Temples of the Holy Spirit

Jesus not only frees us from our sins but also provided us a path to encounter the fullness of God.

Turn to - (NLT) - App

by the ethos of our value of freedom

We are liberated through the person and work of Jesus to unceasingly experience the Spirit’s transformative power and presence, and as a distinct people marked by this freedom, we delight to behold and encounter the face of God as the Kingdom breaks in among us.

Week 1: Free for Freedom

Week 2: Temple of the Holy Spirit

Week 3:

Week 4: Live by the Spirit

As children of God, we believe that Jesus not only frees us from our sins, but also provided us a path to encounter the fullness of God.

Relationship w/ God as a result of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ

Liberated to be what God wants us to be

and to do what God wants us to do.

13 For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” - (ESV)

(NLT)

New Living Translation Chapter 3

16 Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you? 17 God will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.

New Living Translation Chapter 3

16 Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you?

The temple in its most basic sense symbolizes the dwelling place of God.

Paul writing w/ a Jewish perspective

The understanding of the Temple would be clear.

The church in Corinth is mostly Gentile converts

The temple in its most basic sense symbolizes the dwelling place of God.

The understanding of the Temple would be clear.

Pauls writings on the Temple would be understood

The temple in its most basic sense symbolizes the dwelling place of God.

The temple was foundational

The temple played a central role in Jewish society.

It played a central role in Jewish society.

The temple played a central role in Jewish society.

Not only was it the worship center of Hebrew culture

the temple was not only the worship center of Hebrew culture but also the art gallery, concert plaza and poetry library

More over it is a symbol of the victory of God

but also the art gallery, concert plaza and poetry library

More over it is a symbol of

Communication w/ God

The Temple and Community

Community w/ the people of God

The victory of God

More over it is a symbol of

The Victory of God

The victory of God

God rejects David’s plan to build.

The one who follows David in his dynasty will be the one to build the “house of God.” This one of course is Solomon, whose name means “peace.”

The point is that the temple symbolizes victory over the enemies of God and peaceful settlement in the land. David was the conquest completer, but he was also “a warrior” (); so the time was not right for the temple. His son Solomon built it.

Seen as the place of Justice as well as the place of peace.

The temple is an earthly archetype of the heavenly reality,

The Temple and Justice and Peace

The temple is an earthly archetype of the heavenly reality,

The Invisible God Made Visible through the embodied Temple

The temple is an earthly archetype of the heavenly reality,

This temple is not made by human hands

The Invisible God Made Visible through the embodied Temple

This temple is not made by human hands

“Heaven is my throne,

66 Thus says the Lord:

and the earth is my footstool;

“Heaven is my throne,

what is the house that you would build for me,

and the earth is my footstool;

and what is the place of my rest?

what is the house that you would build for me,

2 All these things my hand has made,

and what is the place of my rest?

and so all these things came to be,

2 All these things my hand has made,

and so all these things came to be,

declares the Lord.

But this is the one to whom I will look:

he who is humble and contrite in spirit

and trembles at my word.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .

- (ESV)

We cannot contain God.

God chooses to indwell

The Temple and Holiness

The Victory of God

The message of centers on a play on the Hebrew word bayit, which is rendered in various ways in most English versions (though not the NRSV, which translates “house” consistently). David is securely settled in his bayit (house; cf. ) but wants to build God a bayit (temple; cf. ).

Place of Communication

In this way the temple is a symbol of establishment and victory. As such, it falls into the pattern of ancient Near Eastern mythology (in particular the Baal Epic of ancient Ugarit), which presents a pattern of warfare followed by the proclamation of the god as king and the commemoration of victory through the building of a new divine residence.

Leland Ryken et al., Dictionary of Biblical Imagery (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000), 849–850.

Place of Communication

The Temple and Holiness

The Victory of God

The Creation

Place of Communication

It is little wonder that God’s people have always passionately yearned for life inside its courts:

The Temple and Holiness

Conclusion. Given such a richness of imagery surrounding the house of God, it is little wonder that God’s people have always passionately yearned for life inside its courts: “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long” ( NRSV).

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long” ( NRSV).

The Temple and Justice and Peace

This temple is not made by human hands

“Heaven is my throne,

and the earth is my footstool;

what is the house that you would build for me,

and what is the place of my rest?

2 All these things my hand has made,

and so all these things came to be,

declares the Lord.

