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[0:00] Corinthians 6, the last two verses. 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?

[0:13] For ye are bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's. 1 Corinthians 6, verses 19 and 20.

[0:26] In condemning the sins of the flesh, as he does so often, Paul uses great sensitivity.

[0:39] It's not easy to speak or to write about sins associated with immorality, as Paul does here. It's always easier to speak about idolatry and dishonesty and jealousy and envy and that kind of thing.

[0:57] But nevertheless, Paul does not mask the sins of the flesh so that no one knows what he's referring to. But neither does he go into details so as to give needless offense.

[1:13] He uses reserve and prudence in exposing the sins of immorality. And I'm sure that we would all be glad to see more of this today.

[1:23] Where blasphemous and insensitivity and indeed crudeness can cause and they do cause needless offense.

[1:35] Now the Corinthian church's membership is here challenged six times. With Paul's refrain, do you not know? Are you not aware of what's happening?

[1:50] Don't you understand the situation? Do you not know? And three of these challenges concern the sin of immorality. And the fourth one concerns the place of the human body in the plan and purpose of God.

[2:08] Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have of God and you are not your own? Do not know that your family is the temple. Do you not know that your family is the peopleHowregon is? Do you not know that your family is the temple of the Holy Spirit in you, not your hebt?

[2:18] Do you not know that your family is the how we are to reflect or respond to what we are glorify god in your body which is his first of all then what we are and here paul tells us what we are he tells us what everyone is who is a follower a true sincere follower of the lord jesus and he gives us two descriptions of what we are as followers of the lord jesus christ and the first is this that we are temples of god don't you know that your body is the temple of the holy spirit who is in you whom you have of god and you're not your own now the christian as a temple is but one of several descriptions given in the new testament christians are living stone they are a holy priesthood they are soldiers of christ they are bond slaves of christ they are a garden a building and here they are called the building is called a temple now in the new testament christians collectively are often called a temple for they form god's church god's holy temple is god's holy church and paul says if any man defile the temple of god him will god destroy for the temple of god is holy and you are that temple which temple you are you are that temple now may i just make this point in passing that i believe that much of the church's troubles in any age can be traced to the fact that the church is not what it ought to be and it ought to be holy a temple is a holy place it's even called a holy temple it's the nature of the church to be holy and holiness is one of its most prominent characteristics if perhaps not the most prominent characteristics and yet the church is not holy and because of that there are flaws that there comes a constantly problems and troubles that can be traced to its lack of holiness the church is not a business concern although it has to be run responsibly nor is the church a social club although it has very definite social responsibilities but the church is basically a body of people who live holily and christianly and godly and by the grace of god as blamelessly as they can in this evil world however it's not the temple as the church as the church collectively that paul is referring to here but he is referring to individual members as the temple of the living god each person who follows jesus is a temple each person is a temple each christian therefore has to be a holy temple and that's the chief characteristic of a temple a christian temple it's holiness it's separateness its consecration and consecratedness to the lord jesus christ himself now there is one thing that guarantees this the holiness of the temple and it's not anything that we do or that we strive to do but rather it is something that has been done and if we are believers this is what has been done the holy spirit has been given to us and put within us and he takes his residence within your body is the temple of the holy ghost who is in you whom you have received from god now that's the one thing that make that can make a sinful human being into a temple into a holy temple that god is within that the spirit of god is residing within and that the temple is the habitation of god by the spirit without the spirit of christ without the spirit of god we do not belong to him we are not his living stones or his garden or his soldiers nor are we his living and holy temple there is no person who there is no person living who is a temple of god god's holy temple apart from god's holy spirit and this is made very clear here don't you know that your body is the temple of the holy spirit who is in you whom you have of god now the holy spirit is not given and received by us sometime after our conversion we know not when but the holy spirit is given when we are converted the holy spirit is given at regeneration because he is responsible for regeneration and there he abides within us and from within us he constructs that temple that has the adjective holy now we've got to take notice of this that it is our body that is here called a temple in which the holy the holy spirit resides our mortal body our physical body is said to be the temple of the holy spirit and it's in our mortal body our physical body that it is said the holy spirit resides he has been we have received him from god into our body now verse 15 confirms this if we wanted confirmation paul says don't you know that your bodies are the members of christ of course our souls are but also our bodies we're inclined to forget that so what does this teach us it teaches us that we dare not desecrate and certainly not deliberately desecrate our body or misuse it or abuse it or neglect it or neglect it neglect it because it's christ's temple it's the holy spirit's temple nor must we treat our body however frail however unlovely it may be in the eyes of others we must not treat our body as if it doesn't matter it's quite wrong it's quite wrong to say that it's only the soul that matters the body doesn't matter because it's going down to the earth and it will mix with kindred earth and molder in the earth my dear friends when we put a body in the grave that's not the last we hear of the body that will not be the last of our body and if the body is a christian's body then that body will be raised that body will be raised when the lord jesus christ comes as philippians 3 says he will change the body of our humiliation our lowly body and passionate like his glorious body philippians 3 emphasizes the as as there's a verse in this chapter we read too that does the same thing it emphasizes the doctrine of a bodily resurrection ours as surely as christ's and ours because of christ so while we await the resurrection of the great day let us look on our body as a temple a separated place a separated place a consecrated place a holy place set apart for christ dedicated to christ and to dedicated to christ as the living holy temple of our body that's the first description he gives here of what we are temple and the second is that we are captives not only temples of god but captives of god or servants now this description is a put in two ways negatively and positively do you not know that your body is the temple of the holy ghost who is in you who you have whom you have of god and you are not your own you are not your own but your body and your spirit are god's now we're told here about our captivity negatively you are not your own you are not your own in verse 11 he says you are no longer what you were for now you are sanctified you are washed and sanctified and justified but he also says you are no longer who you were you were once your own master you did things your way nothing else concerned you but your own will but now says paul you are not your own your life is under new management at one time it was under your own management but now it's not once it was only your own will you had to be concerned about but now it's not now how many can look back and think of days when they said perhaps if not vocally certainly perhaps in their minds our lips