Temple Is As Temple Does Series

TEMPLE IS AS TEMPLE DOES

1 CORINTHIANS 3:16

INTRODUCTION… Famous Lines from Forrest Gump (Parade Magazine, Wozinsky, July 01, 2014)

On July 6, 1994 a movie starring Tom Hanks entered the movie theaters and captured movie-goers and became an instant classic. ‘Forrest Gump’ was best picture that year. The movie has many memorable lines and characters.

* Jenny said, “Run Forrest! Run!”

* Forrest said, “My mama always said, ‘Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.’”

* Bubba said, “Anyway, like I was sayin’, shrimp is the fruit of the sea. You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, sauté it. There’s shrimp-kabobs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There’s pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp, pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad, shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burger, shrimp sandwich. That, that’s about it.”

* Forrest said, “One day it started raining, and it didn’t quit for four months. We been through every kind of rain there is. Little bitty stingin’ rain… and big ol’ fat rain. Rain that flew in sideways. And sometimes rain even seemed to come straight up from underneath. Shoot, it even rained at night…”

* Forrest said, “Stupid is as stupid does.”

It is this last line that I always thought was the best. “Stupid is as stupid does.” I want to change that phrase a little around this morning and say, “Temple is as temple does.” That phrase will come back around as we look at 1 Corinthians 3:16 this morning.

BACKGROUND OF 3:16

The Apostle Paul is speaking to a group of people who are struggling in their faith. Both letters of 1 and 2 Corinthians are to people who are living out faith in a world that is against them. Paul calls the Corinthian Christians “infants in Christ” in verse 1. They are still learning about Jesus and the Christian life and what a relationship with God looks like and feels like in a world that naturally pushes them away from God.

There are many truths we learn about Christianity because Paul calls the Corinthian Christians “infants in Christ”: (Staton, Knofel. First Corinthians. Standard Bible Studies).

1. We enter into Christianity and in our relationship with Christ as newborn babies.

2. Being a Christian is a lifetime of growth and is not a change overnight.

3. Because a person acts like a non-Christian is some areas does not mean he or she is a non-Christian, but it may mean they are an infant in Christ.

4. We must allow people time to grow up in salvation and not be judgmental.

5. More mature Christians should take the time to mentor those who are new in faith.

6. As new Christians, there will be a war going on inside because the new position in Christ equipped by the Holy Spirit is warring against our old ways.

He mentions to the Corinthian Christians that there is “jealousy and quarreling among you” (verse 3) because they were arguing amongst themselves who was the better believer based on who had baptized them. In the end, Paul tells them it matters not who baptizes you, but what matters is that we accept the blessings of watering from God and grow in our faith. Paul lets them know that allegiance to a particular minister is not helpful when building faith for God is the center of our faith, not a particular evangelist or minister. Paul tells the Corinthians in the end, “you are of Christ and Christ is of God” (verse 23).

We need to move from baby food to solid food. (verses 1-2)

We need to move from being a seed to growing into a solid tree of faith. (verses 6-8)

We need to build on the foundation of faith in Jesus Christ. (verse 11)

We need to work together to build up the faith of those around us. (verses 12-15)

It is in the verses where Paul is speaking about the Christian life in building terms where we have 3:16 which is the focus of our attention today. The Apostle Paul says in…

READ 1 Corinthians 3:16 [read aloud together]

“Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?”

This is a simple verse which communicates an important message to us. It can be summarized as “Temple is as temple does,” but I want to dig into it a little deeper.

I. DON’T YOU KNOW

Verse 16 seems to be a bit of a rhetorical question. As the Apostle Paul is speaking to the Corinthian believers about their faith and growing in their faith, he asks them a question in which he gives them great theological truth. He starts off the verse with “Don’t you know.”