Temple of the Holy Spirit

Our body, the temple of the Holy Spirit

For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said:

“I will dwell in them
And walk among them.
I will be their God,
And they shall be My people.” (2 Corinthians 6:16)

According to the above verse, we are the temple of the living God. What does that really mean? The second part of this verse throws light into God’s view on the subject. God says

1. I will dwell in them
2. I will walk among them
3. I will be their God
4. They shall be my people

Our God calls himself Immanuel which means “God with us”. He loves us, he wants to live in us and walk among us. However, there is a precondition to God dwelling in us.

Therefore

“Come out from among them
And be separate, says the Lord.
Do not touch what is unclean,
And I will receive you.”

“I will be a Father to you,
And you shall be My sons and daughters,
Says the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:17,18)

In verse 17 God instructs us to separate ourselves from unrighteousness / sinful behaviour and to come out from darkness into the light of his love and his salvation. When we separate ourselves from sin, God promises to receive us, to be our loving father, and to give us the status of being his sons and daughters.

Another verse which reiterates this fact is found in 1 Corinthians 6:19,20

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? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body [g]and in your spirit, which are God’s.

In this verse God clearly instructs us that our body is not our own, to do as we like or to misuse or abuse it. It belongs to God and he intends to dwell within us through his Holy Spirit.

Jesus came into this world because we as human beings cannot save ourselves from sin, we cannot keep ourselves holy, we cannot pay anything to atone for our sins or attain moksha with our own actions or penance. We resolve to be good, but within the next few days or even hours we find ourselves failing miserably. Every new year's resolution we make vanishes into thin air before the first half of the year is over.

And being a righteous and just God, he cannot tolerate evil, injustice or sinful behaviour. Our sin separates us from God. Not only that, the bible says

“The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).

But God’s heart is to dwell with us and in us. That is why God sent his son Jesus Christ to pay the wages of our sin. The price for our sin was his own life given on the cross to redeem us from the slavery of sin. When we repent of our sins and believe in Jesus’ sacrifice for us and ask for his forgiveness, he washes away our sins and fills us with his Holy Spirit.


When King Solomon built the temple of God in Jerusalem, he dedicated the temple in a grand celebration. And during the celebration, he brought the “Ark of the covenant” into the temple. The priests placed the ark in the Most holy place and when they came out, God’s presence covered the temple.

And it came to pass, when the priests came out of the holy place, that the cloud of God’s presence filled the house of the Lord, so that the priests could not continue ministering because of the cloud; for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord. (1 Kings 8:10,11)

God showed them that he wanted to dwell among them. Isn't it wonderful to understand God’s heart? He dwells in us to sanctify us and make us holy.

And the Lord said to him: “I have heard your prayer and your supplication that you have made before Me; I have consecrated this house which you have built to put My name there forever, and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually. (1 Kings 9:3)

When Solomon prayed at the dedication of the temple, God answered him and said: “I have consecrated this house”, "My eyes and my heart will be there perpetually”. Yes, the Lord wants to sanctify and consecrate us for the glory of his name and he watches over us , rejoices over us and blesses us when we dedicate our body as the temple of his Holy Spirit.

Let us reflect on the love of our saviour and let us surrender and dedicate our lives to him. Let us invite him to dwell in our hearts and keep our body pure and holy as the temple of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Oh Holy Night

A beautiful song we enjoyed singing in the christmas eve 2020. A year gone by quickly with Covid, but a Christmas that ushers in new hope and God's love and salvation...

Marriage - The life defining relationship

I was prompted to write about this topic, after I listened to a message from Pastor Robert Morris last Sunday. With 15 years of married life under my belt, I have gone through the various stages from a newly married couple to a parent of 2 teens. There were times when I have been frustrated, and time when I have been joyful and so many stages in between as well. I have also seen a fair share of marriages of friends, family members, collegues, etc. go through these stages as well. 

 Familes, like each of us, come in all sizes and shapes. But there were moments when I felt deeply moved by the sadness, incompatibilities and frustrations and the shear pain I saw in the marriages of a few friends. A friend once said "I was a happy young girl till the day I got married, then every thing went in to a downward spiral. My life has never been the same after that day and now I seem to have no hope." Hearing that word made me realize that - The one life defining relationship was definitely "Marriage". I felt sad for her, but I could not say anything which could change that situation for her. But when I listened to the message this sunday, it was crystal clear to me.

 I encourage you to listen to this message too (link shared below). It was preached in church to a christian crowd, so if you are not a christian, a few things the pastor refers to from the bible may not be known to you, but I am sure the message will be a great blessing. To encourage you further, I will share a testimony of my life here: My marriage was an arranged marriage. That meant I was getting married to a total stranger of whom I knew nothing about till the day of our engagement and even till the day of my marriage. I didnt know about his likes, dislikes, habits, beliefs and extent of faith(except that he was a christian who went to church), etc. But on the day of our wedding, I asked him to join me in prayer. We knelt down and asked Jesus to be the head of the journey we were beginning together. We asked Jesus to be the 3rd strand in the 3-strand chord. 

