What Is The Temple of the Holy Spirit In 1 Corinthians 6:19-20?

Many students of the Bible think that Paul is referencing the physical body in 1 Corinthians 6:19,20. This is not true for several reasons.

  1. Paul has already been referring to the physical body earlier in verses 12-15. Throughout this remote context, Paul is stating that the physical body of a human being is not for the purpose of fornication. The physical body is for the service of God (Romans 12:1,2). The Lord is for the physical body. The Lord Jesus was raised from the dead by the power of God (Romans 1:4). Paul states that God will also "raise us up by His power" (referring to the general resurrection of the dead). When Paul mentions "members", he is referring to the physical bodies of the Corinthians who make up the church at Corinth, the spiritual body of Christ.
  1. If "the temple of the Holy Spirit" refers to the physical body, and there are thousands of physical bodies, then that would mean that there are also thousands of different temples of the Holy Spirit. But over and over again the Scriptures teach that there is one temple (Ephesians 2:19-22). There is one body of Christ (Ephesians 1:22,23; 4:4). It makes more sense that when Paul mentions "your body", he is referring to the church of Christ.
  1. The word "your" is actually in the plural. When a collective noun is used with a singular verb, the noun is viewed as a unit. This makes sense in regards it to being the church since the church is made up of many members.
  1. The word "your" is not being used in the sense of possession but in relationship. We know that Jesus is the Owner of the church (Acts 20:28), but we do share a relationship to it if we are a part of it.

In conclusion, the temple of the Holy Spirit mentioned in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 is the church of Christ.

 

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Church, Holy Spirit, TempleJoey Ferrell