The Living Temple
By Michael O'Connor
God's New Covenant House:
It is our Father's wonderful design to indwell His corporate Body, and more specifically each individual member
thereof; for it is a mighty Temple comprised of “living stones,” growing into an “holy temple” unto
our Lord (1 Peter 2:5, Ephesians 2:19-22).
In Luke 17:21, Jesus declared: “The Kingdom of God is within you.” Some have misinterpreted this
to mean that an individual within their own person (physically, bodily), possesses the effulgence of God's Kingdom. A closer
examination unveils the fact that while indeed all the potential for God's Kingdom dwells within each Born-Again Believer,
the practical outworking and fruition of that potential may only be realized in a corporate expression amongst the other members
of Christ!
The Apostle Paul, in 1 Corinthians 12:12-27, and Ephesians 4:16 declares: “As the body... hath many members...
so also is Christ.” One member cannot say: “I have no need of thee.” “Every joint supplies.”
“We are members in particular.” In order for this new and living Temple to be erected, the individual “living
stones” are “fitly framed and joined together.” The strength of a wall results from many individual stones
joined side-by-side with others, all lending their individual strength unto the whole! The more closely those stones
are set together, the stronger will be that wall!
Jerusalem's Walls:
The existing wall of Jerusalem (except for several enlargements in its original footprint) is built upon the
very foundations of the ancient wall of Solomon's time. Its lower courses of stone date to the time of King Herod the Great
(First Century, A.D.), who in a ploy to gain favor with the Jews, rebuilt their Temple. The “Herodian stones,”
as they are called, are huge stones indeed, with precisely cut border-edges. To behold these stones is to gaze upon a work
of high art! Some of these stones are estimated to weigh as much as one hundred tons or more.
The upper courses of stone with the ramparts above them, were rebuilt after the destruction of Jerusalem (under
the army of Titus in 70 A.D.). Most of the later rebuilding took place (under Suleiman, in the Sixteenth Century A.D.). It
is amazing to note that even the largest of the Herodian stones, are to this day joined so closely, as to not allow for the
penetration into their joints of even a pocket-knife blade! The same is said to be true of the ancient Mayan stones, which
are believed to reach far into antiquity. Again, the same has been said of nearly all the stones of the extant Egyptian pyramids.
If “fallen man” is capable of building such enduring structures, how much more able is our Lord God Almighty,
to build the “Church,” which is “His Body!” (Colossians 1:24).
Worthy Stones:
Each time a soul is saved (receiving Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord), that newborn soul is then received into
the Temple of our Lord, who as the Master-Builder, sets it into place as a part of the whole. This concept is beautifully
expressed in Matthew 18:20;
"FOR WHERE TWO OR THREE ARE GATHERED TOGETHER IN MY NAME, THERE
AM I IN THE MIDST OF THEM."
Two or more Christian believers in whom our Lord Jesus abides, gather for prayer/fellowship, at which very instant,
the same omnipresent God who dwells individually within them, descends 'round about them in His engulfing, overshadowing
presence; which at once manifests His glory, power, and anointing amongst them! This is a Divine-cameo, portraying
a glorious coalescence and inclusiveness!
Unworthy Stones:
So many today, seem to feel a need to “separate themselves” from their fellow members in Christ.
The Apostles James and Jude expose such behavior as “sensual,” and
“devilish” (Greek = of, from, and belonging to the devil):
"These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the
Spirit" (Jude 19).
"This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual,
devilish" (James 3:15).
Well Prepared Stones:
My dear readers, in this great Temple of God, there are no renegade
stones lying about, to be seen and noticed! Each stone is individual, true; but so cut and designed by God, as to be useful and worthy of placement, only as it can fit and relate, precisely co-joined to its fellow stones (brethren/fellow ministers). This is to say: Those beside them (their peers): Those below them
(those older members; elders, leaders, and authority figures): Those above them (newer and more recent converts to Christ).
A Proper Foundation Is Essential:
The foundation is the most vital part of any structure; it is the first and most important part! All else must
comply and be built thereupon! Any structure not established upon a firm foundation
is a cheap, ramshackle affair, thrown together upon sinking sand! It will
never stand the test of time!
Unworthy Stones:
So many today, seem to feel a need to “separate themselves” from their fellow members in Christ.
The Apostles James and Jude expose such behavior as “sensual,” and
“devilish” (Greek = of, from, and belonging to the devil):
"These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the
Spirit" (Jude 19).
