Dwelling Places of God

Holy Dwellings and God’s Association with Them

The man Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, once stood before the Sanhedrin (a legal body composed of the high priest, leaders of the people, and legal experts) and established God does not dwell in items made with hands (Acts 7:48). Yet, God chose to make His presence known within the earth, the tabernacle, and Solomon’s temple. God also commanded the temple built by Zerubbabel as a place for His name. These were not places where God lived, but those which He made holy by his association with them. Scripture identifies three other holy dwelling places of God not made by human hands. These are Christ, the Church, and the Christian. All told there are 7 specific dwelling places which are or were holy. However, not all of these remained holy. When something holy is defiled or unclean, what is God’s reaction? Is the reaction a pattern with God?

In the beginning, God created the tabernacle of the heavens and earth. For six days, God developed the creation which would house man and other forms of life. After each day, God declared everything He created was good. On the seventh day, he sanctified the day in recognition of the work He had done. It was holy, a pure dwelling place suitable for the care of man. God’s presence would be found upon it (Genesis 3:8). For man, God detailed acceptable behavior and what was not. This included what man was allowed eat (Genesis 2:15-16). Man made the decision to defy the authorized behaviors which God had established. Into the tabernacle of God’s creation was brought something unclean, unholy, and impure. Man introduced the defilement of sin into the world. What was God’s reaction? God disciplined man. The discipline brought death to all men from the time of Adam and Eve to the present day. During the age of early mankind, the pinnacle of judgment for defiling God’s tabernacle of creation was the destruction of all mankind save righteous Noah and his family. Is this reaction of discipline for defilement God’s pattern of response?

During the Mosaic age or time of Moses (1400 BC), God instructed Moses to build a tabernacle (Exodus 25:8-9). He gave miraculous inspiration to enable the exact creation of what He desired. Instructions were heeded exactly according to Exodus 39:32, including the contents of the tabernacle, creation of the Ark of the Covenant, and priestly garments. The tabernacle would represent a different manner in which God’s presence would be known (Exodus 40:34-38). God detailed authorized behavior in respect to the tabernacle. All that was directed by Him was holy. Man then introduced the defilement of sin into God’s holy wilderness tabernacle. In Leviticus 10:1-3, Nadab and Abihu determined to operate outside of faith (that which is heard from God’s Word – Romans 10:17). Nadab and Abihu offer an unauthorized fire into the tabernacle worship. What they offered was unclean, unacceptable, defiled. God reemphasizes He is to be treated as holy. How was He not? The priests were offering to God, so evidently they wanted to please Him. Their heart was right. John 4:24 states, “God is spirit, those that worship Him must worship in spirit and truth”. This means He will not only be worshipped by the appropriate attitude (spirit), but He will also be worshipped according to how He has commanded. Truth was missing in the actions of Nadab and Abihu. God was not being honored by unholy actions. Therefore, God disciplined man. He destroyed both men before the nation of Israel. Is this a pattern continued?

The nation of Israel through their sinfulness eventually demanded a King (as God said they would in Deuteronomy 17:14-15). Their second king was David. David whether by misunderstanding or not, determined to develop plans to build God a temple in place of the mobile tabernacle. These plans he handed over to Solomon his son. God agreed to be with Solomon, the people of Israel, and the temple as long as they kept His commandments (I Kings 6:12-13). As with the tabernacle, God’s glory filled the temple (I Kings 8:10-11). God made the temple a holy place and consecrated it in His name (I Kings 9:3-7). The purpose of the temple would assume the same as the tabernacle. It would be a holy place of worship and sacrifice. Solomon would later defile himself with foreign marriages and idolatrous ways. God would discipline him by splitting the kingdom of Israel. Jeroboam would assume the leadership of Israel and lead them into further defilement. Rehoboam the son of Solomon would lead the kingdom of Judah in sin. Under his leadership, the temple was defiled by Egypt (I Kings 14:25-26). This would come as discipline by the hand of God for he was not with this people in their sinful state. 350 years and 16 kings later, young King Josiah sees the defilement of the temple and people. He attempts to cleanse them. (2 Kings 23:4-7). He does what is right in the sight of God. Unfortunately, after Josiah, wickedness continues, defilement continues. 22 years later at the end of the reign of the last king of Judah (Zedekiah), the temple is destroyed. The year was 586 and Babylon plundered the nation and took them into captivity as a discipline from the Lord (2 Chronicles 36:14-19). Ezekiel from a vision in Babylon was given a vision of the Glory of God departing from the temple (Ezekiel 10:18-19). This continued God’s discipline pattern in response to the defilement of man’s sin.

