Temple and Wisdom
1 Corinthians 3:16-23
On the way out to my mother’s house we pass
an edifice labeled “Sky Pilot Temple.” I presume this is
someone’s sense of humor; “sky pilot” is military slang for a
devout Christian, especially an obnoxious one. Americans seem to
view the word “temple” as being something rather snootily pious
and pretentious. So I suspect the proprietors of that temple are
being cynically hip.
Our ancient forefathers would not have
understood that. They took the concept much more seriously. The
closest English word today which still carries that meaning of
awesome sacredness might be “cathedral.” So as you read through
this next passage, try substituting “cathedral” for “temple” –
and see if the meaning becomes a bit clearer.
(1 Cor 3:16-23 NIV) Don't
you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's
Spirit lives in you? {17} If anyone destroys God's temple, God
will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that
temple. {18} Do not deceive yourselves. If any one of you thinks
he is wise by the standards of this age, he should become a
"fool" so that he may become wise. {19} For the wisdom of this
world is foolishness in God's sight. As it is written: "He
catches the wise in their craftiness"; {20} and again, "The Lord
knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile." {21} So then,
no more boasting about men! All things are yours, {22} whether
Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the
present or the future--all are yours, {23} and you are of
Christ, and Christ is of God.
The Temple of God
Most Christians have been taught from an
early age that the body – the human body – is the temple of God.
This has its consequences:
·
The sins of the body
are grievous. By this we mean adultery and fornication,
for they unite the Christian with someone other than his
or her spouse – and make for an abomination. God takes
this very seriously.
·
The sins against the
body are likewise grievous. When I inflict bodily pain
and suffering on someone else, God is aggrieved and will
not forget. For this reason alone we should consider
striking another person to be most serious.
·
Yet how little we think of
these things! It’s not adultery; it’s “an affair.” It’s
not fornication, it’s “sexual experience.” It’s not
wife-beating; it’s “putting the little woman in her
place.” Be warned: God does not agree.
But there is another sense in which the body
is the temple of God.
The church – the body of Christ – the temple
of God
It is not clear to all that the church is
also the temple of God. We are accustomed to hearing preaching
on the first usage, but not on the second. But it is equally
true. Consider:
·
We, the church, each and all
have the same spirit – the Holy Spirit.
·
We are described – as a
consequence – as one body, the body of Christ.
·
Therefore, that body is also
God’s temple.
It makes sense. In the days of the Old
Testament, if you wanted to find God, you came to his Temple.
You still do.
God’s care for that temple
God cares for his temple:
·
It is holy, which means it
is separated out to Him. Just as we are not to pollute
our own bodies we are not to pollute the body of Christ.
For example, we are not to bring in strange gods and
doctrines any more than we are to have sex with a
prostitute. (Have you noticed how often God calls
idolatry prostitution or adultery?)
·
If someone destroys it, God
will destroy him. The word used here is also translated
“defile” in the King James; it is usually translated
“corrupt.” Paul is not so much talking of physical
destruction as moral corruption.
·
How can someone defile it,
destroy it or corrupt it? There are two methods, and
they are related. First, we can bring in the world’s
wisdom, doing things the world’s way. For example, there
are those who proclaim the Bible to be wrong in this or
that – and substitute their own brilliance. The second
way is to chop up that body – to divide it.
Problems with the world’s wisdom
It’s usually argued – was then, is today –
that man has gained such great wisdom and knowledge that the
church is foolish to ignore it. After all, look at all the
progress we’ve made in technology! Consider the truth:
·
Man’s wisdom is
intrinsically bounded, for we are finite. Not one of us
can know everything that man knows, let alone all things
that God knows. Therefore, no matter how great, our
wisdom has limits.
·
Our wisdom proclaims itself
self-sufficient. Modern psychiatry will save your soul,
we say; some preachers preach that way too. But the
result of this is simple: it causes us to ignore or
forget God. You may reason the elephant out of existence
– until he steps on you.
·
It causes us to become
boastful with pride – after all, we are so
brilliant! That causes some of us to look down on others
of us; we look down on our brothers and sisters in
Christ. (After all, a church has to keep the riff-raff
out.) You think it doesn’t happen? What happens when a
biker walks into your church and sits down in the front
pew?
·
Ultimately, what good is it?
