We discover in reading the Old Testament that the temple in Jerusalem became the central place where God regularly manifested His presence. The prophet Habakkuk contrasted the lifeless idols of pagans with the living God of Israel saying, “The Lord is in His holy temple. Let all the earth keep silence before Him” (2:20).
The New Testament picks up the imagery of a temple as a place where God’s Spirit dwells. The plural form of “you” in its four occurrences in 1 Corinthians 3:16–17 reminds us the collective or congregational sense of a gathered group of believers constitutes a dwelling place of the Holy Spirit.
When we gather for worship, where is the Holy Spirit? He is not invisibly floating around among seats or hovering just beneath the ceiling. God’s Spirit dwells in the hearts of the redeemed, as indicated in Romans 8:9: “If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.” The conclusion from this truth is the Holy Spirit is present in the gathered body of true believers, thus turning the congregation into His temple.
Spirit’s dwelling
Among practical outcomes of recognizing our hearts as the Spirit’s dwelling place is the awareness that to the extent any of us is grieving, quenching or disobeying the Holy Spirit, our place of worship is limited as the dwelling place of the Spirit. Furthermore, when the Spirit is not freely filling us and flowing through us individually for the collective good, His convicting presence is curtailed — so non-Christians in our midst do not come under the strong conviction about their needs and the Savior’s supply.
When we notice that some worship times seem to be moving and powerful but others feel dull and lifeless, maybe we as individuals need to engage in a do-it-yourself heart checkup: Have we brought into church a backlog of unconfessed and thus uncleansed sin? Do we harbor unreleased forgiveness toward others?
Members with cluttered hearts can hamper the church from being a temple of God’s Spirit, which, being preeminently holy always has an affinity for clean hands and pure hearts.
Not only are we collectively the temple of the Spirit, but our bodies are individually His temple. While 1 Corinthians 3:16–17 gives the plural form of “you,” chapter 6:19–20, through the singular use of “you,” says individual bodies are temples.
Such should be our attitudes and actions that God’s Spirit can be present in fullness, unquenched by our confession of sins and God’s forgiveness.
Share with others: