The Church

A doctrinal issue that seems to be prevalent in the church is the preponderance of a belief that the temple of God is the church building. People continuously "go to church" from day to day believing that the place where they are going is the "holy place" much like the place Solomon built in the Old Testament: they believe the building itself is the "house of God." So often, people will use titles like these to refer to the place of worship. There are even praise songs focused on making sure that we understand the house of God to be the church building. If, however, we were to properly understand the place of the church building, we would not give the building itself so much credit. Churches become places of sanctuary and gain holy significance more than anything in the minds of many Christians. We seem to think that the building is where God resides and when we go to church we are going there because that is the place where we are to meet God. There are many problems with this way of thinking and we would like to explain why God is displeased with this thinking.

The Old Temple

We must first understand what the temple was. "And Moses took the tabernacle, and pitched it without the camp, afar off from the camp, and called it the Tabernacle of the congregation. And it came to pass, that every one which sought the LORD went out unto the tabernacle of the congregation, which was without the camp" (Exodus 33:7). The temple was the place where the people of God met God, in the Old Testament. Solomon built the temple; it was his duty after his father David was instructed of the Lord not to build the temple. This place was magnificent and God actually took residence in this place. "Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary" (Hebrews 9:1). Today, when we speak of the temple, in the modern sense, and incorrectly, we speak of it like the place Solomon built.

The Temple's Purpose

But will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have builded? Yet have thou respect unto the prayer of thy servant, and to his supplication, O LORD my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer, which thy servant prayeth before thee to day: That thine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place of which thou hast said, My name shall be there: that thou mayest hearken unto the prayer which thy servant shall make toward this place. And hearken thou to the supplication of thy servant, and of thy people Israel, when they shall pray toward this place: and hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place: and when thou hearest, forgive. (1 Kings 8:27-30)

The question Solomon begins with is, "will God indeed dwell on the earth?" This question may seem small from the outset but it is not. This place was the means by which God dwelt on earth, which explains why all of the verses thereafter specify praying towards the house of God because "whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein" (Matthew 23:21). The place where God dwelled in the Old Testament was the house of God. We take these words lightly too often, to us, a house is a place where our most precious things abide. This is true for God as well. He was actually in this place. Let us see an example.

It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the LORD; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of musick, and praised the LORD, saying, For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: that then the house was filled with a cloud, even the house of the LORD; So that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of God. (2 Chronicles 5:13-14)

Moses even asked to see this thing and God told him that he could not see God's face and live (Exodus 33:18-20). In other words, this was a big deal for the very glory of the Lord to be in this place. So you might ask, what is wrong with talking about this happening in our churches? Is not this the thing that happens every Sunday? Well, the answer to this question is, yes and no. Yes, God does dwell amidst his people when we come together; we will address this point below. No, because God's intention was not to dwell in a building always. There are several scriptures on this point.

Thus saith the LORD, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest? For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word. (Isaiah 66:1-2)

God's intention was always to build himself a house that was not built by man. "God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands" (Acts 17:24). Rather, he wanted a house that he, himself, had made.

The New Temple

Jesus replaced the physical house of God, the Temple. He is the locus of God's power on earth.

Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things? Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? But he spake of the temple of his body. When therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this unto them; and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said. (John 2:18-22)

At that time Jesus went on the sabbath day through the corn; and his disciples were an hungred, and began to pluck the ears of corn and to eat. But when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him, Behold, thy disciples do that which is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day. But he said unto them, Have ye not read what David did, when he was an hungred, and they that were with him; How he entered into the house of God, and did eat the shewbread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for them which were with him, but only for the priests? Or have ye not read in the law, how that on the sabbath days the priests in the temple profane the sabbath, and are blameless? But I say unto you, That in this place is one greater than the temple. (Matthew 12:1-6)

In other words, the temple had become of no use to the people of God. There has come one who was more powerful than the temple. "Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens; A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man" (Hebrews 8:1-2). This is why Jesus could forgive sins, heal, and save the people of God. Everything that Solomon prayed for with regard to the temple was in Jesus. And his prayer was prophetic because it spoke of "strangers" praying toward the temple and having their prayers answered (salvation of the Gentiles). All of this comes together when we look at scripture with the revelation of the Holy Ghost.

The Temple Replicated

As Christians, we are to be like Christ and we are to represent him (the temple) here on earth. Subsequently, we are the temple of God collectively: "for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people" (2 Corinthians 6:16). And, we are the temple of God individually. We are houses for the Holy Ghost: "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? 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).

Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit. (Ephesians 2:19-22)

Let us look at these scriptures together. We understand first that Jesus is the temple of God. Jesus promises to build another house in John 2:19-21 and in Matthew 16: "I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18). This house or church would not fall by the power of hell, but would withstand the devil. "For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil" (1 John 3:8). The key, however, is this; in order for the church to be able to withstand the devil it must be a copy of what overcame the devil in the first place (see "We are spirits?" for our discussion on being made in God's image). In essence, we have to put "on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof" (Romans 13:14). We are supposed to be like him to overcome. In being like Jesus, we also become temples of God. And coming together brings the temples of God together and we form the body of Christ; even though, we are all supposed to put on the body of Christ individually, and allow him to live in us as we die to ourselves. "And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence" (Colossians 1:18). Thus, collectively we make up Christ and individually we are still like him.

Where is The Church?

Here is the problem: when we call the church building the house of God or the temple of God, we err because we make the church building the locus of God's power, instead of Christ and us through Christ. When the power of God is located in a physical building, physical men have the power to say who has the right to partake of God's power. People own the buildings and the land on which churches are built. Thus, they have the say-so with regard to what goes on in the building and who comes into the building. Another effect is that the building itself becomes holy: having spiritual significance. This is the reason why so many churches focus on the sacraments as the means to salvation; this happens with the practicing of different liturgies and even the exaltation of the preachers' garments as being holy. God never intended on anything man-made to take precedence over us. "And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all" (Ephesians 1:22-23). Nor did he ever desire us to worship a man that is not Jesus Christ; for there is only one mediator. "For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus" (1 Timothy 2:5). Thus, the church, the body of Christ, must take its place back. We must recognize that the people matter way more than the building. We must remember that the early church met in people's houses, in other words, they met wherever they could. It is not about a building for we are the building of God and we need God to take residence in us. "Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him" (John 14:23). When we use the church building as a means to locate God, we will never take him home with us. We will live hellish lives outside of the church and ask the building to sanctify us. Hebrews 10:8 states that "we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." Until we get this understanding right, we will read our Bibles in the church and not outside of it. We will not pray to God outside of the church building. We will never see our salvation being in us as opposed to being in a building we go to on Sundays or other days. "To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Colossians 1:27). We must remember that having Christ in us is salvation, and not Christ in a building that we made with our hands. "But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth" (John 4:23-24). "For, behold, the kingdom of God is within you" (Luke 17:21).

DRAFT V2010-06-28T4:47:26 PM