Following 70 years captivity in Babylon and into the kingdom of the Medes and Persians, God’s hand of discipline would be lifted. It would be lifted to continue passage of the lineage of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. To do so, God commanded the King of Persia, Cyrus, to send Israel out of captivity to build Him a temple again. Zerubbabel would reign as governor over Judah upon his return. The temple would be known as Zerubbabel’s temple though later identified with Herod for the great restoration he would do. During the time of Zerubbabel the people would declare their allegiance to God once more (Ezra 10:10-12). The time frame covered from the completion of the temple in 516 BC to Christ in 3BC was 513 years. This period of Bible history is covered by the Bible writings of Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, and prophecy in Daniel. History shows Israel would put away its idolatrous ways. However, Israel did not stop its sin. This is shown in the prophecies of Daniel and the New Testament gospels Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The priesthood would be defiled in aiding Israel’s enemies and seeking man driven power. The temple would become a “den of robbers” according to Jesus in Matthew 21:13. God would again punish the people by various incursions against them before Christ. Antiochus IV would come into Jerusalem, sack it, and defile the temple twice. This includes the pouring of boiling pig flesh over the temple and altar. The Holy of Holies was entered and the treasure was taken from the temple. These were discipline from God, but a greater punishment would be unleashed in 70 AD as prophesied by Christ in Matthew 24:1-2. Once again, as with the tabernacle of the earth, the wilderness tabernacle, and Solomon’s temple, a holy dwelling of God had been defiled; God’s commandments were ignored and God would have no part with that which was unclean and unholy. A pattern from God seems to be clear.

At the fullness of time, God, in love, sent His Son Jesus. He did so for man’s salvation from defilement. Jesus is the eternal and Holy Temple of God as identified in John 2:19-22. Jesus was pure, sinless, perfect, and holy (I Peter 2:21-23). Man exposed to the purity of Christ, attempted to defile Him. They tried to intimidate him in regard to reaching out to the publicans and sinners in Matthew 9:10-13. He could have rejected God’s will by listening to Peter in Matthew 16:21-23. The Pharisees attempted to see if He would go against Caesar in Matthew 22:17-22. The High priest would present Him with the opportunity to deny Deity in Matthew 26:63-64. In John 8:3-11, the scribes and Pharisees would try to get him to disobey Roman law or God’s Law, but He would not. In the garden, He did not lie about his identity (John 18:3-5), though for others it would have been tempting. Pilate tried to intimidate Jesus declaring “I have the power to crucify you”, but Christ would not falter. Christ endured the shame of the cross though he could have tried to escape (Hebrews 12:2). Jesus would not allow man to defile Him. He now sits at the right hand of the Father in Heaven because he maintained the Holiness of God.

