What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? [20] For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 KJV
God’s desire had always been to dwell with man. Man was made in God’s image and likeness and placed in the garden of the Lord. His body was in touch with the world around him, his soul with his body and the Spirit was in communion with God. These all reached towards God. However, when man fell, his body, soul, and spirit fell. The knowledge of good and evil came into him, instead of the tree of life, corrupting man. In an attempt to bring man back into His presence, God told Moses to build a tabernacle that He may dwell among us, Exodus 25:8. This tabernacle was made of three courts: the outer court, the holy place, and the holies of holies, Exodus 25-27. As you progressed deeper, man moved from his consciousness of the world around him, being led by the sun outside to God, being led by the Shekinah glory of God.
In the new covenant, the temple the Lord dwells in, as He always wanted to is man. Man also has three compartments: the body, soul, and Spirit. In 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, Paul says we are the temple of the Holy Spirit. This means that the progression from the body to the Spirit, is also like being led by the physical sun to being led; by the world around us, to being led by the Shekinah glory of God within us. Because of the fall of man, he could not approach God. He was corrupt. In order to remedy this, because the consequence of sin is death, the Lord created a substitution for man. The man in the old covenant had to provide an animal without any defects. He would place his hands upon its head and confess his sins, Leviticus 4:1-5. This innocent animal now took on his sin, being defiled by a sin it never committed. The animal willingly bore the sin without complaints and suffered the punishment for this man. Now the man’s life was atoned for and the pureblood from the sacrifice gave him access into the presence of God.
In a similar way, Christ became our substitute, being the pure and sinless lamb of God, 1 Corinthians 5:7. In the old covenant, the veil put a separation between man and God and one man, the high priest could go in there, but not without the pureblood. Once this sacrifice was complete and successful, the high priest came out with a benediction and blessed the people, Numbers 6:23-27. Jesus our high priest, also being the temple of God took on our sin and was killed. The destruction of His body was the tearing of the veil and by His blood, we have full access to the Shekinah glory of God, Hebrews 10:20. His blood established a new covenant and also came with a blessing. The covenant came with rights, just like being a citizen of a country comes with rights. Part of these rights are seen in Psalm 103:1-5, they include healing, deliverance from destruction, etc. We do not need to fast and pray for these, we just show up and receive them. This also includes the blessings of all things pertaining to life and godliness, Ephesians 1:3, 2 Peter 1:3. It is part of the covenant secured for us by the blood of Jesus.
All things were purged by the blood in the old covenant and the same is for the new, Hebrews 9:22. However, the blood in the new covenant is the very life of God, eternal, giving it more potency. Our response to this sacrifice of Christ is to offer ourselves as a living sacrifice, Romans 12:1. Like the priest cutting through the lamb for sacrifice, God examines our inside. He says it is not what comes out of a man that defiles him, but what is inside Matthew 15:11-20. If a man’s life is not right inside, with things like unforgiveness, bitterness, malice, etc, he is unclean and hinders the free flow of the Spirit through him and also the church he is in since a part of the body is disconnected. This is why God will ask a man who has a cross with his brother to leave his gift and reconcile with his brother before sacrificing Matthew 5:22-25. However, he can be cleansed the blood of Jesus. Paul says that the blood of Jesus is able to make us perfect in every good work.
There is a shaking coming to the entire body of Christ. 2 chronicles 29:16 shows a similar time where the temple of God had been defiled and there needed to be a mass cleansing. God is cleansing His Church so that He can come and inhabit her. Hence, He will shake, until everything that cannot be shaken will give way, Hebrews 12:26-29. It is our responsibility to yield individually to the cleansing work of God now. So that we will not fall away during this great shaking. As His temple, we need to reach inward and live from the inside out, allowing the life and holiness from our Spirit to flow to our mortal body. It is those that do this that would experience the deeper intimacy and inhabiting of the Spirit, not many days from now.
Prayer for today: My Father, God of peace, You who brought again from the dead my Lord Jesus, my great Shepherd, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make me perfect in every good work to do Your will. Work in me that which is wellpleasing in Your sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
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