Mar 5

2 Corinthians 6:16
Memorise 2 Corinthians 6:16
“And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols”

Read the verse today: “ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people”; and you might well ask yourself, “what does it mean that we are the temple of the living God?” These words are an allusion to Leviticus 26:11-12: “I will set my tabernacle among you…. And I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people”. Think about this: God lives and walks among us, meaning He is present amongst His people. This is because He is our God, and we are His people. Even if we are not in the church sanctuary, we must remember that we must always be holy, for we are the temple of the living God, and the Holy Spirit dwells within us. Our visible witness for God thus extends beyond the church sanctuary, for it is not the physical church building that worships God, but we who are the people of God who do. Some B-P churches in Africa even worship God in the open without any physical building, but nonetheless they are God’s people, and if they worship rightly, are worshipping the Lord in the beauty of holiness.

The verse is from the passage which starts with 2 Corinthians 6:14: “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?” In this passage, the context is that some of the Christians in Corinth continued to go to the pagan temples, and took part in temple feasts dedicated to pagan gods! Instead, we must practise biblical separation, and this includes not worshipping in pagan temples. How can we who are the temple of the living God be found worshipping in pagan temples dedicated to dead gods?

This principle also extends to when we are in a foreign land on the Lord’s Day and might have to worship the Lord in a church that is worldly in its worship, assuming there is no other fundamental church where one can worship. When worldly worship songs are sung, simply refrain from singing, for you are the temple of the living God, and must bear witness that your worship should remain holy.

Thought: Should I accept my friend’s invitation to attend his charismatic church?
Prayer: Lord, may I be always holy in worship.