According to scripture, Christ is the head of the Church (Ephesians 5:23). I John 2:1 establishes Christ is righteous and Colossians 1:24 states that Christ’s body is the Church. Therefore, Christ being the Temple of God, the Church being His body, by inference is also the Temple of God. Christians are said to be one in the body of Christ according to Romans 12:5 and their relationship is that of building materials (I Peter 2:5). The Church is a Holy priesthood of building stones (Christians) through Christ. They are a holy dwelling of God. Yet again, man attempts to defile this dwelling. They do so through ignorant, willful, and unauthorized worship. The Corinthians accomplished it through what they thought was love, but was really just arrogance in ignoring sin present in the Church. The Galatians defiled the Church through accepting the teachings of those holding to portions of the Law of Moses. In 2 Timothy 2:15-18, Timothy was instructed about the defilement in the Church coming from Hymenaeus and Philetus who were stating the second coming of Christ had passed. Peter told the Church in 2 Peter 2:1-3, false teachers would speak evil of the truth. In all of these situations, man brought defilement into the Church. However, the true Church will not stay defiled. God in times past cleansed the defilement through discipline. I Corinthians 3:10-13 makes it clear God will cleanse the temple of His Church. God’s pattern of treatment in respect to defilement stands strong.

The final holy dwelling which God is associated with is the Christian. God has identified Christians as His temple (I Corinthians 3:16-17). It is God who adds to the Church (Acts 2:47). He only adds the pure of conscience and those forgiven of sin (Acts 2:38, I Peter 3:21). Romans 6:3-7 demonstrates that baptism buries man into the death of Christ. It is here where the individual contacts the blood of Christ and Christ’s blood purifies like no other (Hebrews 9:13-14). Galatians 3:27 reemphasizes only those who have put on Christ are washed by His Blood. So through this process impurity, defilement, uncleanness is washed away (Acts 22:16). Yet, in this pure and holy dwelling of God, man still introduces defilement. They do so by denying Christ as Peter did (Luke 22:54-62), by lying as Ananias and Saphira (Acts 5), through immorality (I Corinthians 5), through a love of material things like the rich, young man (Matthew 19), by refusing to accept Christ as the Pharisees and Sadducees (John 11), by persecution of Christians like Saul (Acts 8), through a love of the world as Demas (2 Timothy), by being lukewarm Christians (Revelation 3), or forgetting to put Christ first (Revelation 2). The truth is man defiles himself through disobedience to God’s Word.

Every time a holy dwelling of God has been defiled, God has prepared discipline, a cleansing of the defilement. Will this pattern hold true in the case of the Christian as a temple of God? I John 1:6-2:2, establishes the blood of Christ continues to cleanse those in Christ. Defilement is washed away leaving no defilement for God to discipline over. This is not without observance to the command of God. God establishes the cleansing based on “if”. “If” the Christian no longer walks in darkness, “if” the Christian practices the truth, “if” the Christian confesses their sins, then they will be cleansed of the defilement. However, according to Romans 2:4-8, those who think it is enough to have God’s kindness, forbearance, and patience are mistaken. These are given only to lead a man to repentance. “God will render to man according to his deeds.” Those who do not obey will face eternal destruction (2 Thessalonians 1:6-10). In other words, God will hold to His pattern of discipline for defilement.

God commands his dwelling places be pure and holy. His creation, wilderness tabernacle, temples, son, church, and children were all initially pure. Man attempted to defile them all. Only God’s Son perfectly withstood the uncleanness and defilement of men. His Body, the Church, His bride, will stand pure and wholly as well, because of the continual cleansing of His blood. The sinful who declare they are the bride of Christ will be denied. Those who try to crash the wedding party will be removed. No unclean thing shall enter the kingdom of Heaven. This is God’s reaction to the defiled. It is His pattern.

Revelation 21:22-27 – And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God the Almighty, and the Lamb, are the temple thereof. And the city hath no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine upon it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the lamp thereof is the Lamb. And the nations shall walk amidst the light thereof: and the kings of the earth bring their glory into it. And the gates thereof shall in no wise be shut by day (for there shall be no night there): and they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it: and there shall in no wise enter into it anything unclean, or he that maketh an abomination and a lie: but only they that are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

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John 8: Who is to be Stoned?

