn’t have any of their religious background, or been raised as a Pharisee nor Sadducee. In fact, He wasn’t even raised near the temple, yet He “taught as one who had authority”(Matthew 7:29) So it was evident that He had the authority, but these Jews wanted some sort of sign to prove it.

When they asked for a miraculous sign they probably expected Jesus to do some healing, or something they could see. What Jesus gave them was a prophesy and foreshadowing of what was coming. “Destroy this temple and I will raise it again in three days,” Jesus said. 

When the Jews heard this they immediately thought He was referring to the physical temple. It was natural for them to think this way, because at that time Jesus body was the only one that housed the Holy Spirit and could be referred to as a temple. What Jesus was referring to when He made this statement was not that they would destroy the temple building, but that they would kill Him and on the third day He would be raised back to life. Then, after His death and resurrection our bodies would be sanctified and set up to house the Spirit of God. 

So we need to recognize the authority of Jesus and all that He has done for us. Now there is no need for a physical temple, because by the blood of Jesus we are washed clean and made righteous before God. That way Jesus was able to send the Helper to us and through the Holy Spirit, who is now inside of us, we have direct access to God. We no longer need a priest, we can have a personal relationship with our Father God.