Dwelling Place of The Spirit

Dwelling Place
of The Spirit

Matthew Tauscher

The subject that we would like to discuss is the Holy Spirit. Of the many references in the New Testament, we will only have the room to look at a few. It is my prayer that this brief study will be a blessing to all who read it.

"Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are." 1 Cor 3:16-17

      This scripture seems obvious enough. I am the temple of God and the Spirit of God dwells in me. Unfortunately that understanding of this passage is wrong. Now before you throw this away, stop and listen to the reasons that I would say this.
      What I have learned about this passage is that to understand it, we must know if the "ye" and the "you" are in the first person or the second person. Sound complicated? It is not.
      First off, the letter of 1 Corinthians is written to whom? One person or to a group of persons?

"Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:" I Cor 1:2

      This letter is written to a church, a group of individuals.
      What exactly was said to this church in 1 Cor 3:16? "Know ye (2 person plural i.e. you all) not that ye (2 person plural i.e. you all) are the temple (singular) of the living God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you (second person plural i.e. you all)?"
      How, you may ask, do we know which words are plural and which words are not? All this information can be found in the original language in which the Bible was written. On the other hand it could be argued that a rudimentary knowledge of the English language would be sufficient. (unfortunately I lack this basic knowledge.)
      Do you notice how the second person changes the passage from me to we, from being addressed to an individual to being addressed to the church (group of believers covenanted together to do the will of God)?
      This church (group of believers covenanted together) is the temple of God, and it is in this temple that God dwells.
      This same subject is addressed again. Let us read it and consider the things that are written in it.

"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 Cor 6:19-20

In this chapter we have a lengthy discussion about) the body, one body. But the nineteenth verse tells us that this one body is the body of "you all" (ye).
Now we shall take a good look at this verse.

"What? know ye (2 person PL i.e. you all) not that your (2 person PL i.e. you all) body (singular) is the temple (singular) of the Holy Spirit which is in you (2 person PL i.e. you all), which ye (2 person PL i.e. you all) have of God, and ye (2 person P1. i.e. you all) are not your (2 person PL. i.e. you all) own".2 Cor 6:19

      I hope that this paragraph is not too confusing. Take the time and read the paragraph carefully. What other conclusion can there he other than what has been stated. It is sad that this truth is met with such little enthusiasm.Is it because this takes the glory from the individual and places the glory within the church? Quite possible.

      Does this mean that God does not work outside the church?

      Of course not!

      Is it not amazing how our thinking limits the power of God?

"No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath heard of the Father, cometh unto me." John 6:44-45

      Since it is God the Father that is drawing mankind and teaching them, how is God the Father doing this? I assume that this is done in the person of the Holy Spirit, but it does not require that these men are indwelt by the Spirit before God can teach them. Pay careful attention to the next point. Was Nebuchadnezzar indwelt by the Spirit of God when he did the will of God by destroying Jerusalem and leading the people captive? Was Cyrus indwelt with the Spirit of God when he gave the command and began the rebuilding of the temple of God? Yet both of these men were led of God (1Chr 6:15; Jer 25:9; 27:6; Isa 44:27), and God probably used His Spirit to work in the hearts of these men, but to suggest that these men were indwelt by the Spirit of God would be an extreme leap of logic.
      There is no doubt that God is at work in the hearts of men, and He is drawing them to Christ. As John 6:44 clearly shows, this is the work of the Father.
      In this whole subject what has been lost is a proper understanding of the Lords church, its place and value. Let us go back to the scripture with which we started.

The seventeenth verse really helps us understand the value of the Lord’s church which is of so little value among people today.

"If any man (singular) defile the temple (singular) of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple (singular) of God is holy, which temple ye (second person plural i.e. you all) are."

The individual is not the temple, except as he is a part of the church, he then becomes a part of the temple (1 Pet 2:4-5). The temple is made up of you all. The Lord’s church is not a place to be taken lightly. So many have so little regard for the Lord’s church, and appropriately so considering the doctrines that are being taught.
If you still have a hard time believing this view of where the Holy Spirit dwells, bear with me while we look at another reference and keep in mind the church -

"For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father. Now therefore ye are no longer 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." Eph 2:18-22

Here is another passage where we find the same ideas expressed in the Greek language. The "ye" in verse twenty two is plural. The building or temple that is being discussed in the twenty first and twenty second verses is always singular. Therefore this is another passage that is not discussing the individual, but the church. And to top this all off, the twenty second verse seems plain enough as to the purpose of God, "...In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through (in) the Spirit."
Why is this so offensive to so many people? What is wrong with the emphasis being on the body of Jesus Christ which is the church? The individual still has part with the Spirit of God as he is part of the body of Christ. After all the church is not just a building that can be pointed out, the church is made up of individuals.

This little paper is written by:
Matthew Tauscher
775 Richo Ln.
Yulee Fl. 32097
May, 1994