In vs. 1-11, after the Feast of Tabernacles ended, Jesus began to openly teach in the temple (Lk. 21:37), near the court of the women (vs. 20), where the scribes and Pharisees began their plot by bringing an adulterous woman to him. Well, the Law required that both guilty parties be stoned (Lev. 20:10; Deut. 22:22) and not just the woman. Yet, the scribes and Pharisees bring only the woman and as they interrupted the Lord while he was teaching the crowd, they wanted to know what he would do. Well, if He said, “Yes, the woman must be stoned!” then what would happen to His reputation as the “friend of publicans and sinners”? But, if He said, “No, the woman should not be stoned!” then He was openly breaking the Law and subject to arrest. So, what did he do? Instead of passing judgment on the woman, Jesus passed judgment on the judges! No doubt He was indignant at the way they treated the woman and was also concerned that such hypocrites should condemn another person and not judge themselves. Now, it was required by Jewish Law, that the accusers cast the First stones (Deut. 17:7). But, Jesus was not asking that sinless men judge the woman, for He was the only sinless person present. So, being convicted by their own consciences, the accusers quietly left the scene, and Jesus was left alone with the woman. He forgave her and warned her to sin no more (vs. 11).

Well, as this scene closes, John introduces us to the second great I AM statement in vs. 12-20. Perhaps the sun was beginning to come up (vs. 2) so that Jesus was comparing Himself to the rising sun. But this would mean He was once again claiming to be God, for to the Jews, the sun was a symbol of Jehovah God (Ps. 84:11; Mal. 4:2; 1 Jn. 1:5; Eph. 5:8-14). But perhaps, our Lord’s I AM statement was related to the Feast of Tabernacles, during which the huge candelabras were lighted in the temple at night to remind the people of the pillar of Fire that had guided Israel in their wilderness journey. In fact, John has combined three wilderness images: manna (Jn. 6), water from the rock (Jn. 7), and the pillar of Fire (Jn. 8). Now, during this time, the Pharisees had left (vs. 9), but some returned and debated with him again (vs. 13). This time, they accused Him of bearing witness to Himself by claiming to be the Light of the world and Jewish courts would not permit a person to bear witness to himself. Well, Jesus quickly refuted their argument because the Pharisees judged on the basis of externals (vs. 15) as Jesus judged on the basis of spiritual knowledge. So, Jesus used the Law of Moses and quoted a principle found in Deut. 17:6 and 19:15 and Num. 35:30, that the testimony of two men was required to validate a judgment. Well, Jesus had those two testimonies: Himself and His Father (vs. 16). How tragic it is that these experts of the Law did not even know their own Messiah as He stood before them! They claimed to know the Law of God and the Father, but they did not know him and Jesus said that their “father” was not God, but the devil (vs. 19, 44)!

Well in vs. 21-30, Jesus had already mentioned His leaving them (Jn. 7:34), but the Jews again misunderstood what He said. So once again, He warned them: He would leave them, they would not be able to follow Him, and they would die in their sins! Sadly, they were wasting their God-given opportunities by arguing with Him instead of trusting Him. And then again, they misunderstood His teaching and thought He was planning to kill Himself (vs. 22). Suicide was an abhorrent thing to a Jew and so if Jesus committed suicide, he would go to a place of judgment and this is why they thought they could not follow Him. But, Jesus was returning to His Father in heaven, and nobody can go there who has not trusted the Savior (Lk. 10:20; Phil. 3:20-21). Thus, after saying such things, it marvels me that these religious “experts” should ask, “Who are You?” He had given them every evidence that He is the Son of God, yet they had deliberately rejected the evidence (vs. 26) and would also later reject the “lifting up” meaning, the glory and suffering of Jesus on the cross (Jn. 3:14; 12:32; Acts 2). Well, as Jesus always did what was pleasing to the Father (vs. 29), no doubt, His enemies reacted violently to these words, but some of the listeners began to believe.

