Christians Are Not Commanded to Build Chapels, or Temples

8/08/2020 Christianity , COVID 19 24 Comments

If God does not dwell on structures made by the hands of men, like chapels, why did He command the Israelites to build Him a house, as written in Haggai 1:4-9? And if we are not to build chapels and temples, where shall we worship God?

These are questions of people who have a notion that God commanded believers to build a house for Him, and that this house, which could be a chapel or a temple, is the only rightful place to worship God.

It is true that Solomon built a temple or a house for God. Although it was David who originally planned to build it, this plan was realized during the reign of Solomon.

1 KINGS 6:1 (KJV)

Very specific details are provided by the verse. Solomon began building the house of the Lord 480 years after the Israelites came out of Egypt; it was in his fourth year of reign as King of Israel; and it was started in the month Zif, which is the second month in the Hebrew calendar.

When its construction was completed, Solomon dedicated it to God, and there were accounts that they felt there the presence of God during that time.

Since then, God had commanded the Israelites through Moses that whenever they would worship Him, pay tithes, or present their burnt offerings and sacrifices, they should go to His house.

DEUTERONOMY 12:5-7 (KJV) says,


That was a law that they had to follow. They had to go all the way to the temple of the Lord, which was built by Solomon in Jerusalem, if they were to fulfill their obligations and vows to God.

However, if it so happened that some of them lived far from Jerusalem and if what they were to offer were the tenth part of their produce, like vegetables and the fruits of their crops and other perishable goods, they did not have to bring those items to the temple. They should convert those into money instead. Meaning, they should sell those items first, and the amount of money that they would raise from selling those goods was what they should bring to Jerusalem.

DEUTERONOMY 14:24-25 (KJV)


Unfortunately, as time passed, the Israelites neglected taking care of the very temple or house of the Lord where they worshipped and prayed and brought their offerings to Him. Because of their negligence, the house of the Lord was laid to waste and became desolate.

The destruction of His house that resulted from the Israelites’ negligence was the surrounding circumstance behind God’s pronouncements in Haggai 1:4-9.

HAGGAI 1:4-9 (KJV)


The Lord expressed His resentment to the Israelites for taking His house for granted, for not being bothered at all even if they could see that it was practically falling apart; whereas, their respective dwelling places were finely built and well-maintained.

Eventually, this house or temple of God in Israel was destroyed. The Lord Jesus Christ, Himself, prophesied its destruction in Matthew 24:15 (KJV), which says,


The Lord Jesus Christ mentioned about an abominable desolation in the holy place, which had been spoken by the prophet Daniel. This prophetic pronouncement was referring to the impending destruction of the temple in Jerusalem, which was going to be a total destruction, because according to the Lord Jesus Christ, “there shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.”

MATTHEW 24:1-2 (KJV)


If our line of thinking was that worshipping God could only be done in a temple or chapel, what if it were destroyed like what happened to the temple in Jerusalem?

Do you mean we couldn’t worship God anymore simply because the temple has been annihilated? That should not be the case. The truth is, we can worship God even if we do not go to a temple or chapel.

Let us be guided by what the Lord Jesus Christ told the Samaritan woman when He conversed with her by the well of Jacob.

JOHN 4:20-24 (KJV)


The Lord Jesus Christ told the Samaritan woman that the time shall come when they would not have to go to the mountain nor to Jerusalem to worship God; and the time shall also come when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The “time” that the Lord Jesus Christ was talking about actually started that very instance while He was speaking with that Samaritan woman.

In other words, effective that very moment, anybody who wants to worship God is no longer required to go to a designated place like a chapel or temple since he can already worship God even in his own home, because worshipping God means worshipping Him in spirit and in truth.

In worshipping God, you do not have to forcibly gather people together in a big venue like a stadium or coliseum. According to the Lord Jesus Christ, if two or three are gathered in His name, He will be in the midst of them. So, regardless of the place and the number of people gathered in that place, He will be in their midst so long as they are gathered in His name.

