Temples of the Living God
What comes to mind or what emotion is evoked inside you when you walk inside a cathedral or a more traditionally ornate church building perhaps even with stained glass windows?
"For we are the temple of the living god; just as God said, 'I will dwell in them and walk among them; and I will be their God and they shall be my people.' " ~ 2 Corinthians 6:16
"There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one and the glory of the earthly is another." ~ 1 Corinthians 15:40
"Or do you not know that ...you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price therefore glorify God in your body." ~1 Corinthians 6:19 &20
This past Wednesday night we introduced the topic of the believer's body being a temple of the Holy Spirit using these verses as the premise.
Cathedrals, churches, and all buildings are built with a design in mind for fulfilling a specific purpose . . .Different buildings serve different purposes, right? Ebenezer's for illustration, is being/has been built to serve a specific purpose. In the same way that a building can be used for different purposes and even perhaps purposes not original to the design -our bodies are the same.
So much spiritual truth could perhaps be understood through taking closer looks at natural, physical things that we can perceive with our five senses. We can catch glimpses of the spiritual through the mirror of the natural, if you will.
Just in the same way that Jesus is the Word made flesh (John1:14) could we perhaps be vessels for communicating a timeless message through our art -our lives?? Are our bodies just perhaps the vehicles for doing so here on this earth??
"For we are the temple of the living god; just as God said, 'I will dwell in them and walk among them; and I will be their God and they shall be my people.' " ~ 2 Corinthians 6:16
"There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one and the glory of the earthly is another." ~ 1 Corinthians 15:40
"Or do you not know that ...you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price therefore glorify God in your body." ~1 Corinthians 6:19 &20
This past Wednesday night we introduced the topic of the believer's body being a temple of the Holy Spirit using these verses as the premise.
Cathedrals, churches, and all buildings are built with a design in mind for fulfilling a specific purpose . . .Different buildings serve different purposes, right? Ebenezer's for illustration, is being/has been built to serve a specific purpose. In the same way that a building can be used for different purposes and even perhaps purposes not original to the design -our bodies are the same.
So much spiritual truth could perhaps be understood through taking closer looks at natural, physical things that we can perceive with our five senses. We can catch glimpses of the spiritual through the mirror of the natural, if you will.
Just in the same way that Jesus is the Word made flesh (John1:14) could we perhaps be vessels for communicating a timeless message through our art -our lives?? Are our bodies just perhaps the vehicles for doing so here on this earth??
Perhaps it is important that we think of the body in this context instead of a mindset that considers the body itself as "bad."
. . . present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and the members of your body as instruments of righteousness to God. ~Romans 6:13b
Could it be that the body is the outward expression/manifestation of the condition of one's soul??
If these things are true how much more so do we have a responsibility to be good stewards of even the health of our bodies!!
More to come . . . :)
posted by Heather :) | 11:01 AM
4 Comments:
The body is not just the outward expression of the condition of one's soul but it is certainly AN expression. As someone who has struggled with depression for many years, I can testify to the physical toll that spiritual sickness takes on you.
I completely agree with you, Bruce! Thanks for your thoughts!
This was kinda interesting:
“…for example, one may have a great emotional investment in the security symbols of a particular culture. The pain of one's insecurity may have been so painful … that one repressed into the unconscious the very memory of the privation. But the unconscious remembers. The emotions are energy and they don't go away if repressed. They get stored in the body. The body is the storehouse of emotional energy that was not adequately processed. As a result, one develops blockages to the healthy flow of energies in the body and nervous system. This only reinforces the need for compensatory activity to hide the pain. Addictions are the ultimate way of distracting oneself from pain one is unwilling to face.
The spiritual journey from this aspect is a course in … becoming liberated from … fixations at emotional levels that have become disruptive of our adult life and that interfere with our relationships. The journey is a form of divine psychotherapy in which God tries to heal us on every level, beginning with the body and the emotions.”
…
“The journey does not just involve what happens in prayer, but what happens in prayer enables one to live daily life as a continuation of the purification process. The ups and downs of daily life…is the arena in which the Christian journey takes place. God is in solidarity with our lives and deaths, just as they are. Perfection does not consist in feeling perfect or being perfect, but in doing what we are supposed to do without noticing it: loving people without taking any credit. Just doing it.”
Excerpted from “Intimacy with God” by Father Thomas Keating
Wow. . . Thanks so much for sharing this, Peter! Good stuff to chew on . . .
Post a Comment
<< Home