March 23rd, 2022
“Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you?” (1 Cor. 3:16)
One of the most powerful revelations we can get as a believer is who we are in Christ. We could spend a lifetime walking with Jesus and not have full revelation of this truth. This week I want to talk about just one aspect of who the Bible says we are: The Temple of God. Now, if you’re a Christian you’ve probably heard before that you are the temple of God. Even if you’re not a Christian, you might have heard to “treat your body like a temple,” as a metaphor for taking care of your physical body. Have you ever really thought about the significance of what it means to be the temple of God, though?
The Bible actually has a lot to say about the temple, in both the Old and New testament. It may seem foreign to us now, but at the time the New Testament was being written, there was still a temple in Jerusalem! The words used for temple in the Bible could also be translated dwelling place, sanctuary, or house. Now, the first “temple” was actually not a building, but a tent—a tabernacle. After the Israelites came out of Egypt, God gave Moses very specific instructions for how to build the tabernacle. For about 15 chapters, the Bible details exactly how it was to be constructed. It had to be holy, perfect, and dedicated. In Exodus 25:8 we see why it was constructed! God said, “Let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst.” God’s heart has always been and will always be to be with His people!
In Exodus 40:34-36, we see that when the work was completed, God’s glory in the form of a cloud and fire came and settled on the tent! It says,
“So Moses finished the work. Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.”
Now, this was not the only dwelling place of God in the Bible. Hundreds of years later, King Solomon built a massive, beautiful temple in the city of Jerusalem. He was given very detailed instructions for its construction, down to the very weights of the gold used for the furnishings, just as Moses was given detailed instruction to build the tabernacle. They took the sanctuary of God very seriously! In 2 Chronicles 7:1-7, we read what happened when the temple was finished:
“As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple. And the priests could not enter the house of the LORD, because the glory of the LORD filled the LORD'S house. When all the people of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of the LORD on the temple, they bowed down with their faces to the ground on the pavement and worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD, saying, “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.”
Just as when the tabernacle was dedicated in the wilderness, God’s glory came when the dwelling place was completed. His presence came with fire so the ministers couldn’t even stand to minister, and the people worshipped!
Now, you may be wondering how all of this relates to you. 1 Corinthians 3:16 says we are the temple, as do many other scriptures in the New Testament, but what does this really mean?
Well, in John 2:19-22 we read an interesting exchange between Jesus and the religious leaders of His day that sheds some light on this,
“So the Jews said to him, “What sign do you show us for doing these things?” Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” The Jews then said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will you raise it up in three days?” But he was speaking about the temple of his body. When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the Scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.”
Jesus knew long before He went to the cross that He was going to die and be raised from the dead. In this scripture, Jesus revealed the powerful truth that His body is the temple (dwelling place, sanctuary) of God and we are part of His body. When we accept the sacrifice that Jesus made on the cross, we become one with Him and the temple of God! Ephesians 2:19-22 says,
“So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.”
We are all being built together to be the dwelling place for God, with Christ Jesus being the cornerstone! Jesus said he was on earth to build His church—His body, and we are the church He came to build! Now, we read above that when the tabernacle and the temple were dedicated, there was an infilling of God’s glory. So, what happened when the temple that Jesus built was dedicated to God? Well, after Jesus was the resurrected and ascended back to heaven, 120 believers were gathered together in Jerusalem. Acts 2:1-4 tells us,
“When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.”
Just as when the tabernacle was dedicated in the wilderness, fire fell from heaven upon the believers. They were the temple that Jesus died to consecrate. Just as when the temple was dedicated in Jerusalem in Solomon’s day, God’s glory came upon those 120 believers and filled them with His presence and they worshipped. The parallel is incredible!
The temple has always been and still is the dwelling place of God. Think about how seriously God took the tabernacle and the temple. He gave specific details for every aspect of their construction. Everything in them had to be sanctified—set apart and dedicated—for Him. The same is still true for the New Testament believer! We have been sanctified by the blood of Jesus Christ— made holy not by our merit, but by His blood! However, we have to live with the revelation that we are the temple of God. We can’t live like the world because we aren’t like the world. Only by accepting what Jesus did on the cross are we made holy unto God. It is by His precious blood that we can now all be the temple, and we cannot take this powerful truth for granted. His fire, His glory, and the cloud of His presence now dwells in us, and we have to live like it! As the body of Christ, we are the dwelling place of God.