MATTHEW 18:20 (KJV) says,


This was fulfilled with the apostles during the time when they were being persecuted by the Jews because of their faith in the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. As the situation did not warrant their safety, instead of going to the temple, they just held their gathering in a house with their doors locked. And, indeed, the Lord Jesus came in their midst.

JOHN 20:19 (KJV)


If the situation would not compromise their and other people’s safety, the early Christians congregated in the temple. But if the situation posed threats to their lives, they just gathered together in the houses of the brethren.

ACTS 20:7-8 (KJV)


This is an instance when the brethren gathered in a house, not in the temple, to listen to the preaching of the Apostle Paul.

We have to understand that when the Lord Jesus Christ came, He amended many things that were formerly believed and observed by the Israelites. One of them was mentioned by the Apostle Paul in Acts 17:24.

ACTS 17:24 (KJV)

In the above cited verse, the Apostle Paul said that God does not dwell in temples made by the hands of man as He is the Lord of heaven and earth and the Creator of the world and everything therein. However, the Iglesia ni Cristo of Manalo seems to disagree with what the Apostle Paul declared, because as expressed in their official publication, they believe that the spirit of God dwells in their chapels or houses of worship.

Using the word of God in the Bible as our basis, it is very clear that the INC of Manalo is grossly mistaken to even presume that the spirit of God dwells in their houses of worship, no matter how magnificent such may seem for them.

Indeed, in the past, specifically during the time of the Israelites, the spirit of God dwelled in the house or temple where they held gatherings. But when the Lord Jesus Christ came, gatherings were no longer limited to temples or houses of worship. Let us not forget that when the Lord Jesus Christ came, there was a change in the priesthood. From Moses, it is now the Lord Jesus Christ who holds the priesthood. So, as there had been a change in the priesthood, there followed a change in the law also.

HEBREWS 7:12 (KJV)

That is the reason why there isn’t any verse in the Bible that mentions that the Lord Jesus Christ instructed the early Christians to build chapels or temples where they should worship God and hold their gatherings.

When the priesthood was changed, the covenant was changed.

HEBREWS 8:7-9 (KJV)


God made a new covenant, and this new covenant was brought by the Lord Jesus Christ when He came here on earth. But unlike the covenant during the priesthood of Moses, which was purely carnal ordinances, the covenant under the priesthood of the Lord Jesus Christ is more on the spiritual side.

That is why in the Christian dispensation, the place where worship and other gatherings should be held is not an issue anymore. In fact, the Christians during the latter part of the first century gathered even in the houses of the brethren.

ROMANS 16:3, 5 (KJV)


Priscilla and Aquila were a couple; both of them were servants of God. And their house served as a venue for church gatherings.

The brethren in Laodicea likewise gathered in another brother’s house.

COLOSSIANS 4:15 (KJV)


Christians are not commanded to build temples and chapels because they can hold gatherings even in houses or in any rented place. Actually, nobody among the apostles of Christ built any temple or chapel during their time, and neither did they instruct the brethren to build one. They cleaved to what the Lord Jesus Christ said that true worshippers no longer need to travel and go to a designated place where they should worship God; they should worship the Father in spirit and in truth.

We can say that that particular decree of the Lord Jesus Christ is more applicable at present, especially so that today, the whole of humanity is going through a crisis.

There is a pandemic; people are discouraged from going out of their dwellings to prevent the transmission of the virus, and there are community quarantines and lockdowns in effect in many places.

Given this situation, I believe it is more prudent to worship God in our respective homes instead of going to a chapel or a house of worship.

As far as the members of the Church of God International are concerned, despite the lockdowns, community quarantines, and travel restrictions imposed by the government, we are still able to worship God and perform our other congregational gatherings, not physically though as the brethren are in their respective residences where they are safe. But we are able to congregate through the use of modern communication technology.

This way, we are able to comply with government policies, and at the same time, we are able to fulfill what the Lord Jesus Christ said, “But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.” (John 4:23, KJV).

AMEN!