We're God's Temple
God's Temple
Good morning, our beloved church
family. Thank you for supporting us and allowing us to have a wonderful and
meaningful time with our old friends, previous church members, and Lydia and
Abe before they depart. Special thanks to Paula, Mary, Jack for leading the
service in our absence, and to the church leaders for taking care of our other
members. We also appreciate all the hard work that has gone into the Houlton
church’s garden and the parsonage’s porch.
Unfortunately, we have lost several
beloved families over the past few weeks, including Jackie Bradley from Mars
Hill Church, Judy Conway and Barbara Kelly from Houlton Church, and Riley and
Ryder Matson’s dad. Thank you to Pastor Sue Brown and Mary Miller for leading
Jackie’s funeral service.
*Previous Church members (Grace-Vision UMC)
<Churches in 11 cities>
During our time away, we visited 11
cities across the U.S. and Canada, spent time with 9 families, and attended a
church reunion party—all within 19 days. Most importantly, we had the
opportunity to experience several different churches, including Grace Vision
UMC in Boston, Dalton UMC, Moody Church, Billy Graham's Museum in Chicago,
Korean Church in Ottawa, and the cathedrals in Canada, including Notre-Dame-des-Victoires
Church. Witnessing how God has worked in these communities over the past 10 years was a great joy. There were moments when tears welled up as
we shared our trials and sufferings, but we ended up praising God for His
goodness. We saw how God healed the sick, raised leaders to stand firm in the
face of adversity, restored wounded hearts, and provided for the needs of His
people through His mighty hands. We also saw how God gathered people from all
nations, transcending the boundaries of buildings, areas, races, cultures, and
languages. Although some people left our previous churches, I took comfort in
the fact that we are all part of the Church, the body of Christ, beyond any
physical structure.
< The Garden of Eden>
The Bible often uses the term
"church" (from the Greek word ekklesia, meaning a gathering or
assembly) to describe the community of believers in Jesus Christ. But more
specifically, it tells us that we are God’s temple. (1 Corinthians 3:16-17).
So, what is a temple? A temple is where God’s presence dwells, preparing
His people to become His holy presence on earth—a crucial role in His plan to
dwell among humanity. The first temple in the Bible is found at the beginning
of the world, in the Garden of Eden, where God's presence was with Adam and
Eve. There was God’s Presence.
"And they heard the sound of the
Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife
hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the
garden." (Genesis 3:8 ESV)
< Tabernacle>
God was with us in the Garden of
Eden, but after the fall, humanity was separated from His presence. In their
desire to restore this connection, the Israelites built the Tabernacle while
they were in exile from Egypt, where God's presence dwelled.
"Then the cloud covered the tent
of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not
able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the
glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle." (Exodus 40:34-35 ESV)
The Old Testament shows us how
challenging it was to experience God's presence. Even Moses, who was called a
friend of God and encountered Him in the burning bush, was unable to enter the
tent of meeting when God's presence filled the tabernacle. However, There
was God’s Presence.
< Solomon’s Temple>
God placed the desire to build a
temple in David’s heart, but He chose David’s son Solomon to carry out the
task. David dedicated a significant portion of his later reign to gathering
materials and making detailed plans for the temple. It was a massive project
requiring 100,000 talents of gold, 1,000,000 talents of silver, and large
quantities of bronze, iron, cedar wood, stone, precious stones, marble, and
other materials (1 Chronicles 22:14-16; 29:2). David also arranged for skilled
craftsmen and organized the Levites and priests who would serve in the temple.
He personally contributed 3,000 talents of gold and 7,000 talents of refined
silver from his treasury (1 Chronicles 29:3-5). Finally Solomon built the
temple, and celebrated.
"As soon as Solomon finished his
prayer, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the
sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. The priests could not
enter the house of the Lord because the glory of the Lord filled the Lord's
house. When all the people of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of
the Lord on the temple, they bowed down with their faces to the ground on the
pavement and worshiped and gave thanks to the Lord, saying, 'For he is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever.'" (2 Chronicles 7:1-3 ESV)
When Solomon finally built the
temple, God's presence filled it. There was God’s Presence.
< The Second Temple, Zerubbabel’s
Temple>
However, just as Adam and Eve
disobeyed God, Israel eventually turned away from Him, leading to the
destruction of Solomon’s temple by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. The people were
exiled from their land (Jeremiah 52:12-13). Years later, some returned to
Jerusalem and rebuilt the temple, known as Zerubbabel’s Temple, which was
completed in 515 BCE. Though it seemed less grand than Solomon’s temple, God
promised that His glory would fill this temple and that its glory would surpass
that of the former.
"Who is left among you who saw
this house in its former glory? How do you see it now? Is it not as nothing in
your eyes? Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the Lord. Be strong, O
Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the
land, declares the Lord. Work, for I am with you, declares the Lord of hosts...
The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the Lord
of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the Lord of
hosts." (Haggai 2:3-9 ESV)
There are four significant temples
mentioned in the Old Testament: the Garden of Eden, the Tabernacle, Solomon’s
Temple, and Zerubbabel’s Temple. After the fall, humanity lost God’s presence,
but they sought to restore it by building temples and performing rituals. In
the Old Testament, only the High Priest could enter the Most Holy Place once a
year, and even then, only after numerous rituals and sacrifices for him. The
thick veil separating the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place symbolized the
barrier between God’s perfect holiness and humanity’s sinfulness.
< Jesus is Temple>
But here is the Good News: Jesus
became the temple where God dwells among us. This is a central theme in the New
Testament, highlighted by several Bible verses.
"The Word became flesh and made
his dwelling among us." (John 1:14) "Jesus answered them, 'Destroy
this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.' ... But the temple he
had spoken of was his body." (John 2:19-21) "For in Christ all the
fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form." (Colossians 2:9) "I tell
you that something greater than the temple is here." (Matthew 12:6)
Jesus is the incarnate Word, God in
the flesh, who dwells among us. The Greek word used for "dwelling"
can be translated as "tabernacled," indicating that Jesus is
the new dwelling place of God among His people. Jesus is the true temple who
died, was destroyed, but rose again in three days. He is greater than the
physical temple in Jerusalem because He embodies the true presence of God. There
is no longer a separation between God and humans because of Jesus. "At
that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The
earth shook, the rocks split." (Matthew 27:51) He became our new and
eternal temple. Because of Jesus, we no longer need to prepare numerous
sacrifices or spend years building a physical temple. We do not need to wait
for the High Priest to offer a sacrifice once a year. This is amazing news!
< We are God’s Temple>
And there is even more good news! God
calls us His temple if we have His Spirit dwelling in us. When we accept Jesus
as our Lord, His Spirit dwells within us, and we become God’s temple.
"Do you not know that you are
God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God's
temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that
temple." (1 Corinthians 3:16-17)
There are several other verses (1
Corinthians 6:19-20, 2 Corinthians 6:16) that tell us we are God’s temple. So,
do we live as God’s temple? Do we feel God’s presence in our lives and in
others here? Let us repent and make His temple holy if there is anything in our
lives that needs cleansing. Let us be grateful for the privilege of feeling His
presence through our lives and in our church. Let us live as God’s temple,
making discipleship a priority in our lives.
Let us pray: Lord, gather those who seek holiness, who desire Your Spirit, and who are grateful to come to Your church and to show Jesus in their lives. Lord, renew our hearts as we prepare for the new school year. Let us live as God’s temple throughout the week by reading the Bible, praying, and sharing the Gospel wherever we are. Let us gather every Sunday to hear.
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