Forty Days Full - An Invitation To Real Life

Day Thirty-Six: The Temple of The Holy Spirit

“Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst?” ( 1 Corinthians 3:16. NIV)

T he temple was the worship center for the whole nation of Israel. It was the place everybody came to get right with God. So being called a temple has huge implications. The Tabernacle of Moses was always a foreshadow of us becoming the temple of the Holy Spirit. It was mobile and able to go wherever the people were. The temple itself was never to be worshiped, but it was the avenue for people to come to God. By application, wherever I go people can encounter God! The Holy Spirit is not 'third fiddle' in heaven. In other words, He's not the back-up plan or the relief pitcher. He is the plan and He was the plan from the beginning! Jesus told His disciples, "It is better for you if I go." The outpouring of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2 was the fulfillment of the ages. The desire of God fulfilled! It was the longing of God for Millennia. He had said, "I don't dwell in a temple made by hands." It is the difference between a visitation to a place, compared to a continual habitation. In case you haven't noticed yet, I believe that words matter. We are often too casual with words, not discerning their meaning. People who join our church will often call our large gathering room the sanctuary. This is common language churches use for the meeting place. I can’t call it that. Where we gather is an auditorium. I’ve placed that title right over the main door as you enter the building - Auditorium! People have come to me appealing for me to change the name, but I won’t. The