Some seek Nirvana – the problems of the world cause us
no pain because we have ceased to care. Others seek
goodness for goodness sake – a tree limb without a tree.
Many more simply eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow
we die. And then what?
Please note: these problems apply to
anyone – the leader who proclaims these principles or the
poor souls who follow them. Interestingly, the followers
have even more problems.
Problems with relying on other’s wisdom
Leaders who tear at the church using the
world’s wisdom would get no where if there were no followers
willing to follow. This too has its difficulties.
Why do we follow such leaders?
Because we are so small and insecure! We
do not realize the riches that are ours; we are sleeping on
a bed of gold, complaining of our poverty.
·
In Christ all things are
ours! Has not the one with all authority told us so?
He desires us to have only the good things; we’re
just a little confused on what those things are.
Sometimes our blessings are quite well disguised.
This is a matter of trust.
·
Indeed, one of the
“ours” – those very leaders! In the kingdom of God
he would lead must be a servant. Rather than tearing
God’s temple apart over this man or that, we should
regard them as gifts from God, for our profit.
·
Do you see it? In doing
things the world’s way, we throw away the things
that Christ has given us, and substitute the
gleanings that we can gather.
Is not Christ sufficient for you?
The matter is worse than you think. If you
follow those who set themselves up as leaders in separation,
tearing the church apart, you are telling the world what you
don’t believe:
·
You tell the world that you
don’t believe that Christ’s grace is sufficient for you
– you must have this, that or the other leader in
addition. Can you imagine the insult this is to God –
and how it leads others astray?
·
Worse, you deny his divinity
and his authority. If he is not sufficient for you, then
you deny that he is God in the flesh, for God is
omnipotent. If he is not sufficient for you, you deny
his authority, for he tells you that all authority in
heaven and earth is his.
Compare: God’s wisdom
Consider, however, how God’s wisdom compares
to this.
·
God’s wisdom cause us to
be humble. If all things are ours, they are ours as
a gift. Therefore, none of us has anything to brag
about. We can see others in the same light, and
therefore none of us should look down on another.
·
God’s wisdom quells
dissension. It’s not the teacher or the preacher
that counts – it’s the Christ they teach and preach.
Thus we are united, not divided.
·
God’s wisdom gives us all
good things. As a father has mercy on his children,
God blesses us with all good things. But like a good
father, he does this when we’re behaving!
·
God’s wisdom handles
ultimate things. Material things come and go;
God’s wisdom deals with ultimate, eternal things. God’s
wisdom deals with people – it’s not Paul, it’s not
Peter, it’s not Apollos (or Graydon or John) – it’s
Christ. God’s wisdom deals with life and death. Where in
the world’s wisdom will you find the Resurrection? God’s
wisdom deals with the present and the future – and tell
me, where do your worries lie? If God’s wisdom deals
with all of these, what are you bothered about?
God’s wisdom places us in God’s hands,
for we are of Christ, and Christ is of God.
·
We are in his hands by
the power of the Cross, by which we were liberated
from the worst of masters – our own sins.
·
We are in his hands
because we have taken the lordship of Christ – let
us therefore not submit to any other in the church.
If we are in God’s hands, in his power and in
submission to his lordship, why then do we presume to continue
to sin? What then should we do?
Therefore…
Don’t be any man’s partisan
No matter how well spoken, no matter how
learned – and especially whether he wants it or not.
Be of Christ
·
Be holy, as he is holy.
Consider yourself set apart for his purposes, and keep
yourself pure.
·
Honor him with your body. Be
faithful to your wife, for in her you see a portrait in
living flesh of his church. Be faithful to your husband,
for in him you see a portrait in living flesh of your
Lord.
·
Live in the power of the
Resurrection. Remember that you are heirs of the
promise: one day he shall return; the dead in Christ
shall rise, the living rise to meet him in the air. He
has triumphed over death; he holds the keys of hell and
death – and your reward is in his hand.
As Christ is of God
·
Jesus and the Father are
one. His prayer – and command – are that we should be
one in the same way.
·
We need to work at being
one.
How can we do that? How can we “be one?”
·
Place no obstacle in the way
of your brother; rather, consider his needs as if they
were your own.
·
Do not judge your brother;
leave that to Christ.
·
Follow no leader except as
he points you to Christ.
