God used dirt to form man.

Genesis 2:7
7 And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

If there is no sin, we could live forever. But sin destroys our bodies.

Genesis 3:19
19 In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread
Till you return to the ground,
For out of it you were taken;
For dust you are,
And to dust you shall return.”

We are from dirt and we will go back to dirt. It’s amazing to think that we are made of dirt.

We are made of dirt, but into the image of God. Our bodies are the temple of God. Our bodies are also described as tents.

These two descriptions are given for our flesh: temple and tent. During the time that Paul ministered in Corinth, there was a lot of perversion. So Paul ministered to them about their body being a temple.

How is our body like the Temple?
#1 It is God’s holy dwelling place

1 Corinthians 3:16
16 Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

We are the temple of God. We must not defile the temple through sin. Perversion is a sin. When you commit sexual sin, that sin goes into your body and defiles you. Masturbation, pornography, perversion, and adultery defile you on the inside. Apostle Paul told them they should not defile their body with these kinds of sins. We must keep our temple clean and holy so that God will dwell inside of us.

Whatever is in, that is what you are. If you are filled with Satan, you act like Satan. If you are filled with jealousy, you become a jealous person. If you are filled with covetousness, you become a person who will hurt others to gain what you desire. If you have the holy fire of God in you, you will act like Jesus. If the Holy Spirit is in you, you will desire godly things; you will be like Him.

God gives us a new heart and new spirit. We must keep our heart and spirit clean. We are the temple because the Holy Spirit lives in us. We must keep our temple clean so that the Holy Spirit can continue to live in us.

What is in you? You can tell what is in you but what is coming from you.

What is coming from you? Do you gossip? Are you critical? Are you negative? Do you show other people love? Do you bring peace to others? Let your heart be controlled by the Holy Spirit.

#2 It is a place to give God sacrifices and offerings

Many different offerings were given to God in the temple. We must use our bodies to worship God and give Him offerings.

Romans 12:1
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.

Now, we are the temple. We must give God sacrificial offering and praise and worship. This body doesn’t belong to us. We give to God without claiming any ownership. You have an altar inside of yourself. You are the altar. You are the place of worship. You must give yourself as an offering to God. This temple (your body) was created to worship God.

We must use all of our body and flesh to worship God. Give your spirit, your soul, your heart, and your mind to worship God.

How do you give offerings to God? Worship. Praise. Singing. Dancing. Your service to God. Holiness.

#3 The Temple belongs to God

How did they build the Temple? Through offerings. Did the people own the temple after it was built? No. They gave freely and didn’t claim any ownership for their giving. They brought offerings in the wilderness to build the tabernacle. They brought offerings to build the temple of God. People built the temple, but God was in charge of the tabernacle and temple. That was a part of their offering.

God is the owner of our body. You are not the owner of your body. Your body belongs to God.

Your body has become a temple because the Holy Spirit has come to live in you. When that happens, your body belongs to God.

In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit came on the mountain, as one fire. In the New Testament, the Holy Spirit came to each and every person individually (Acts 2).

Jesus paid a high price for our sin. He purchased us on the cross. When we accept His payment, we no longer belong to ourselves. We belong to God.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20
19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

Our body belongs to God. We should not damage our body with drinking, drugs, nicotine, gluttony, perversion, or any other addiction or obsession. We need to take care of this body with the Word of God and holiness of God.

Romans 6:12-13
12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. 13 And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.

As soon as we sign a contract with God, our body becomes His property. We must take care of it through prayer and studying the Word of God. Speak the Word of God into your body. Speak the power of God into your body, the temple of God.

God bless you,
Pastor Sun East

Check out the rest of this message: Temples and Tents