The temple of God

I Corinthians 3:16
I Peter 2:4,5

What is a temple? The dictionary definition is ‘the dwelling-place of a god’.
When God rescued the Israelites from Egypt, he told them to make a special tent, the Tabernacle, so that he ‘could dwell among them’. (Exodus 29:46) About 500 years later, Solomon built a grand Temple to replace the Tabernacle. This first Temple was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar’s armies in 586 BC. It was rebuilt when the Jews returned from exile 50 years later, and it was this second temple that Jesus visited in the gospels. The second temple was completely destroyed by the Romans in AD 70 and has never been rebuilt.

So where is our God living now? In each and every Christian, and in the Church as a whole.
People often refer to the church building as ‘God’s house’, but this is not actually true. God’s dwelling is the community of people. It isn’t something static or physical; it is a dynamic entity. When Jesus was on earth, God was literally dwelling amongst his people (“the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory... full of grace and truth”) Now people should be able to see the glory of God in the love-relationship that we (should) have towards one another. (I John 4:12)

In any religion, a temple is a sacred place, set apart from the outside world. So the church community should therefore also be 'different' from the outside world. (II Corinthians 6:14-7:1) This is the principle of 'holiness' - of which more later.