Articles
The Temple of God Is Holy
At the heart of our faith is an unwavering devotion to Jesus Christ, our Savior, High Priest and King. Jesus died to redeem us from sin; He became the “chief cornerstone” of His church, “rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious … and he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame” (1 Pet 2:4, 6). We wear Christ’s name; we pray to God through Him; we extol Him as both the physical and spiritual Creator. Our eternal hope rests on Him, and it is to Him that we answer for the state of our faith in the final judgment.
But to a large degree, our faith in Christ is to be measured by our service in and among His people. It was God’s will, as we see develop in the kingdom in the first century, that saints convene local associations of believers – churches – in order to worship together, foster spiritual growth, support each other in material needs and work to accomplish collective objectives.
The epistle of First Corinthians testifies to the vital connection between the individual Christian and the local congregation:
Ø “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwell sin you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are” (1 Cor 3:16-17). This observation lies against the backdrop of those sowing the seeds of factionalism in the Corinthian church (1:12-17; 3:5-11). Paul begins with a positive definition of the church, with application to a local setting: “You are the temple of God …”.
Jim McGuiggan notes: “The ruins of temples and sacred shrines which were scattered through that part of the world were numerous enough. But no one really lost anything when these temples … were destroyed. But they (the Corinthians, jj) are the temple of the Lord God. The inner sanctuary, as a matter of fact (Gk. naos). It is of eternal consequence what happens to the temple of God … Teachers and those who line up in parties can easily rip an assembly into shreds … Those who sow discord among the brethren will be destroyed by God! These Corinthians (teachers and ‘regular members’) will have to take the consequences of their actions” (Commentary on 1 Corinthians 53-54).
Ø “It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such … as is not even named among the Gentiles – that a man has his father’s wife! And you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you … Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover was sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with the old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth” (1 Cor 5:1-2, 6-8).
This impurity in the church, unlike the matter of sectarianism just discussed, is a gross moral violation. Incest, a particularly heinous form of fornication – is not only being practiced by a member but tolerated by the group. Turning again to an OT parallel, Paul directs that a purging of such impenitent, ungodly person take place: “deliver such a one to Satan,” “purge out,” put away from yourselves” (5:5, 7, 12). The feelings of the one expelled or the protestations of his family and/or supporters are not relevant. What is of utmost importance is the welfare of the local church, which is being undermined by the toleration of open sin.
Hear McGuiggan again: “Verses 6-8 are an urgent call to take care of the health of the community ... One bad apple can spoil a whole barrel of them. A little leaven can sour the whole batch of flour. The assembly has a responsibility to that erring one, but it has a responsibility to itself as a community. Let such flagrant things go on and before you know it, the community is rotten at the core” (ibid 63).
Ø “Therefore, by beloved, flee from idolatry … The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we, being many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread. Observe Israel after the flesh: Are not all those who eat of the sacrifices partakers of the altar? … I say that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice they sacrifice to demons and not to God, and I do not want you to have fellowship with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord’s table and of the table of de-mons. Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than He?” (1 Cor 10:14, 16, 18, 20-23).
Yet again, Paul cites the OT, this time noting Israel’s continual infatuation with heathen gods. Paul had just detailed the shipwreck of Israel on the hidden reefs of idolatry (1 Cor 10:1-13). The contemporary iteration of this ancient sin is the desire of some Corinthians to continue to fraternize with their idolatrous neighbors in the very temples of their gods. They gave themselves a free pass by arguing that they knew very well that there was no substance to these gods; therefore, they could partake of their feasts – no harm, no foul. But after Paul argued the potential damage of this practice to those of imperfect knowledge and weak conscience (1 Cor 8), he now blatantly asserts that such dalliances are nothing less than a repudiation of Christ (perhaps unintentional, but real nonetheless) and complete fellowship with demons.
McGuiggan, one last time: “To gather as a body to commune with the body of Christ is to speak on behalf of Christ. To gather with idolaters to sacrifice to their gods (which are the product of the doctrines of demons) is to speak in favor of darkness. That the man may be right in saying gods are nothing and that idols are merely stone or wood isn’t the same as saying nothing satanic goes on at such assemblies. The believer is joining demons in the work of darkening the minds of men” (ibid 137).
Do you see the Centreville church as the exalted temple of God? Are you deeply committed to the integrity and purity of this local church? Does the world have such a hold on your heart that you yearn for its pleasures above the service of and worship with God’s people? Humans have an incredible capacity to take for granted what is beautiful, valuable and meaningful. We must resist this unconscious cheapening of the temple of God and give our best efforts to keeping it productive, pure, peaceful and holy.
