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Temple of God

1 Corinthians 6:19, “Don't you know that your body is a temple that belongs to the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit, whom you received from God, lives in you. You don't belong to yourselves.” (GW)

What comes to your mind when you hear the word ‘Church’? To most of us it is a structure or a building, where we gather together for worship. In the Old Testament it was the tabernacle and later on the temple that was the central place of worship. However, in the New Testament, because of what Jesus accomplished through His death, burial, resurrection and ascension, the word, ‘Church’ took on a new meaning.

When Jesus shed His sinless blood, and had His body broken on behalf of the sins of the whole world, He became the Great High Priest (Hebrews 4:14), who entered the Holy of Holies. (Hebrews 10:19-21). This was also the reason why the veil in the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom, when Jesus was crucified (Matthew 27:51). This signified that there was no more need for the temple, the sacrifices or regulations, for Christ had made the perfect sacrifice once and for all.

The temple of God was redefined in great detail by the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians Chapter 3 and 2 Corinthians Chapter 6. Firstly, every believer is God’s temple, and the Holy Spirit dwells within us (1 Corinthians 3:16). Secondly, we are called to be holy, and are warned that if we defile this body of ours, which is God’s temple, He will destroy us (1 Corinthians 3:17).  Thirdly, as the temple of the living God, He assures us that He will dwell in us, walk amongst us, be our God and we will be His people (2 Corinthians 6:16).

Stephen, before being martyred, conveyed this message in Acts 7:48, “However, the Most High doesn’t live in temples made by human hands.” (NLT). In Ephesians 2:19-22, the Apostle Paul describes this profoundly. He says that we are God’s household, our foundation is built on the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself is the chief cornerstone, and all of us are being fitted together, to be built into the temple of God, in whom the Holy Spirit dwells.

Each one of us is the temple of God, and together we are being built into His Holy Temple. If we realize this, we will seek to honour the Lord through our lives every day of the week and not reserve this for just one day. This is why we should also not be perturbed if our adversaries target our man-made structures, for they can never destroy the true temple of God which is what each one of us is..