are our own who is lord over us who was the lord that i should obey him i will not have this man to rule over me we could look on those days when we were our own boss as it were when we were our own master and we did things our own way but looking back we can now say what a privilege not to be our own no longer to be our own to have been delivered from being our own but with the privilege of being a captain the privilege of being a servant of the lord jesus christ there's a responsibility since we are not our own then we have no right to desecrate or misuse our body we have no right to do anything to defile the body or to defile the soul to define to defile ourselves as persons we have no right to bury our talents we have no right to allow the land to lie fallow and unproductive and to be fruit and to be fruitless that's the thing put negatively you are not your own and that's a great blessing that we're not but then it's put positive positively when it when when paul says you are not your own but you are god's when he says you are not your own he doesn't imply you are not anybody's or you're nobody's but he does say you are god's as a christian a body and our soul belong to him and are under new management we have a captain who is called the captain of our salvation we have a priest who is called our great high priest of our profession we are owned by one who is prophet priest and king shepherd husband friend he is our master and we are his servants we are captives we are captives we are captives but what a blessed captivity you're not your own you're god's you're not your own you are the spirit's you're not your own you are christ's we were saying there about the lord who ascended on high to lead captive captivity who ascended on high to lead captives in his train taking them from their miserable captivity and leading them to a glorious one that's what we are that's the first thing we notice here that's what we are we are temples separate and dedicated to the lord and we are captives we are servants we belong to him we've got a new master we're under new management i wonder can we say that tonight is that true of every one of us from the youngest of us to the oldest of us you are not your own you are the temple of the holy spirit that's what we are if we are christians now the second thing is that we notice how we came to be what we are how we came to be what we are we've been bought with a price bought with a price now this is the only key we have to unlock the door to this mystery of christ's ownership of us how can sinners of mankind instead of being judged and condemned and cast away as cumberers of the ground can be owned by the lord jesus christ well it's by purchase you are not your own you have been bought you are bought with a price it's by purchase now there are those of course who sneer at this mercantile theory of the atonement at this shop and counter theory of the atonement of being purchased of a price being involved but pouring scorn on what we believe is distinctly revealed in holy scripture won't make it go away the truth abides and the truth that abides is this paul says you are not your own for you have been bought with a price there's the key that opens the door you have been bought with a price i want to notice a couple of things about that and the first is it's costliness the costliness of the purchase you the words you are bought implies a price and a normal purchase requires a price in a normal purchase we don't need to say i bought so and so with a price because if i didn't pay the price then i wouldn't own the article we would therefore take it that the words added here with a price are added to emphasize the costliness we have been bought at a price at a price and what a price it was no cheap grace that was involved in the redemption of god's people to make them temples and servants and captives and peter makes this very clear when he says you were not redeemed by corruptible things like silver and gold but with the precious blood of christ precious to god for it cost him his son and precious to us for it provided our salvation the precious blood and it's shed blood and shed blood speaks of violence and how violently jesus was treated by hands cruel and unjust shed blood speaks of pain and in christ's case it was not just physical pain but spiritual pain for he was bearing away as the blood was flowing he was bearing away the sin which the lord was pleased to lay upon him our sin and shed blood speaks of a sacrifice that was made by jesus to satisfy divine justice not made to the devil but made to god to satisfy divine justice and my dear friends divine justice is never easily satisfied so jesus drank the cup to its dread empty now it's the costliness it's the costliness of our redemption that is one of the most potent and eloquent pleas for holy living for being a holy temple and for being a slave of christ the costliness of the purchase of the christ owned by him belonging to him the costliness of it is a potent and eloquent plea that we should be holy temples and that we should be separated unto him for his glory to the costliness of the food of the perm verge of the buy-cством ladles and the other thing i want to mention is this the benefits of the purchase the benefits or the purchase those who are his servants those who are his temples and his servants are outstandingly blessed those who are his temples are indwelt by him and those who are his servants are owned by him and as such they are outstandingly blessed and if we are among them then for one thing we have the best of all builders dwelling within us in that holy temple and we have the best of all masters owning us and using us as those whom he purchased and then again when he purchased us we have this blessing he delivered us from ourselves from our self will and our self reliance and our self righteousness and our self indulgence in other words he bought us so that the interests which were entirely vested in ourselves are now vested entirely in him and our master says to us you are mine and all that concerns you concerns me that's because he purchased us with his own blood and when he did so he not only redeemed us from the curse of the law but he also redeemed us as Titus says from all iniquity and purified to himself a special people with a zeal for good works that's a blessing too to have a zeal to be purified and to have a zeal for good works not just to do good works because we're driven to it or we feel ashamed if we don't but to be zealous for good works what we are how we came to be what we are the purchase price and now finally how we respond to what we are how we respond to what we are therefore glorify God that must be our response and constantly responsiveness is required of us we respond with obedience to a command we respond with thanksgiving to a gift we respond with humility for our deliverance and here we respond with personal acknowledgement of divine help and we respond by glorifying him glorify God in your body and in your spirit which are his now the first thing is this that we are to glorify God now whatever we do whatever we do we do all to the glory of God that's one thing but also whatever we receive we receive we receive for the glory of God that's the other and that's what we're thinking of here we have received the Holy Spirit we have received the purchase price we have received the benefits that made us into the temple of the Holy Ghost and the servants of the Lord Jesus and whatever we receive we receive for the glory of God that's our chief end and there is no end or objective cheaper than to glorify God now to glorify God is not an attempt on our part to add somewhere or other to his essential glory and to make him more glorious we cannot add to what is complete and perfect and in itself incapable of being added to and certainly it is we ourselves who are incapable for we cannot do the impossible and neither can angels do the impossible by adding to God's essential glory and making him more glorious than he is so when we glorify God we don't add to his essential glory but we declare it we exalt it we extol it we exhibit it we proclaim it we show forth the praises of him who has called us out of darkness into his marvellous light that's the first part of our responsiveness that's what we are that's how we have come to be what we are born bought bought with the precious blood of Christ and our response is first to glorify God and then the second thing is the sphere the sphere of our response in our body now how can we glorify

