1 Corinthians 3:16-17

Scripture: 1 Cor. 3:16 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?

1 Cor. 3:17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.

Teaching: Paul carries forward the building metaphor he’s been using, here asking a rhetorical question. He essentially is saying in verse 16, “Do you realize that you are more than just a member of a club or a Sunday gathering, but are actually the dwelling place of God?” Before diving into this, let’s run through a quick summary of biblical history on this subject.

Before Jesus came, died, and resurrected, the dwelling place of God was in the Jewish Temple, in the Holy of Holies (the most exclusive part of the temple that only the head priest ever came in contact with once per year). During the Babylonian exile around 600 BC, when Jerusalem was trampled and Israel was exiled from their land, the presence of God left the Temple (see Ezekiel 10). Upon returning to their land, God’s presence did not return with them until Christ was born. After Christ’s death, resurrection, and ascension, the day of Pentecost came, when the Spirit of God was poured out upon believers (see the Book of Acts for details). The Spirit of God came to indwell believers, giving them a new spirit, marking them as the Lord’s, providing for their sanctification, and sealing them for the coming judgement. The indwelling of the Spirit is what marks a Christian, not attendance or membership in a church. Thus, the Church (big “C” to indicate the global collective of Spirit-indwelled believers), not the Temple, is now the dwelling place of God in the world and is made up of individual believers, not a building.

Returning to our text, Paul is instructing the Corinthians in verses 5-17 that believers are called to take part in the building of the Church, each faithfully working towards what God has called him to do in service to the body for the purpose of growing the body itself. Verse 16 is Paul’s way of reminding the Corinthians that they do not labor alone, but rather by the empowerment of the Spirit, and secondly, that sitting on the sidelines is not an option because they are empowered to work! Verse 17 turns to those who would seek to tear down this building, presumably by false teaching or conduct detrimental to the spread of the Gospel; God will not abide that kind of behavior. So, Paul finishes by reminding them, “For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.” I.e. Stop doing counterproductive and destructive things to the body of Christ, the Church.

Takeaway: God saves us for a reason and that reason is not just for our own sake. We are saved by grace, not dependent upon works, but when we remain on the sidelines, unwilling to step into the ministry opportunities that God creates for us, do you know who we hurt? Ourselves. God’s plan will be accomplished, He is not dependent upon us, but He chooses to work through us because He loves us – He wants to see us walk in the grace He has given us and experience giving the same kind of grace and love to others. Paul says in Acts 20:26, in sort of a closing speech, that in his ministry he was sure to declare “to you the whole counsel of God.” He did not want those under his teaching to be ignorant of God’s Word and the blessings that come from heeding it. In these verses, Paul calls the Corinthians, and us today, to remember that God has given us His Spirit – we are His dwelling place. What a shame it would be to shrink from what He has planted and wants to grow within us. What a shame it would be to lose out on eternal reward for serving Him faithfully in this life. Today, pray that God open your eyes in a new way and set a new fire in your heart for Him and His Word so that you will know Him and know what He wants in, through, and for you.