"This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual,
devilish" (James 3:15).
What folly it would be to even imagine a stone, set-in by God, and firmly locked into its rightful place, to
suddenly (after perhaps decades) cry out: “Let me out of here! This is too confining! I am hidden here! There is no
opportunity for me to launch-forth into 'my own ministry!' I am jammed-in on all sides! I want some room and visibility
. . . etc!”
What such an individual is truly expressing is: “I am no longer content to stand shoulder to shoulder with
my brethren, in right relationship as God has set me in! I am no longer content to be a fellow-member of strength and support!
I want 'freedom' to 'do my own thing!' I want to forsake my brethren, who stand faithfully in their God-ordained places!
I want to put on a Big show! Oh Yes! I want to be seen and heard! This 'submission,' and 'relating to my brethren'
– stuff, is not for me! Oh, No! I want to do things in a real “Big,” contemporary way! I have read all the
books on church growth, church management, prosperity, and how to 'get to the top,' etc.”
The degree of discontent as described above is becoming more, and more, frequently expressed by brethren bent
on “making a big splash,” and “seeing their names up in lights, etc.” Such persons very often name
their ministries/churches after themselves!
Warnings Of Certain Disaster:
As lads in Bible School, we were warned of those who flaunt their names and their ministries. I have seen much
since those days of nearly fifty years ago! The warnings by those saintly Patriarchs was justified indeed! Of “personality-based”
ministries, I have beheld dozens to come crashing-down with the most disastrous results; leaving in their wakes, gigantic
debris-fields of ruin, disgrace, and scandal!
Prayer:
"Dearest Lord Jesus, please draw all such back unto Your riven side! Grant them a space of repentance, and a
heart to return unto You! For each of us, Lord, we pray that You shall keep us small, insignificant, and needy in our own
eyes! Keep us ever hidden behind Your blessed cross! Oh! Let not our humanity be seen and heard, but only the Christ,
whom we love and serve! Amen and Amen!"
Leprosy In The House:
Very tragically, there is an ever-increasing number of such persons within the churches! Their problem
is the “plague of leprosy!” Yes! Leprosy is a type of rebellion! Pastors! Beware of “leprosy” within
your house (your church and ministry)! As you remain true and prayerful, our Lord Jesus will reveal it unto you! You will
recognize “the leprous stones,” by the “strakes” running through them! You are the priest of your
home (both naturally and spiritually). You are the Pastor! (Greek: “poimen” = “Shepherd”). Please
see the Scriptural account below:
Leviticus 14:33-53
33. And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,
34. When ye be come into the land of Canaan, which I give to you for
a possession, and I put the plague of leprosy in a house of the land of your possession [that is: with God's permission];
35. And he that owneth the house shall come and tell the priest, saying,
It seemeth to me there is as it were a plague in the house:
36. Then the priest shall command that they empty the house, before
the priest go into it to see the plague, that all that is in the house be not made unclean: and afterward the priest shall
go in to see the house:
37. And he shall look on the plague, and, behold, if the plague be
in the walls of the house with hollow strakes, greenish or reddish, which in sight are lower than the wall;
38. Then the priest shall go out of the house to the door of the house,
and shut up the house seven days:
39. And the priest shall come again the seventh day, and shall look:
and, behold, if the plague be spread in the walls of the house;
40. Then the priest shall command that they take away the stones in
which the plague is, and they shall cast them into an unclean place without the city:
41. And he shall cause the house
to be scraped within round about, and they shall pour out the dust that they scrape off without the city into an unclean
place:
42. And they shall take other stones, and put them in the place of
those stones; and he shall take other morter, and shall plaister the house.
43. And if the plague come again, and break out in the house, after
that he hath taken away the stones, and after he hath scraped the house, and after it is plaistered;
44. Then the priest shall come and look, and, behold, if the plague
be spread in the house, it is a fretting leprosy in the house: it is unclean.
45. And he shall break down the house, the stones of it, and the timber
thereof, and all the morter of the house; and he shall carry them forth out of the city into an unclean place.
46. Moreover he that goeth into the house all the while that it is
shut up shall be unclean until the even.
47. And he that lieth in the house shall wash his clothes; and he
that eateth in the house shall wash his clothes.
48. And if the priest shall come in, and look upon it, and, behold,
the plague hath not spread in the house, after the house was plaistered: then the priest shall pronounce the house clean,
because the plague is healed.
