Smoothing the wet stucco onto the side of the small house felt satisfying. Just four days earlier, our group of 250+ people had arrived in a rural valley on the outskirts of Tijuana, Mexico to build twelve simple homes for families in need. Each day’s work included careful reading of building instructions followed by intense physical labor. We shoveled rocks, mixed concrete by hand, carried buckets of sand and water, measured and sawed boards, then hammered walls and roof panels. Next, we wrapped the walls in baling wire, felt paper, and chicken wire before getting to the final stage of applying stucco. Each step of the process required a complete understanding of the instructions before proceeding. Any mistakes had to be corrected so that the house would be sturdy. So, smoothing on the stucco the last day felt like a huge accomplishment after all the work that had led up to it.
Although the homes we built were simple, I’m guessing we experienced a similar, albeit lesser, feeling of satisfaction to Moses when he finished the construction of the Tabernacle. Executing the many detailed, specific instructions from the Lord must have taken incredible focus and keen organizational skills. So, completing it was quite a feat: “And so Moses finished the work. Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle…So the cloud of the Lord was over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the Israelites during all their travels.” (Exodus 40:33b, 34, 38, NIV)
The Lord no longer leads His people with a pillar of flames, but make no mistake, His fire still burns brightly through all who follow Jesus. The New Testament explains that the disciples traveled to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Weeks with all other Jews. It was fifty days after Passover and Jesus’ resurrection and ascension: “When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.” (Acts 2:1-4, NIV) At this moment the Lord fulfilled the promise Jesus made earlier to send His Holy Spirit: “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—the Spirit of truth…But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” (John 14:16b, 17, 26, NIV)
The physical dwelling place for God is no longer in an ornate tabernacle or a stately temple, but within the bodies of all Christ-followers. The Apostle Paul explains, “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20, NIV) How amazing that the fire that guided the Israelites in Exodus and filled the apostles at Pentecost now resides within each follower of Jesus.
“If God meant simply to convey the idea that the Spirit lives within the believer, He could well have used words such as ‘home,’ ‘house,’ or ‘residence.’ But by choosing the word ‘temple’ to describe the Spirit’s dwelling, He conveys the idea that our bodies are the shrine, or the sacred place, in which the Spirit not only lives, but is worshiped, revered, and honored. Therefore, how we behave, think and speak, and what we let into the temple through our eyes and ears becomes critically important as well, for every thought, word and deed is in His view.”1
Paul emphasizes this in Romans when he says, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:1-2, NIV)
So, how do we honor God with our bodies as temples and behave as living sacrifices?
Live guided by the Spirit instead of the flesh: Living by the flesh means following natural/ sinful impulses without regard for God. “So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want.” (Galatians 5:16-17, NIV) For further understanding on the difference between living by the Spirit and the flesh, see Galatians 5:13-6:10.
Don’t side with the world. Ask the Spirit to reveal where you may be compromising your faith and drifting into ways of the world by living and thinking with indifference or hostility to God and His will. “You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.” (James 4:4, NIV) See also, 1 John 2:15-17.
Don’t grieve/quench the Spirit. “The Holy Spirit is a fire dwelling in each believer. He wants to express Himself in our actions and attitudes. When believers do not allow the Spirit to be seen in our actions or we do what we know is wrong, we suppress or quench the Spirit.”2 Ask the Lord to eliminate patterns of thought and behavior that dishonor Him. “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” (Ephesians 4:29-32, NIV) See also 2 Thessalonians 5:16-22.
Moses followed the intricate plans the Lord gave him for the Tabernacle with painstaking accuracy and attention to detail. We can emulate him by applying the wisdom of Jesus– the true and better Moses: “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.” (Matthew 7:24-25, NIV)
Take a moment to worship the Lord by clicking here and listening to Brandon Lake’s “Living Sacrifice.”
Inspired by God of Freedom by Jen Wilkin, Lifeway Press 2022, Week 10.
Was this forwarded to you? Click here to submit your e-mail and subscribe. You’ll receive future posts automatically in your inbox.
1. https://www.gotquestions.org/body
2.https://www.gotquestions.org/grieve-quench-Holy-Spirit.html