The Temple
Psalm 25, Deuteronomy 6, 1 Corinthians 3
Third Sunday in Lent
March 3, 2013
Several
"3:16's" in the Bible express significant Biblical truth. The best known is the well beloved John 3:16,
" God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that
whosoever believeth on Him should not perish, but have everlasting
life." Probably second, in terms of
being well known and well beloved, is 2 Timothy 3:16, "All scripture is
given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for
correction, for instruction in righteousness." Most people know these verse, and I suspect
and hope that you know them by heart.
There is another 3:16, found in our readings for this morning. It is 1 Corinthians 3:16; "Know ye not
that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in
you?"
"Ye
are the temple of God." I want
to call attention to something that, at
first, will seem very obvious, yet, I think is habitually overlooked by most
readers of this verse. I want to call
attention to the word, "temple," and I want to emphasise that it is
singular, not plural. It is
"temple," not "temples."
Now let me call attention to the word, "ye." Ye is plural.
Old England, like the Old South, had a plural form of
"you." "Ye" is that
plural form. So Paul was addressing many
people, but he said of them that "Ye," plural, are "the temple,"
singular.
Paul
has been writing about the divisions and strife that existed in the Corinthian
Church. The Corinthians had a difficult
time following Christ. They lived in the
time before most of the New Testament had been written, they probably did not
have a copy of the Old Testament, and, even if they had, they would not have
understood it because they were Gentiles.
They were of a culture that was completely alien to the Bible. Theirs was a culture of sensual indulgence. Even their religions were primarily about
sensuality and sensual experiences. And
everything was all about "Me;" whatever seems right to "Me,"
and whatever feels good to "Me." In fact, it was a culture very much
like our own.
It
took a while for those who converted to Christianity to put their pagan ideas,
values, and religious views behind them, or even to know they should be put
behind them. So their pagan ideas
followed them into the Church. This was
partly a calculated, intentional thing; and it was partly just because they didn't
know any better. When they heard about
God they thought of Him the way they thought of pagan idols, and they tried to
worship Him as they had worshiped their pagan gods. They made Christianity all about having
religious experiences. And they made it
all about "Me;" my faith, my beliefs, my salvation, my worship, and
my relationship with Jesus. This is the
natural tendency of people, and we still see it in the lives and views of Christians
today. We're still trying to make Christianity
all about experiencing God, my own personal faith, my beliefs, my salvation, my
worship, my interpretation of the Bible, and my relationship with Jesus, as though
it is only about "Just Jesus and
Me."
There
is some truth in me-centered religion. A
person must have personal faith in Christ. A person must be personally saved,
personally read the Bible, personally worship God, and personally walk with
Jesus. But me centered religion leaves
out the very important fact that individual faith, salvation, worship, understanding
of the Bible, and relationship with Christ, are lived and practiced in the
context of the wider Body of Christ, which the Bible calls the Church.
In
contrast to me-centered religion, the Bible presents a God-centered faith. One of the clearest statements of this is
found in Ephesians 1:9 and 10, which tell us the purpose of God is to bring all
things together in Christ. God's purpose
in building and sustaining this universe, and in sending Christ to the cross,
and in sending the Holy Spirit to dwell in the Church, is to bring all things
together under the Lordship of Christ.
Thanks be to God, Ephesians 1:11 tells us we have an inheritance in
Him. We have a share in His Kingdom,
"according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel
of His own will," but we need to
remember that the Kingdom is about God and for His glory. It is not about us or our glory.
The
Bible also presents a unified Church instead of me-centered individualism. In other words, instead of a highly
individualised faith of independent Christians following God as the Spirit
leads them, or, more correctly, as they think the Spirit is leading them, the
Bible presents a view of a unified people following and serving God together as
one person. This is a major part of the teaching of 1 Corinthians 3. The language and intent is a little different
from that in Ephesians 1, for, while Ephesians refers to all things in general,
1 Corinthians refers to the Church specifically. But the idea of being brought together under
Christ is found in both passages. 1
Corinthians describes the Church as the temple of God, the place where God
dwells. The Church is one, and all the Christians together form the Temple, the
Church.
This
is not just a nice idea built on an isolated text. It is taught throughout the New Testament and
Bible. Deuteronomy 6:4, for example
address Israel as one body. "Hear O
Israel," not "Hear O Israelites. Look also at 1 Peter 2:5 which says
"Ye" (plural) "as lively stones (plural), are built up a (singular)
spiritual house," (singular), "an (singular) holy priesthood" (singular).
The point is that God is building a
spiritual house for Himself, by putting Christians together to form a spiritual
home for Himself. Peter does not say God
is collecting stones for a rock collection.
Some people collect rocks, and they have a story to tell about each
rock. God is not collecting rocks, He is
building a spiritual house, a Temple for Himself. That Temple is the Church. You and I are stones in it. God gathers us, shapes us, chips off the
parts He doesn't want, sticks us into the mortar and we become part of the
temple. And in this Temple we become one. We are a unity. We are not just rocks, we are the Temple.
So
the Bible teaches a unity of believers.
We are one body. We are one
building. We are living stones in a
living building We are members of one
another. We have one Lord, one faith, one
baptism. God grant that we may always hold
and practice the faith in unity of spirit, in the bond of peace, and in righteousness
of life.
What a fine exposition, Bishop Campbell!
ReplyDeleteAmong those who prefer modern translations, it is not difficult to see folks tip the hat toward the KJV for its beautiful cadence and expression of the elevated English. However, very few people understand its exegetical advantages, especially for the English-only Bible student. Your treatment of the singulars and plurals are an excellent demonstration of the KJV's utility.
With modern translations, one never knows (especially in narratives) whether the audience was a group or an individual. Consequently, modern translations foster the modern trend that your exposition puts in check, namely the individualistic 'Me-And-My-Jesus-Experience' Christianity, which is hardly Christianity at all.
When encouraging folks to use the KJV, I usually tell them that, when it comes to archaic pronouns (which typically daunt new readers) the T's are singular, whereas all the Y's are plural. This rule may not be absolute (yet I've never found an exception), nevertheless, it can add a new and important dynamic for the reader.
Perhaps someone will someday do a modern Southern translation and put "y'all" for the plurals. :)
Thanks for a great exposition and exhortation!
Good points regarding the King James Bible. It often uses the more formal plural, favoured in Virginia, "you all."
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