By David Faust
During a trip to Greece, I asked our guide about church attendance in her country. “Most people don’t go to church here,” she responded without hesitation. “They think church is boring.”
Statistics support her words. According to a Pew Research Center study, less than 10 percent of Europeans attend church services—yet countries like England, Germany, and France boast some of the most beautiful church buildings in the world. Architectural marvels constructed to glorify God have become museums and visitor attractions, not centers of worship and community service.
Where has the glory gone?
Major League Baseball teams used to sponsor old-timers’ games featuring stars from yesteryear. Fans enjoyed seeing great players like Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays, and Johnny Bench back on the field. We watched with a mix of nostalgia and melancholy as once-great athletes, now out of shape, hobbled around the bases—awkward reminders of fading glory.
A Temple Without God
A sad verse appears in the book of Judges. For a season, the strong man Samson prevailed over his enemies, but he made questionable choices and his impressive physical strength was offset by his spiritual immaturity. After lulling him to sleep on her lap and having a barber shave off his long braids of hair, Delilah called out, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you,” but his strength was gone. Then comes this sad verse: “He awoke from his sleep and thought, ‘I’ll go out as before and shake myself free.’ But he did not know that the Lord had left him” (Judges 16:20).
Samson’s muscular body had been a temple for God’s Spirit, but without the Lord’s presence, this once-mighty man fell feebly before the Philistines. Until it was too late, Samson didn’t realize the Lord had left him.
The prophet Ezekiel foresaw God’s coming judgment upon the unfaithful Israelites, and even the temple sanctuary was not exempt. In fact, as Peter later noted, judgment begins “with God’s household” (1 Peter 4:17), so the Lord told his agents of judgment, “Begin at my sanctuary” (Ezekiel 9:6).
Jerusalem’s temple was supposed to be a house of prayer for all nations. It was meant to serve as a reminder of God’s presence and power, a gathering place for worship, and a holy place where animal sacrifices foreshadowed the Lamb of God’s death on the cross. But now Ezekiel saw God’s glory moving away from the temple as the city headed toward destruction.
Form Without Power
Ezekiel’s dire prophecies serve as a warning for us today. God’s grace abounds, but we shouldn’t take it for granted. We can’t live in the past, savoring the glory days behind us. Nor is it enough for a church to have a big building, a large staff, and well-organized programs. Without consistent prayer and wise, courageous leadership, a church can lose its way, forget its mission, and abandon the faith once for all delivered to the saints. It can end up with “a form of godliness” while denying God’s power (2 Timothy 3:5).
God still looks for those “who grieve and lament” (King James Version: “sigh and cry”) over their own sins and the sins of society (Ezekiel 9:4). We need to be faithful and watchful lest one day we wake up, surprised by our weakness, and wonder, “Where did God’s glory go?”
Personal Challenge: Where do you see evidence of God’s glory in the church where you worship and serve? What makes you “grieve and lament” over the sins of society (or the sins you struggle with yourself)?
Thank you for this article! So many people are taking “glory” for themselves, deciding how to live their lives without the word of Almighty God. God does not share His glory with anyone else. We glorify God when we live His way. Oh, may the Church bow the knee before God, the Glory, in repentance and humility!