"Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up!" Good Friday Chief Service 2026

This Good Friday sermon from St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church delivers a powerful theological reflection on the crucifixion as the foundational act of church building, not destruction. Drawing from John 2:19—'Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up'—the preacher unpacks Jesus' words as a prophecy of His own body, the true temple. The sermon challenges the modern church's reliance on human strategies, programs, and growth models, arguing that the church is not built by human effort but is passively constructed by the Holy Spirit through the cross. The crucifixion is not a defeat but the cornerstone being laid, with Christ's death and resurrection forming the foundation of a new creation. The sermon emphasizes that believers are living stones, not self-chosen members of a voluntary association, but individuals placed into the church by divine grace through baptism and the Word. It concludes with a call to faith in Christ's promise: He raised Himself from the dead, and in doing so, raised the church with Him.