But this is the one to whom I will look:

The temple is

he who is humble and contrite in spirit

and trembles at my word.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .

Conclusion. Given such a richness of imagery surrounding the house of God, it is little wonder that God’s people have always passionately yearned for life inside its courts: “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long” ( NRSV).

Communication w/ God

Community w/ others

Culture of the Kingdom of God

Also

It is the Victory of God

The Justice and Peace of God

Cannot contain, but to center in

(NLT)

New Living Translation Chapter 3

16 Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you?

- (NLT)

We are the Temple

Encounter the Face of God

Live in the Eternal Community

This temple is not made by human hands

Enact the Culture of the Kingdom of God

Also

Embodying the Victory of God

66 Thus says the Lord:

Upholding the Justice and Peace of God

Cannot contain, but to center in

This is why an isolated faith is an incomplete faith

God dwells amongst people

New Living Translation Chapter 3

12 Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials—gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. 13 But on the judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value. 14 If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward. 15 But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames.

“Heaven is my throne,

and the earth is my footstool;

New Living Translation Chapter 3

10 Because of God’s grace to me, I have laid the foundation like an expert builder. Now others are building on it. But whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful. 11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have—Jesus Christ.

12 Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials—gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. 13 But on the judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value. 14 If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward. 15 But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames.

what is the house that you would build for me,

and what is the place of my rest?

2 All these things my hand has made,

and so all these things came to be,

declares the Lord.

But this is the one to whom I will look:

Active work in the Body

he who is humble and contrite in spirit

and trembles at my word.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .

Active work in the Body

Building Up or Bringing Down?

The emphasis of the passage is therefore still on those who build up this Temple, and on the danger not just that they will build with the wrong materials (verses 12-15) but that they will actually pull the building down altogether (verse 1 7).

There is not passivity in the body

build up or bring down

Entirely rest on the foundation of Jesus Christ

The main point, of course, is the seriousness with which Paul takes the various tasks and responsibilities of Christians, particularly leaders and teachers in the church. We are not playing games. There are serious and lasting issues at stake. It is possible to build wisely, well, and with the right materials.

The main point, of course, is the seriousness with which Paul takes the various tasks and responsibilities of Christians.

The main point, of course, is the seriousness with which Paul takes the various tasks and responsibilities of Christians, particularly leaders and teachers in the church. We are not playing games. There are serious and lasting issues at stake. It is possible to build wisely, well, and with the right materials.

The emphasis of the passage is therefore still on those who build up this Temple, and on the danger not just that they will build with the wrong materials (verses 12-15) but that they will actually pull the building down altogether (verse 1 7).

We are not playing games.

The emphasis of the passage is therefore still on those who

build up this Temple, and on the danger not just that they will

build with the wrong materials (verses 12-15) but that they

will actually pull the building down altogether (verse 1 7). If

the building is indeed God's Temple, destroying such a holy

place is an act of sacrilege. Faulty builders, as a recent writer

Paul is warning that it's possible to do such work well or badly, and that one day the results will be made known.

has put it, may get away with 'singed eyebrows' when the fire

comes. But destroyers may end up being destroyed in their

turn.

There are serious and lasting issues at stake.

Paul is warning that it's possible to do such work well or badly, and that one day the results will be made known. The Fire is coming When the 'fire' does its work, he says, builders who have used the wrong material will 'suffer loss', but they themselves will still be saved. This seems to be Paul's way of preserving his view of Christian assurance ('those whom God justified, he also glorified', ), while maintaining also a serious view of Christian responsibility for what one does with the new life which begins, as the spirit's gift, with faith and baptism.

and that one day the results will be made known.

The Fire is coming

When the 'fire' does its work, he says, builders who have

The main point, of course, is the seriousness with which Paul takes the various tasks and responsibilities of Christians, particularly leaders and teachers in the church. We are not playing games. There are serious and lasting issues at stake. It is possible to build wisely, well, and with the right materials.

It is possible to build wisely, well, and with the right materials.

used the wrong material will 'suffer loss', but they themselves

One Body and One Spirit

will still be saved. This seems to be Paul's way of preserving his

view of Christian assurance ('those whom God justified, he

Each given a gift - 1 cor 12-14 & ep 4

For the common good and the building of the body

also glorified', ), while maintaining also a serious

Build into Love

view of Christian responsibility for what one does with the new

life which begins, as the spirit's gift, with faith and baptism.

