Sacred Space

Under the Old Covenant, the Temple was a sacred place. Deep inside the Temple was the Holiest Place where the ark of the covenant was kept and where God Himself was present.

An interesting question to consider — Did God reside there because they made it holy enough for Him? Or was it a holy place because God was there? Well, the answer is obviously that God’s presence made it holy.

And how did they treat that holy place? With the utmost care. No contamination was allowed. Even the space around it, especially the adjoining room, was carefully protected from any form of defilement.

Why? Because those were the rules? No. They were careful not to defile those places because that was the care and respect that was congruent with such Sacred Space.

Today, under the New Covenant, Jesus, Father and Holy Spirit have made their home in us. That makes our body a sacred space. Paul says, ” Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own. For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body” (1Cor.6:19-20).

We are to care for our body the way the priests cared for the Temple. It is sacred space. That means when we sin, it is like throwing mud around inside the Sistine Chapel. Or backing up a garbage truck and using the Grand Canyon for a landfill. What a horrifying image!

Perhaps that is one of the reasons we are called ‘priests’ (Rev.1:6). Every Christian has become a steward of sacred space, a place for God to dwell. It is up to us to see that the space remains pure and undefiled. If the Old Covenant priests served with such devotion a building made of stone, how much more reason we have to serve a living temple of God.

Prayer — May my body be a pleasing place for God to dwell.

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