It was a simple prayer in faith, nothing fancy at all. But that one act of faith has been the anchor of our marriage both in joyful and tough times. Though we began with this prayer, we both had our fair share of quirks, whims and differences. I had a temper which was way off the mark and I could wound with words easily. We could not find common ground in many issues like handling finances, and a lot more. But the strong bond that kept us together and helped us yield to God's moulding in our life was the obedience to what the bible calls "Covenant" relationship. 

Bible says "what God has brought together let no man put assunder". The bible calls the marriage a Yoke where two persons are Yoked together. There were time I cried out to the Lord, "looks like you have put a donkey and a horse in the same yoke together. How do you expect us to walk in step with each other." I prayed, "Lord either make the donkey a horse or the horse a donkey, which ever way you seem fit for us to run this race together." God is faithful to answer every prayer. He has moulded me to answer softly and changed my temper. I remember how the bible verses popped in my mind every time I said a rude word, God was changing my character for the better. Jesus changed him for the better too. Now we walk much more in sync and in obedience to God than we started off. And I am confindent, the Lord will lead us going forward too. 

 This is the blessing I desire for you and your marriage. So I encourage you to listen to this message and invite Jesus to be the 3rd strand in your marriage and see the miracle of his Love flow in and transform each heart and unite your thoughts to walk in step. Even if it’s just you seeking God’s help, if anyone can change your other half, it is Jesus. So seek Jesus first in your life and Jesus will do the rest!

Crossowrd - Miracles of Jesus - Feeding the 5000

The bible portion for this crossword is taken from Matthew 14:13-21, you can read this from the link below before trying the crossword.

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2014:13-21&version=NIV&interface=print

Free Gift Inside !!!

I went to the mall some time back, it was season time and every shop window had a banner for offers...

 

But every offer was trying to make me pay something and buy something from that shop... And I was tempted many a time to buy something which I did not even need! Offers have a way of making us believe we are letting go of a great opportunity if we don't buy. Haven't you fallen for such offers?

But then I was reminded of the most real free gift of all, "Eternal Life though Jesus Christ"

It may sound so cliché, but yes the most valuable and priceless gift is indeed completely FREE!  

                     

Think about it, what is the price you are willing to pay for your life? Can you name a price? 

Yep, sometimes we feel we are worthless, but God calls us valuable, unique and precious. And he has not only given us the precious gift of life, but also had opened up the gift of Eternal Life, and that absolutely free.

I remember the time my parents and friends give me a gift, it was very special to receive a gift from them. It was absolutely free for me, but as we all know, they had to pay the shopkeeper for it. They didn't get it free... 

So it is with God's gift of Eternal life. It is absolutely free for us, but our Lord Jesus Christ had to pay for it with his own life (by dying on the cross for our sins).

This was one gift which costed Jesus much, but he chose to give it free to us because of his love for us. 

Sometimes a friend of mine (who was not so well off) gave a gift, but though the gift was small it came with much love. And I treasured this gift more than all the other costlier gifts. Why? because I understood her love, how much she had to save up to get me that gift... 

So when we understand Jesus' love for us, we will also treasure this gift he has given us, a gift which he purchased with his own life... And especially a gift which we cannot earn for ourselves... No amount of money or hard work, or trying to be good can earn us eternal life... 

But when a gift as precious and compelling as this comes along, will you let it go? Will you say "No thank you?" Rejecting the gift also means rejecting the giver of the gift isn't it? Think about it, if you were to sincerely save up and buy a gift for your friend and they reject that gift and toss it in the trash can, how would you feel?

If you have rejected the gift that Jesus is giving, if you have rejected Jesus, now is the time to quietly reflect on his love, his heart and his gift and accept it with open arms... 

Crossword - The Unforgiving Servant!

The Scripture Portion for this Crossword is found in 

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2018:21-35&interface=print

Crossword Puzzle Maker

Talent Management!

That's a high sounding title, but don't be afraid, the lesson is about the "Parable of the Talents" found in Matthew 25:14-30.

This is a parable of Jesus. Jesus loved telling stories and he always taught life lessons with such simple stories called parables. I am sure most of you would have heard this story before. 

But I want you to have a different approach at applying the learning from this parable in your life.

Check out this video and try answering the questions from your own experiences: 

Let us  try and apply this parable and its lessons in our life in a more practical way. 

Here are a few questions I want you to think of and answer and make a video answering these questions. Or you can even write down the answers for these in your journal or diary.

 1. What are the talents that God has given to you? 

2. How has God helped you to improve or enhance your talent? 

3. How are you using your talent to glorify God? 

4. Have you even been tempted to use those talents to glorify yourself or felt proud of achieving victory for yourself? 

5. How will you seek God's help when you are tempted and want to use it for your glory? Share your experience if you already did!

6. What are the talents you have hidden away or not using or not developing and how will you start developing and using them? 

7. Has this lesson helped you given a different insight about your God given talents?