“The temple is not what you think; it’s God pitching His tent in your backyard.”
Spoken-word artist Jefferson Bethke sheds light on what the temple of God really means.
In Jewish tradition, the temple in Jerusalem was defined as the place where heaven and earth came together.
“It was the only place on earth where both God’s dimension and our dimension were crisscrossed and were on top of each other, and that’s why it was a special place.”
When Jesus came to earth and began His ministry, He made a ground-breaking claim that He is the new temple.
“He is now the place where heaven and earth meet; He is now the place where God’s dimension collides with our dimension.”
What Jesus is really saying is that the temple was just an arrow pointing to what would come later. The temple is no longer a structure in Jerusalem – He is the temple.
“Wherever He goes He’s creating these pockets of heaven on earth.”
Jesus begins doing miracles that are only supposed to be done in the temple, giving further indication that He is the true temple.
As Christ-followers, we are also supposed to be temples of God.
“He commissions us that we are now the temple of the Holy Spirit to do the same thing. I think it’s a beautiful picture to think of us as little walking temples creating little pockets of heaven on earth everywhere we go.”
As Christians, we should think of ourselves as ambassadors for Christ on this earth. We represent Christ in everything we say and do and we have an impact on how the world views God. We can live our lives confidently knowing that God created us to be a dispenser of the Holy Spirit to the world around us and He will empower us to be an effective witness to the world if we commit our lives to Him.
Key Scriptures: John 1:14; Genesis 1-3; Revelation 21-22
Featured Songs: I Need You by Matt Maher; Soldier On by Sidewalk Prophets; Move (Keep Walkin’) by TobyMac
