A Temple , place of worship unto the Lord -From Father Tadros Malaty's - A Commentary on the First Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians' -
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YOU ARE THE TEMPLE OF GOD: “Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” I Corinthians 3:16
The apostle Paul speaks about the body as the temple of God, while having in mind the great number of priestesses who practiced corruption to the account of the temple of idols. That made him confirm the relationship of the believer’s body with the Lord Christ, as the temple of God and the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. That made him as well, talk about the sanctity of matrimony and the danger of being attached to an adulteress (6: 15, 16).
In the old, Israel counted himself as the temple and the dwelling place of God; on account of that God was living in their midst. The Lord Christ, having proclaimed that in case two or three gather together in His name, He will be in their midst; the Church became His holy temple.
Wherever God is, will be His temple, sanctified by His Holy Spirit. The Lord Christ, proclaiming to His disciples, that the subject of their preaching is “the kingdom of God is within you”, The Church as a whole is His temple or His kingdom.; and every member in the Church is God’s temple. It is befitting of him, therefore, not to corrupt this temple, as it is not his own property; but he is just a steward on what God entrusted to him.
The body of the believer is:
What does he mean by saying that you are the temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwells in you?
a- The Church, on the level of the congregation, and on that of the member, is the throne of God, where He sits and works, and for the realization of His pleasure.
b- The Church is His kingdom, through which He sends the fruits of the Spirit, of love, joy, peace, and longsuffering (Galatians 5: 22, 23).
c- Through the Church, God leads His people in the midst of sufferings and afflictions, granting them the comforts of the Holy Spirit.
d- As a sanctuary for the Lord, the Church should not be used except for what is his. Even our body members are members of Christ.
e- The Church is the subject of His love; beloved by Him.
f- The body is a tool, moved by the spirit and the brain. What is intended by the spirit, will be shared by the body, whether the will is holy or evil .
The apostle Paul speaks about the body as the temple of God, while having in mind the great number of priestesses who practiced corruption to the account of the temple of idols. That made him confirm the relationship of the believer’s body with the Lord Christ, as the temple of God and the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. That made him as well, talk about the sanctity of matrimony and the danger of being attached to an adulteress (6: 15, 16).
In the old, Israel counted himself as the temple and the dwelling place of God; on account of that God was living in their midst. The Lord Christ, having proclaimed that in case two or three gather together in His name, He will be in their midst; the Church became His holy temple.
Wherever God is, will be His temple, sanctified by His Holy Spirit. The Lord Christ, proclaiming to His disciples, that the subject of their preaching is “the kingdom of God is within you”, The Church as a whole is His temple or His kingdom.; and every member in the Church is God’s temple. It is befitting of him, therefore, not to corrupt this temple, as it is not his own property; but he is just a steward on what God entrusted to him.
The body of the believer is:
- “The temple of God” (3: 16, 17; 19: 6)
- “The Lord’s” (13; 15)
- Should be offered as a living sacrifice to the Lord (Romans 1: 12)
- A dwelling place for God (Ephesians 2: 21, 22)
- A subject of the glory of God (1 Corinthians 6: 20)
- A subject of holiness (Psalm 93: 5)
- A place for peace (Haggai 2: 9; John 16: 33)
- A place where Christ will be manifested (2 Corinthians 4: 10, 11)
- Its members are for righteousness (Romans 6: 13)
- Conformed to the body of Christ (Philippians 3: 20, 21; John 2: 3).
What does he mean by saying that you are the temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwells in you?
a- The Church, on the level of the congregation, and on that of the member, is the throne of God, where He sits and works, and for the realization of His pleasure.
b- The Church is His kingdom, through which He sends the fruits of the Spirit, of love, joy, peace, and longsuffering (Galatians 5: 22, 23).
c- Through the Church, God leads His people in the midst of sufferings and afflictions, granting them the comforts of the Holy Spirit.
d- As a sanctuary for the Lord, the Church should not be used except for what is his. Even our body members are members of Christ.
e- The Church is the subject of His love; beloved by Him.
f- The body is a tool, moved by the spirit and the brain. What is intended by the spirit, will be shared by the body, whether the will is holy or evil .
“For now we live, if you stand fast in the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 3: 8). I do not wish you to stand fast in us, but in the Lord1.
Someone may say: My soul is the temple of God, and not my body; quoting the following testimony: “All flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of the grass” (1 Peter 1: 24). What a bitter interpretation! Calling the body grass on account of that it dies. But, you should understand that, what dies for some time, would not also rise by sin. According to the apostle: Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God?” (1 Corinthians 6: 19). So, do not ever disregard the sins of the body, on the assumption that your bodies are from God. If you disregard the sin of the body, Are you not disregarding a sin you commit against the temple of God? Your body itself is the temple of the Spirit of God who is in you. So beware of what you do with the temple of God!