The main point, of course, is the seriousness with which Paul takes the various tasks and responsibilities of Christians, particularly leaders and teachers in the church. We are not playing games. There are serious and lasting issues at stake. It is possible to build wisely, well, and with the right materials.

Paul takes the various tasks and responsibilities of Christians,

The Christian Faith is an embodied faith

particularly leaders and teachers in the church. We are not

“I have become an infomercial for God, and I don’t even use the product.” - Donald Miller

playing games. There are serious and lasting issues at stake. It

Jesus’ life was defined by doing the will of the Father in the power of the Holy Spirit.

is possible to build wisely, well, and with the right materials.

Singular focus in doing the will of the Father

39

From a Christian perspective, faith goes in 2 directions, though we often get the balance wrong: By faith, Jesus Christ comes into our life (4 x's in Bible) By faith, we enter into the life of Jesus Christ (164 x's in Bible) First is important. Second is a game changer - Daniel Hill - 1/19 - Twitter

It is also possible to build badly, or with the wrong materials.

It is possible actually to pull down the building altogether.

God takes these possibilities very seriously. Do we?

Paul's final argument goes back to foundational Christian

beliefs, to the spirit and to the cross. In 3.16-17 he said that

the whole church was God's new Temple; now he insists that

the individual Christian is as well. The point of the Temple

was that God lived there; part of the point of being a

Christian is that God himself lives in you, in the person of the

holy spirit. If you are a Christian, it isn't the case that you only

have dealings with the spirit when you are praying, or engaged

in other more obviously 'religious' activities; the spirit comes

to take up permanent residence. You can, of course 'grieve'

the spirit (as Paul warns in ); but you cannot

simply tell him to take a vacation somewhere else while you go

off on your own. Nor can you ever stop being someone who has been bought

with a high price. Paul clearly refers to the cross itself, where

Jesus paid the price of his own life, his own blood, to rescue

human beings like you and me, ordinary sinners, muddled

sinners, great and small sinners. If you pay a lot of money for

a wonderful book, you don't start tearing pages out to make

shopping lists, or writing rude words in the margins.

“Paul is here reflecting on the church as the corporate place of God’s dwelling, who, when gathered in Jesus’ name, experienced the presence and power of the Lord Jesus in their midst (5:4-5). Again, as in 2:10-13 (cf. 2:4-5), the Spirit is the key, the crucial reality, for life in the new age. The presence of the Spirit, and that alone. marks them off as God’s new people, his temple, in Corinth.”

The temple in its most basic sense symbolizes the dwelling place of God

Leland Ryken et al., Dictionary of Biblical Imagery (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000), 849.

19 Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, 20 for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body. - . (NLT)

The point of the Temple was that God lived there; part of the point of being a Christian is that God himself lives in you, in the person of the holy spirit.

Paul clearly refers to the cross itself, where Jesus paid the price of his own life, his own blood, to rescue human beings like you and me, ordinary sinners, muddled sinners, great and small sinners. If you pay a lot of money for a wonderful book, you don't start tearing pages out to make shopping lists, or writing rude words in the margins. “Paul is here reflecting on the church as the corporate place of God’s dwelling, who, when gathered in Jesus’ name, experienced the presence and power of the Lord Jesus in their midst (5:4-5). Again, as in 2:10-13 (cf. 2:4-5), the Spirit is the key, the crucial reality, for life in the new age. The presence of the Spirit, and that alone. marks them off as God’s new people, his temple, in Corinth.”

Temples of the Holy Spirit

INTRODUCTON

Welcome

Series: Pathways to Freedom

Guided

Exploring

Main Point

Last Week

Prayer

Theological Dimension of Freedom

Human Dimension of Freedom

What Do We Do With Freedom?

Stand w/ me as I Read

Pray

The Temple of God

You Together are the Temple of God

Active work in the Body

Building Up or Bringing Down?

The Holy Spirit Lives In You

Temples of the Holy Spirit

INTRODUCTON

Welcome

Series: Pathways to Freedom

Guided

Exploring

Main Point

Last Week

Prayer

Theological Dimension of Freedom

Human Dimension of Freedom

What Do We Do With Freedom?

Stand w/ me as I Read

Pray

The Temple of God

You Together are the Temple of God

​

Active work in the Body

Building Up or Bringing Down?

The Holy Spirit Lives In You