So, in vs. 31-47, Jesus addressed these “believers” and warned them about continuing in the Word of God (vs. 31-32), which leads to spiritual knowledge, and then leads to freedom from sin. It is interesting that these believers were the same unbelieving Jewish leaders who early opposed him (vs. 13, 19, 22, 25). But as before, they did not understand all His message, which is why they claimed Abraham as their father (vs. 39). So, Jesus explained the difference between spiritual freedom and bondage and essentially said that a servant can live in the house, but he is not a part of the family and has no guarantee of a future (Isaac and Ishmael in Gen. 21). Thus, they would die in their sins if they did not allow themselves to be freed by the Son through the power of his word (vs. 32). So, while they claimed Abraham, they were very unlike him because they wanted to kill the Messiah while Abraham was the “friend of God” and fellowshipped with God (Isa. 41:8). Abraham also listened to God’s truth and obeyed it, but these religious leaders rejected the truth, were counterfeits, the children of the devil (vs. 44) duped by Satan (2 Cor. 11:13-15; Gen. 3) having a false righteousness (Rom. 10:1-4). So, they might have religious traditions, but they had no understanding of the Word of God and they were prisoners who did not even know it. They thought they were free, but they were actually enslaved in terrible spiritual bondage to sin and Satan.

These leaders could not refute our Lord’s statements, so they attacked His person instead (vs. 48-59), calling him a Samaritan (the grossest of insults) and demon-possessed. They had dishonored him while Jesus was honoring the Father (Jn. 5:23). Still, Jesus invited them to trust His Word and “never see death” (vs. 51). Again, he claimed to be God by claiming to be the Lord of death (Jn. 5:21-29). So, how did the Pharisees respond? They looked at Abraham. But, he lived by faith (Heb. 11:10, 13-16), saw Calvary when he offered Isaac to God (Gen. 22), saw the priestly ministry of Melchizedek (Gen. 14:17-24) and saw the marriage of Isaac, which was a picture of the marriage of the Lamb (Gen. 24). But knowing this Jesus said, before Abraham was, “I am” (vs. 58). He had once again made Himself equal with God (Jn. 5:18), and this was the sin of blasphemy, worthy of death (Lev. 24:16). But, as this chapter closes, while the people wanted to stone him (vs. 59), Jesus seems divinely protected and simply walked away. His hour had not yet come. And, we cannot help but admire His courage as He presented the truth and invited blind religious men to trust Him and be set free.

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Truth is relative

Truth is Relative

“…Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” (John 18:37-38)

Years ago, in a religious discussion among co-workers, Pilate’s question to Jesus came up.  One man said, “I believe one has to abide in the truth of God’s word to be saved.”  A second man said, “Truth is determined by our priest, not the Bible.”  A third man said,“Our creed book instructs us about truth.” Another man said, “The fact that we don’t all agree proves that truth is in the eye of the beholder.  Truth is relative.”

When someone says, “truth is relative,” they usually mean that truth is not absolute (i.e., it is conditional; an opinion).  That’s certainly the way lowly man thinks, however that is not God’s definition.  Jesus said, “…Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” Please notice that He did not merely say, “truth,” nor did He say “a” truth; rather He said “THE” truth.  The word “the” qualifies the word after it, indicating that it is the definite article.  Truth originates with God and there is only one version of it (Jn. 17:17; Ps. 119:142, 160; 1 Tim. 3:15).  John says, “He who says, ‘I know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (1 Jn. 2:4).  Believe it, friends, for that is the absolute truth!

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A Threat to the Church

The Greatest Threat to the Lord’s Church

“Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent” (Revelation 2:5).

The candlestick had a long Old Testament history.  In Hebrew, the word for candlestick is “menorah.”  It was originally commissioned by God to be used in the tabernacle.  “And thou shalt make a candlestick of pure gold: of beaten work shall the candlestick be made” (Exodus 25:31a).  It was placed on the southern wall of the holy place just outside the veil that separated this area from the holy of holies (Exodus 26:35).  The light was to be perpetually lit (Leviticus 24:4).