[26:52] God in our body well we do so by its purity that's one thing we also do so by our self control in such things as food and drink gluttony is a sin drunkenness is a sin and no sin glorifies God and we can glorify God in our body by its useful industry laziness is dishonoring to God being time servers and clock watchers is dishonoring to God being afraid of hard work is dishonoring to God and we glorify God in our body through the individual members of our body our eyes are to see no evil seeing evil is not to be deliberately sought does that not have something to say to us about what we might watch on television our ears must hear no evil and hear no and hearing evil that is not that and we must not hear evil deliberately sought and so with our hands so with our feet not forgetting our tongue another member as James says a little member but full of iniquity without tongue we can glorify

[28:36] God and with that same tongue a few minutes afterwards we may destecrate the temple which we are and grieve the Holy Spirit who dwells there glorify God in your body and glorify God in your spirit now scholars tell us and I believe quite correctly that these words in your spirit are not in the best manuscripts nevertheless it is unquestionably our duty and privilege to glorify God in our spirits in our souls Simeon said my soul doth magnify the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour oh magnify the Lord with me we were singing in Psalm 34 and let us exalt his name together unto the Lord the glory give that to his name is due and in the beauty of holiness unto Jehovah bow glorify God in your body and in your spirit which are God's we're not our own we're God's therefore we have this privilege and this obligation to glorify him by the use we make of our body and to glorify him by magnifying his name from the depth of our being from our spirits our spirits rejoicing in God our Saviour and so the question isn't really who am I but whose am I am I still my own then oh God deliver me deliver me and make me yours make me a captive

[30:44] Lord and then I shall be free and we are still our own master until he has made us his captives and has set us free and when we're free then we're free to glorify God our chief object and may the spirit who dwells in the holy temple enable us to glorify God in our body and in our spirits which are his let us pray Lord we pray that thou will bless these words to our hearts this evening may it not be that our minds are informed but that our hearts are moved when we think of the incredible privileges and the astounding and outstanding benefits and blessings that belong to those who have been purchased with precious blood

[31:53] Lord make us thy temples make us thy bond slaves and help us in return to live our lives to the praise and glory of the grace which did it all we bless thee Lord for the plan of redemption we thank thee for the way that those who have been redeemed are strengthened and built up and are also challenged most sternly through thy word to live godly and christianly in this present world O Lord our God if we are believers all of us here before thee tonight then all of us can give thanks to thee for what we are and for how we came to be what we are and may we also recognize the response we are to give for what we are by the quality of our life and our lifestyle deliver us from grieving the spirit of God by whom we are sealed unto the day of redemption that enable us to live our lives to thy glory through Jesus

[33:25]  Christ our Lord Amen Amen