You Are the Temple

Transcript

Hello, my friend… so glad you're with me today. This is By God's Call — day 330, You Are the Temple.

"Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you?" 1 Corinthians 3:16.

Paul is writing to a church in conflict. Corinth had rival factions inside the same community — "I follow Paul," "I follow Apollos," "I follow Cephas" — each pulling the church in different directions, competing for status, for influence, for being right. And in the middle of that mess, Paul asks a question that sounds simple but carries the weight of a deep correction: do you not know?

This kind of question is typical of Paul when he wants to recall something the church should already know, but has forgotten in the heat of daily quarreling. It's as if he's saying: stop for a moment. Go back to what's fundamental. You have forgotten who you are.

And what he recalls is enormous: you are God's temple. For a Jewish listener, or even a Gentile who knew the religious culture of the day, this was shocking. The temple in Jerusalem was the most sacred place in existence — the one place on earth where God's presence dwelled in a special way, protected by layers of holiness, accessible only to the high priest, once a year. And now Paul says: that same holiness, that same weight of divine presence, is in your gathered community.

Notice also the word dwells. This is not a passing visit. It's not a quick stop that comes and goes. It is permanent residence. God's Spirit settles into the church as one who makes it His own home — not a one-night hotel, but a dwelling place.

And look at the pronoun Paul uses: you, plural. He is not speaking only of each believer individually, though that's true elsewhere in Scripture too. Here he's speaking of the whole body, the gathered church, as the place where God chooses to dwell in a special, collective way. It's the community — not just the isolated individual.

And that changes everything about how we should treat the church. In the very next verse, Paul warns: if anyone destroys this temple, God will destroy him. Strong words. Because treating the community of believers carelessly, with gossip, with division, with contempt — is treating God's own sacred dwelling place carelessly.

So, my friend, think about this today: that person from your church you sometimes ignore, sometimes judge, sometimes forget to value — they are part of God's sanctuary. They carry, alongside you, the presence of the Spirit.

Today's invitation is simple and concrete: reach out to a brother or sister from your church today, and tell them out loud: "You are part of the place where God dwells — thank you for that." Let that truth change, even a little, how you see the people around you.

Stay close to God. Pray — then act. I'll see you tomorrow, my friend.