“Do you not know that you are the temple of God,
and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God,
God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are” (1
Corinthians 3:16-17, NKJV).
Before we consider the
implications of this passage, we should realize that the original message has
the potential of being lost in translation. The problem is not due to any
ambiguity in the text but to the limitations of the English language. These
words were first penned in Greek, where the difficulty does not occur. But when
the passage is rendered in English, the meaning can be obscured.
The second person pronoun “you”
in English can either be singular or plural, depending on whether an individual
or multiple persons are being addressed. If I want to speak to an entire group
(“you, class”) or to just one person (“you, Tom”), there is only one pronoun
from which to choose. However, those of us from the southern United States have
rectified the problem by regarding “you” as the singular form and “you all” or “y’all”
as the plural. [Note: in the King James Version “ye” = the plural “you all”]
In 1 Corinthians 3:16 Paul
used the second person plural form of address, and if we read it in the
language of the southern United States, the point is much clearer: “Do y’all
not know that y’all are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in
[or ‘among’] y’all?” Paul is not speaking here about the individual Christian
but rather the collectivity of Christians, the body of Christ, the church. It
is God’s church (the community of the saved) that serves as his spiritual
temple and the dwelling place of his Spirit.
Next the apostle writes: “If
anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him” (v. 17a). Again, the
description here is not that of the individual person (as in 6:18-20). Neither
should we consider the church building (a physical structure of brick and
mortar) as some kind of hallowed sanctuary, despite what we may have inferred
as children from the song, “Tip toe, tip toe in God’s house.”
When as faithful
Christians we assemble together, work together, and collectively represent
God’s presence in our community, we are God’s spiritual temple.
Accordingly, may none of us ever be guilty of defiling this temple by such
things as ungodly behavior (5:1, 2; 6:1-11), spiritual apathy (11:30, 31),
false teaching (15:12, 34), corrupt worship (11:17-22; 14:2, 4), or unnecessary
division (1:10, 11; 3:3). Our primary aim should be that of building up the
temple of God.
From the third chapter of
1 Corinthians, we are reminded of how very important the church is, the great
privilege of being part of it, and the solemn responsibility we all have to
devote ourselves to godly living, active involvement, and faithful service. “For
the temple of God is holy, which temple y’all are” (v. 17b).
–Kevin L. Moore
First appearing in The Voice of Truth
International 70:47-48.
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