And in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, which is the nineteenth year of king Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, came Nebuzaradan, captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, unto Jerusalem: And he burnt the house of the LORD, and the king's house, and all the houses of Jerusalem, and every great man's house burnt he with fire. And all the army of the Chaldees, that were with the captain of the guard, brake down the walls of Jerusalem round about. (2 Kings 25:8-10)

Thought For Today:

People are often appalled when an arsonist burns a church to the ground or someone breaks in and destroys the property inside a church. It's like taking the wind of faith right out of people's sails. Folks immediately give credit to the devil for doing it. They say, "The devil is trying to destroy what God is doing!" And I have heard others say, "Man, I wish it had happened to our church, because we sure could use a new building." Hummm! Many people aren't aware that when you lose a church you sometimes lose people because people lose their faith in the transition while waiting for a new building. Any place that’s used for ministering and teaching God's word is sacred. These places become landmarks for some people. They become special places they can talk about and share with their children as places where they once received salvation and truth.

 Scripture tells what "Nebuzaradan, captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, unto Jerusalem did: And he burnt the house of the LORD, and the king's house, and all the houses of Jerusalem, and every great man's house burnt he with fire." Can you imagine? He burnt the house of the Lord. Why would they burn the house of the Lord? Because faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. It was a place of worship. It was a place of sacrifice to their God. And the king of Babylon knew that if the Lord's house was destroyed the people's hope and faith would be destroyed. Even today in our own country of America, so many seem to be against the church and the things of God. But thanks be to God that we are the church of the living God. It's not a natural building, but a living temple; because we are the temple of the living God. And there are no fiery trials or temptations that can destroy us. As our King told the apostle Peter, "And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18). Jesus knew that the enemy of Truth might destroy the natural building, but not New Jerusalem wherein dwelleth righteousness.