Just imagine, what would be worse than to commit adultery within the walls of the Church? You are now the temple of God in your coming in, and in your going out; if you dwell in your homes; if you wake up;… In all that you are a temple of God! So beware, lest it will forsake you, and you would be destroyed!
Speaking about the sin of adultery, and about taking the sin of the body lightly, the apostle says: “Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own” (1 Corinthians 6: 19). You were bought at a great price; If you chose to disregard your bodies, do not disregard your price !
- Although Paul was not actually ‘nobody’; Yet, if compared to God, he is nobody.
- No one should say in his heart: “God does not care for the sins of the body”.
Someone may say: My soul is the temple of God, and not my body; quoting the following testimony: “All flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of the grass” (1 Peter 1: 24). What a bitter interpretation! Calling the body grass on account of that it dies. But, you should understand that, what dies for some time, would not also rise by sin. According to the apostle: Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God?” (1 Corinthians 6: 19). So, do not ever disregard the sins of the body, on the assumption that your bodies are from God. If you disregard the sin of the body, Are you not disregarding a sin you commit against the temple of God? Your body itself is the temple of the Spirit of God who is in you. So beware of what you do with the temple of God!
Just imagine, what would be worse than to commit adultery within the walls of the Church? You are now the temple of God in your coming in, and in your going out; if you dwell in your homes; if you wake up;… In all that you are a temple of God! So beware, lest it will forsake you, and you would be destroyed!
Speaking about the sin of adultery, and about taking the sin of the body lightly, the apostle says: “Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own” (1 Corinthians 6: 19). You were bought at a great price; If you chose to disregard your bodies, do not disregard your price !
(St. Augustine)
It is obvious that we are the temple of God if we do good. If someone is a temple of God; What is in the temple would necessarily be God’s No temple of God would be where an abundance of iniquities are.
(Father Valerian)
It is obvious that we are the temple of God if we do good. If someone is a temple of God; What is in the temple would necessarily be God’s No temple of God would be where an abundance of iniquities are.
(Father Valerian)
He who believes in Christ will receive the Holy Spirit who dwells in Him by the washing of the new birth, by which he would become spiritual. But such a person, if he, again, serves the covetousness of the world, he would become carnal. The apostle Paul says, that those who became spiritual according to the confession of their faith, may probably live as carnal; and insult the Holy Spirit dwelling in them.
(Theodore, Bishop of El-Missa)
(Theodore, Bishop of El-Missa)
“If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are” It is befitting of us, therefore, to watch over the holiness of the temple of God through receiving the sanctification of the Holy Spirit, that is realized by the true faith, the sound teachings, and the experience of the new life; As diversion from faith and the corrupt behavior would defile the temple.
He does not say ‘You are the temples of God’, but says: “You are the temple of God”; representing one unit embracing numerous diversified living stones (1 Peter 2: 5).
Certainly in the divine world, there is a specific place for God, where He chooses to dwell – the Church, the icon of heaven; which testifies to His salvation work and His exalted love.
The righteous man could be called ‘heaven’, as about him is said: “for the temple of God is holy, which temple you are” . If God dwells in His temple, and the saints are His temple, the expression “Who are in heaven” in the Lord’s prayer, would truly mean “who are in His saints”
I wish the Christians who are called for the eternal inheritance would understand the words: “Who are in heaven” in the Lord’s prayer, as “Who are in the saints and the righteous”. God, being not limited by a certain place; heaven, although higher than the material bodies in the world, yet, being material as well, it would accordingly be limited to a certain space. Thus if we assume that God exists in the highest reach of the world, the birds would then be better off than us, as they live closer to God.
It is not written that ‘The Lord is near to the tall, or to those who dwell on the mountains’, but “The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart” (Psalm 34: 18); as a reference to humility. So, if the wicked are called ‘earth’, the righteous, on the other hand, are called ‘heaven’, and about them is said: “For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are” (1 Corinthians 3: 17). Therefore, if God dwells in His temple; and he called the saints ‘His temple’, the expression “Who are in heaven” would mean “Who are in the saints”, and it would be fitting to correlate the righteous and the wicked, spiritually, as heaven and earth, materially.
(St. Augustine)
Paul so says to provoke the consciences of those who have corrupted their bodies by wicked life; and specifically that person who had sexual relationship with his father’s wife (1 Corinthians 5: 1-5).
(Amrosiaster)
(St. Augustine)
Paul so says to provoke the consciences of those who have corrupted their bodies by wicked life; and specifically that person who had sexual relationship with his father’s wife (1 Corinthians 5: 1-5).
(Amrosiaster)
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