You Together are that Temple

Joshua 1-2; Psalms 37; 1 Corinthians 3 

“Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is sacred, and you are that temple.”

1 Corinthians 3:16, 17

The immature ‘worldly’ behavior Paul rebuked in the Corinthian church was not related to their clothing or entertainment choices; but rather, to jealousy and quarreling which led to factions in the church. This divisive behavior was destroying it. The enemy of the church, Satan, still sends people to destroy the church as we read in Paul’s epistles to the churches. However, most divisive people don’t realize they are being used by the enemy. They believe they are defending an issue of integrity, justice, equity, or tradition that serves God’s mission, not destroys it. The Church is the Bride of Christ. Paul said the Spirit dwells in our midst, not just in individual believers. We together, as God’s people, are the temple of God. Loving one another as Christ loves us means we forgive, we humble ourselves, and we seek to understand one another. Our collective witness as the Church is at stake.

“Lord Jesus, unify your Church, for your glory.”