49. And he shall take to cleanse the house two birds, and cedar
wood, and scarlet, and hyssop:
50. And he shall kill the one of the birds in an earthen vessel
over running water:
51. And he shall take the cedar wood, and the hyssop, and the scarlet,
and the living bird, and dip them in the blood of the slain bird, and in the running water, and sprinkle the house seven times:
52. And he shall cleanse the house with the blood of the bird, and
with the running water, and with the living bird, and with the cedar wood, and with the hyssop, and with the scarlet:
53. But he shall let go the living bird out of the city into the
open fields, and make an atonement for the house: and it shall be clean.
(What a heartfelt portrayal of a Church which has come through a glorious restoration, to regain their missionary
vision, and send again the messengers; missionaries: “the living bird,” out from the local church, unto the fields
of labor.)
A Prophetic Utterance falls upon Brother O'Connor as he writes:
It is your responsibility to cleanse your wall! God will back you-up, but you must take the initiative,
and obey Him by preaching the whole counsel of God! Brothers! Destroy and drive out that evil and hateful bird (tale-bearers,
gossipers, sowers of discord). Sprinkle that wall (your congregation) with the washing of the water by the Word! Scrape! Yea,
O men of God, take the sword of the Spirit, and scrape off that putrid mold! Scrape, and scrape, right down to fresh stone!
Yea, purge that wall, again and again with His Word, which is a fire, a sword, and a hammer! Dear men of God, my beloved brethren;
if you, for whatever reason shrink back, and refuse from purging that wall, God Himself will come and command your house
to be broken down!
Oh, my dear brethren, please do not sit any longer, passively-by, being ruled by women and oppressed by children
(Isaiah 3:12). Arise! Arise! Yea, arise, Oh men of God! Arise and stand at your watch! Arise and fulfill your calling and
election in Christ! ARISE ! Yea, show the Lord's people their sins, and cry out against their transgressions! Oh! Call
them to repentance! Yea, call them back from their backslidings! Call them back unto the Lord, and to His paths of Holiness!
Lo, call them back unto the Old Paths, where is the good way (Jeremiah 6:16). Spare not! Regard not the face of clay!
If you warn them not, and they perish in their sins, it will be required at your hand! (Ezekiel 3:18-20). REBELLION! REBELLION!
Yea, the churches are full of leprosy!
Lo, that woman, Jezebel (who represents the spirit of rebellion in the churches), is permitted to teach her lies
and errors, and to lead the young and tender ones into worldliness, fashion, and impurity! Behold, does she not even teach
to the precious handmaidens, her pernicious and nefarious ways? Does she not teach them to attire, and to decorate themselves
as harlots, and to rebel against their parents? When these marry, do they not rebel against their husbands, making their home
as a living hell? Do they not lead their children into rebellion? Do they not drive their husbands into the arms of harlots?
Do they not teach yet another generation the ways of Jezebel, that mother harlot, against whom our Lord Jesus spoke, through
the mouth of His prophet, John the Apostle:
Revelation 2:20-24
(20) Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou
sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication,
and to eat things sacrificed unto idols.
(21) And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented
not.
(22) Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery
with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds.
(23) And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches
shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works.
(24) But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as
have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden.
Did not He expose her and rebuke those who gave her quarter? Oh, shepherds! Oh, Pastors! Have you been watchful?
Do you look unto the ways of your house? Is leprosy in your house? Is leprosy found within your wall?
Beloved readers, I am left weak after the above, concerning: “Rebellion, leprosy, and the spirit of Jezebel,”
which has come via a prophetic overshadowing. Please pause now, and before proceeding further, re-read this section very prayerfully
and with a humble heart. Thank you!
______ ______ ______
Rebellion Is As Leprosy:
I wish to focus yet further upon the leprous stones. Our Lord is not willing that any should perish! He is longsuffering
and plenteous in mercy; yet for those refusing to turn from their rebellion, and refusing to repent for their wake of confusion,
and the sowing of discord; judgment is inevitable! Often, it is swift, decisive, and final! The end of such persons
is uniformly the same, when they persist in refusing to be cleansed, after even numerous opportunities have been afforded
them, there is nothing left for them, but to be removed from the wall, and carried forth “out of the city to an
unclean place!” (Levitius 14:45). (How very similar in principle this is to the broken potsherds; “rebellious
clay,” which even after several breakings, refused to become contrite; were consigned as refuse unto the Potter's Field!)
The most tragic aspect is, that “the rebellious stones” very often have so infected the other stones, that the
entire house must be broken down and removed!
