The Temple of God 

   “Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have received from God, and that you are not your own?  You have been purchased at a price.  Therefore, glorify God in your body.” (1 Cor 6: 19 – 20) 

   It never ceases to amaze me that God desires to live within me.  Who am I, a mortal man and a sinner, that He would want to come to me?  And yet He does.

   As I read of the various temples of the bible beginning with the building of the tabernacle outlined in Exodus, chapter 26, to the magnificent Jerusalem temple built by Solomon documented in 1 Kings, I can’t help but be aware of the care taken in the construction of the dwelling places of God.  They are marvels of the crafts of those who built them.

   I read of Jesus clearing the temple of merchants and money changers in John, chapter 2; of His insistence that the house of God is not to be a marketplace.  His zeal for the proper treatment of the temple was obvious.

   If, as St. Paul says, my body is also a temple wherein the Holy Spirit dwells then I should also be zealous about maintaining His dwelling place.  I must clear the temple of the clutter of worldly concerns and throw out the filth of sinful thoughts.  I must stand guard against Satan as he tries to sully this temple, trusting the strength of God to help me.

   Though I am not worthy to be a dwelling place of God, He has chosen to make me so.  I must maintain the temple of my body as best I can so to honor Him and the incredible grace He has bestowed upon me. 

 

Father, You desire to dwell within me, though I am not worthy.  I pray for the strength to cleanse the temple of my body.  Make me holy I pray so that I may be a proper dwelling place for You.  Amen