One of the most powerful revelations we can get as a believer is who we are in Christ. We could spend a lifetime walking with Jesus and not have full revelation of this truth. This week I want to talk about just one aspect of who the Bible says we are: The Temple of God. Now, if you’re a Christian you’ve probably heard before that you are the temple of God. Even if you’re not a Christian, you might have heard to “treat your body like a temple,” as a metaphor for taking care of your physical body. Have you ever really thought about the significance of what it means to be the temple of God, though?
The Bible actually has a lot to say about the temple, in both the Old and New testament. It may seem foreign to us now, but at the time the New Testament was being written, there was still a temple in Jerusalem! The words used for temple in the Bible could also be translated dwelling place, sanctuary, or house. Now, the first “temple” was actually not a building, but a tent—a tabernacle. After the Israelites came out of Egypt, God gave Moses very specific instructions for how to build the tabernacle. For about 15 chapters, the Bible details exactly how it was to be constructed. It had to be holy, perfect, and dedicated. In Exodus 25:8 we see why it was constructed! God said, “Let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst.” God’s heart has always been and will always be to be with His people!
In Exodus 40:34-36, we see that when the work was completed, God’s glory in the form of a cloud and fire came and settled on the tent! It says,
“So Moses finished the work. Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.”
Now, this was not the only dwelling place of God in the Bible. Hundreds of years later, King Solomon built a massive, beautiful temple in the city of Jerusalem. He was given very detailed instructions for its construction, down to the very weights of the gold used for the furnishings, just as Moses was given detailed instruction to build the tabernacle. They took the sanctuary of God very seriously! In 2 Chronicles 7:1-7, we read what happened when the temple was finished:
“As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple. And the priests could not enter the house of the LORD, because the glory of the LORD filled the LORD'S house. When all the people of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of the LORD on the temple, they bowed down with their faces to the ground on the pavement and worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD, saying, “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.”
Just as when the tabernacle was dedicated in the wilderness, God’s glory came when the dwelling place was completed. His presence came with fire so the ministers couldn’t even stand to minister, and the people worshipped!
Now, you may be wondering how all of this relates to you. 1 Corinthians 3:16 says we are the temple, as do many other scriptures in the New Testament, but what does this really mean?
Well, in John 2:19-22 we read an interesting exchange between Jesus and the religious leaders of His day that sheds some light on this,
“So the Jews said to him, “What sign do you show us for doing these things?” Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” The Jews then said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will you raise it up in three days?” But he was speaking about the temple of his body. When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the Scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.”
Jesus knew long before He went to the cross that He was going to die and be raised from the dead. In this scripture, Jesus revealed the powerful truth that His body is the temple (dwelling place, sanctuary) of God and we are part of His body. When we accept the sacrifice that Jesus made on the cross, we become one with Him and the temple of God! Ephesians 2:19-22 says,
“So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.”
We are all being built together to be the dwelling place for God, with Christ Jesus being the cornerstone! Jesus said he was on earth to build His church—His body, and we are the church He came to build! Now, we read above that when the tabernacle and the temple were dedicated, there was an infilling of God’s glory. So, what happened when the temple that Jesus built was dedicated to God? Well, after Jesus was the resurrected and ascended back to heaven, 120 believers were gathered together in Jerusalem. Acts 2:1-4 tells us,
“When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.”
Just as when the tabernacle was dedicated in the wilderness, fire fell from heaven upon the believers. They were the temple that Jesus died to consecrate. Just as when the temple was dedicated in Jerusalem in Solomon’s day, God’s glory came upon those 120 believers and filled them with His presence and they worshipped. The parallel is incredible!
The temple has always been and still is the dwelling place of God. Think about how seriously God took the tabernacle and the temple. He gave specific details for every aspect of their construction. Everything in them had to be sanctified—set apart and dedicated—for Him. The same is still true for the New Testament believer! We have been sanctified by the blood of Jesus Christ— made holy not by our merit, but by His blood! However, we have to live with the revelation that we are the temple of God. We can’t live like the world because we aren’t like the world. Only by accepting what Jesus did on the cross are we made holy unto God. It is by His precious blood that we can now all be the temple, and we cannot take this powerful truth for granted. His fire, His glory, and the cloud of His presence now dwells in us, and we have to live like it! As the body of Christ, we are the dwelling place of God.
No Comments