How Are The Mighty Fallen:
How utterly tragic to behold churches (which have for years been “Lighthouses” and centers of New
Testament order), to be destroyed from rebellion and strife within! Oh, how heartrending to see them collapse into heaps of
rubble and debris! (Oh! Dearest Lord Jesus, please protect our Pastors and churches from all such devouring spirits!
"He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly
be destroyed, and that without remedy" (Proverbs 29:1). A noted Revivalist of the past declared: “God always prefers
mercy over judgment, but when His mercy is rejected and flatly refused, there is only one thing left, and that is judgment!”
Dearest Lord Jesus:
Grant unto your people a hearing ear, and a repenting heart!
Amen!
The Church Is God's New Temple:
Regardless of the difficulties and apparent set-backs which have beleaguered (down through this Church Age) the
construction of our Lord's Great Living Temple, it is nevertheless, growing day by day unto a Holy Habitation unto the Lord
(Ephesians 2:22). There is a marvelous old song about the Church, of which I am reminded (I do not remember much of the song,
except the following), which in reflection, brings me great joy:
They cast it in the fire,
But the fire couldn't burn it.
They fed it to the lions,
But the lions couldn't eat it;
They locked it into prison,
But the prison couldn't turn it.
The Caesar's fought against it,
But the Caesar's couldn't defeat it!
This Temple (in the natural) was built in God's Holy City, Jerusalem. It is a given that in reflecting upon the
literal “Temple,” and literal “City,” we are faced with miracles of gigantic proportions! This is
the “city” for which Abraham searched! “He sought after a city, which had foundations, whose builder and
maker was God” (Hebrews 11:10). There was of course, no such city extant in his day! Jerusalem was not yet built, nor
indeed would be for hundreds of years.
Abraham and Melchizedek:
Whilst upon his great pilgrimage, Abraham had a personal meeting with Melchizedek, King of Salem: Jerusalem interpreted
means: “City of Peace.” The King of “Salem” is the King of Peace! “Melchi-Zedek,”
is derived from: “Melchior” = King . . . “Zedek” = the Righteous One. Surely, all should understand
that there was no king in the Earth who could claim such high and lofty titles, for these titles belong to none, but our Lord
Jesus Christ, who is: The Righteous King of Peace! Jerusalem is referred to as: “The City of the Great King.”
Looking Forward To Calvary:
Melchizedek gave unto Abraham “bread and wine” (a fore-type of the Eucharist), looking
forward to Calvary, and to the New Covenant in His blood! In response, Abraham paid tithes of all he had, unto Melchizedek!
(Genesis 14:20). Abraham is regarded as the “Father of the Faithful” (Romans 4:11-16). He was the first one ever
to leave the land of his fathers (where idols and images were both made and worshiped), in pursuit of a “better country.”
Abraham was the first man called-out of heathenism and idolatry, and commanded to walk
by faith as a pilgrim in search of God's city!
For this reason, Abraham, as several others in the Bible, were transported in time
and experience from one dispensation to another. You may read about it in the Book of Hebrews, chapter eleven, where, in the
“great gallery of faith,” we find Abraham placed there by the very hand of God, as a memorial to his life and
faithfulness; being one of the pilgrims of faith!
Abraham, by faith; sought for the Body of Christ! The City for
which he sought was: “The City of God,” which “came down from God out of Heaven,” having foundations...
(being built upon the doctrine of the Apostles and prophets) ...Jesus Christ Himself being the Chief Cornerstone” (Ephesians
2:20, 1 Peter 2:6). Yes, dear reader, Abraham was “walking by faith,” looking forward to a yet future time! Abraham
was searching for you and I!
The Divine Pattern:
As we look into these marvelous events of the ages, we may gain an immense degree of insight and understanding,
upon both the natural, and spiritual planes! In reiteration, it must be stated that the City, itself, and its Temple, were
the design of the Great Architect of the Universe, our Lord God Almighty! He is also
the Great Architect of the New Jerusalem, which came down from God, and of the Living Temple, which is His habitation
in this Church Age! By His strange and magnificent design, He has chosen redeemed individuals, as: “Living Stones”
for the erection of this Divinely Engineered edifice!
A Rock Of Offense:
Dear reader, there is absolutely no place in God's economy, for stones refusing to become integrated into
the whole! There is reference given to only One, who figuratively, was left outside, to become a “stone
of stumbling” and “a rock of offense.” Isaiah foresaw this stone down through the corridors of time and
future (Isaiah 8:14). It was “the stone rejected by the builders” (Psalm 118:22, 23). There it sat, as an object
of scorn, irritation, and mockery; and to many it remains so (typically and figuratively), until this very day!