In 606 B.C., the candlestick was carried off into captivity by the Babylonians (Jeremiah 52:19).  The next we read of it is from the pen of the priest Zechariah who describes it in a vision (Zechariah 4:1-6).  He asks an angel what it means and the angel replies: “This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts” (Zechariah 4:6).

This imagery is drawn upon in the Revelation.  “And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle” (Revelation 1:12-13).  “The seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches” (Revelation 1:20).

A candlestick is a confluence of several things: the source of light, the flame, and the light itself.  Within the symbolism of the candlestick is a confluence of several spiritual things: God’s truth, God’s Spirit, God’s church.  All must be present for the candlestick to fulfill its purpose.  Neither God’s Spirit nor God’s truth can fail, but the church may, should she stop being the pillar and ground of God’s truth (1 Timothy 3:15).

We must take the undesired prospect of the Lord’s removing Ephesus’ candlestick seriously.  Just as it was once removed by the forces of Babylon, the removal of the candlestick denotes God’s people’s failure to practice God’s truth, the subsequent apostasy of God’s people, and the consequential removal of God’s Spirit.  The Lord cannot abide in fellowship with those who have ceased living by His will.

The prospect of a church ceasing to be the Lord’s church is worthy of lamentation; it is, nevertheless, possible.  Of the many dangers that threaten the church, the greatest of these dangers comes not from without, but from within; not even from amongst “other” members, but within the individual.

It matters not who I am: member, song leader, preacher, youth worker, deacon, or elder.  Truth must be applied to my life first and foremost.  When my attitudes or actions become skewed from the Lord’s truth, I am the greatest threat to His church.

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Repentance

When speaking to an assembly in Athens, Paul made a statement about God and repentance which is recorded in Acts 17:30, God “now commandeth all men every where to repent”. The command for man to repent is universally extended to all. It has been said that repentance is the hardest command of all to obey. True repentance has three major elements which are necessary in order to be valid Biblical repentance.

The Intellectual component of Repentance is that change of a sinner’s mind that leads him or her to turn from evil ways and live according to the will of God. Intellectually, human beings must perceive sin as evil and the divine law as perfect and binding. One must also realize that they have sinned and fallen short of the requirements of God, (Romans 3:23).

There is an emotional aspect to repentance as well. It is possible to have a knowledge of sin without recognizing it as something that dishonors God and beings ruin upon humanity. A change in emotional attitude is necessary in genuine repentance. A Christian cannot be emotionally indifferent to sin, rather, they must have a genuine sorrow over it.

The type of sorrow that issues in repentance must be distinguished from that which is simply remorse. There is a godly sorrow and a worldly sorrow: the former brings life, the latter death. The difference between the two is distinguishable by one’s actions. True repentance because of sorrow must be accompanied by action. Those who do not turn from their sinful behavior have not exhibited the Godly sorrow which leads to salvation, (2 Corinthians 7:9-10).

The most prominent characteristic of true repentance is the changing of one’s will. This is the action aspect of true repentance. It involves not only a conviction of personal sinfulness but also an earnest attempt to abandon one’s old life and turn to a life of righteousness according to God’s will. The demand for repentance clearly implies human free will and an earnest desire to seek and serve God according to His righteousness (Romans 10:3).

True repentance has been defined as a sorrow and conviction of one’s heart over sin that leads to a change in behavior.

The relation of repentance to salvation is one of necessity. . In Luke 13:3 we read the words of Jesus saying that “except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish”. Failure to repent leaves one in a state of condemnation which will result in one’s spiritual death. In short, those who fail to recognize sin, be sorrowful for it and turn from that life to a new life will be condemned to eternal separation from God.

Have you truly repented? Are you obedient to the will of God? If not, then we invite you to visit our website or attend services with us and learn more of God’s will for man concerning repentance. You can visit our website at www.granbychurchofChrist.org.

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