The Temple Of God

by Pastor Mark
April 09, 2026

 

A living organism

The church is a living organism. We should never see the church as something static. The church is very much alive and growing. The Apostle Paul made several descriptions of the church that reveal this. To him, the church is the body of Christ (Ephesians 1:22–23). Christ is the head of the church, and He leads and guides His body. The church is also called the household of God (Ephesians 2:19). It is described as the temple of God…His dwelling place (Ephesians 2:21–22). These are beautiful and insightful descriptions of the church and what it is meant to be. Let us always regard Christ as the head of the church.

The temple of God

  1. God revealed to Paul important glimpses of what the church should be.
  2. Paul became the wise master builder of the church.
  3. He laid the foundation of the church, which is Christ, the chief cornerstone (1 Corinthians 3:11).
  4. All believers, as living stones, are to build the church with gold, silver and precious stones…not wood, hay and straw (1 Corinthians 3:12).
  5. It is with the highest standards of service that we should build the church.
  6. Our service should be done with holiness, depth, oneness, hard work and more.
  7. Anything less would be considered service that is wood, hay or straw.
  8. As this is the temple of the Lord, we cannot choose to build with lesser materials.
  9. The temple is meant to be beautiful, built with the best materials.

The test of fire

  1. The works that we do will be tested by fire (1 Corinthians 3:13–15).
  2. The fire will reveal what kind of work we have done.
  3. It reveals the value and worth of our work.
  4. If our work endures, we will receive a reward.
  5. If it does not, we would suffer much loss…all the effort put in will be in vain.

The problem with Israel

  1. The prophet Hosea saw the same problem with Israel.
  2. Israel was meant to offer service of the highest quality.
  3. But due to their sins, their service was deemed as of the lowest quality.
  4. Their faithfulness was like the morning cloud and dew…it did not last (Hosea 6:4).
  5. They were full of pride and arrogance, yet they would not return to the Lord (Hosea 7:10).
  6. They sowed the wind but reaped the whirlwind (Hosea 8:7).
  7. They tried to make alliances with other strong nations, but nothing came of it.

Reason for building the church with the highest standards

Why is there a need for us to build with the highest standards of stone? Firstly, we should build the church out of a heart of love for the Lord. What we do reflects our love for Him. If we love the Lord and His building, then we ought to build it well. The material that we use should reflect love. The Shema reminds us that we should love the Lord with all our heart, soul and strength (Deuteronomy 6:5). Therefore, our works for the Lord must be of the highest quality. Secondly, the church is God’s household, His home. This is where God would dwell. His presence is in the church. If we were to build our own physical home with good materials, then we ought to build the Lord’s house with gold, silver and precious stones. Let us be challenged to build Bethany with the highest quality of stones that are only befitting for Him.

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