The Prophet Sees This Rock:
It was undoubtedly a very large stone, for the Psalmist declares some one thousand years before the fact, that
God had made this very same stone, to be the “Head of the Corner.” In modernity, we refer to a “cornerstone,”
as a small slab of marble or granite, engraved with the date at which an edifice was constructed. In antiquity, such was hardly
the case, considering that the “head of the corner” (cornerstone) was an immense peace of square-cut rock, which
was the first stone to be set, deep in the foundation! From this precisely cut stone, lines were run, to ensure the precision
of every other stone! The head of the corner was the pattern by which all else would conform! Praise the Lord Jesus,
who is our Great Cornerstone, and the Head of the Corner, upon which all else has been established and built!
Only One Rock:
In Matthew 16:18, JESUS DECLARED HIMSELF TO BE THE ROCK UPON WHICH HE WOULD BUILD HIS CHURCH ! Some have
interpreted this verse to imply that it was upon Peter or upon his confession, which our Lord would build His Church; yet,
a simple word study in the Greek New Testament will clear-up the confusion! Jesus said: “Thou are Peter (Greek: Petros
= a piece of rock or a building stone), but upon THIS ROCK (Greek: Petra = solid bedrock) shall I build My Church.”
Surely, He could not entrust unto Peter (nor even unto his great confession; nor unto any other man) the supreme
honor of being the Rock upon which He would build His Church. No man (nor any confession of man) could qualify for
that signal position, except our Lord Jesus Christ, who was from the beginning, ordained by God to fulfill this place!
As in other places in the New Testament, Jesus Christ, in order to fulfill prophecy, was fore-ordained to meld and amalgamate
into the eternal pattern and design!
The Mighty Head Stone:
You may ask: “How was the foundation-site, dug down to bedrock? How was this effected?” The answer
is plain to see! Jesus had for three and one half years been “plowing the Earth,” by means of preaching the Gospel
of the Kingdom! All was prepared and ready for the setting in place of the “Great Stone,” but only God
Almighty could perform this marvelous deed!
"For God hath made Him [to become] the Head of the Corner" (Matthew
21:42). It is no wonder that Zechariah, in vision beheld the multitudes crying out: “GRACE, GRACE BE UNTO IT!”(Zechariah
4:7).
Oh, Beloved! Pause a moment and meditate upon this holy occasion! See this gigantic stone being lifted from the
ground where it had settled, after standing there for ages! Now, as it is brought-forth to fulfill its great and wonderful
purpose, as designed from the beginning, by the Almighty God: See the great logs begin to roll and rumble beneath its massive
weight! The laborers strain every nerve and muscle, whilst pulling upon the great cables! Now, hark! Is that thunder?
It must be thunder, but, Oh! What an unprecedented, earth-shaking, rolling of thunder! Listen! It seems to come from
all directions at once! Listen! as it takes-on the sound of a great roaring ocean! This is no thunder! There
is no lightning present! Oh, dear reader, listen! Open your ears to the glorious sound of the roar of the multitude
which resounds, reverberates, and re-echoes from the Judean hills; from the surrounding mountains, and echoing through the
adjoining valleys! Hear it now:
"G R A C E ! G R A C E ! !
G R A C E B E U N T O I T ! ! !”
The Divine Intention:
Under the Law, our Lord Jesus Christ was rejected by the builders, but even though that Great Rock remained rejected,
scorned, and forsaken: It became unto them a “stone of stumbling,” and a “rock of offense” (ever before
them); and so it remains unto this day in their thinking and estimation! Thank God, there was a higher thought and estimation
in the heart of the Father, who had already spoken through His prophet, concerning this matter, to which above reference
has been made!
When Jesus arose from the Tomb, on the third day, God Almighty set Him down, and placed Him upon solid bedrock,
as the Head of the Corner. He then saw to it that the lines would be run from Him, to commence the construction of His
great Temple, THE LIVING TEMPLE . . . THE BODY OF CHRIST IN ALL THE EARTH! It was then that the “living stones”
first began to be placed in God's Temple; co-joining first, the twelve Apostolic stones, as pilasters within that nether-most
foundation. Through the Church-Age, this mighty Temple is growing in all the Earth, and thank God, it is growing still;
for the last stone has not yet been placed!
Our Unfinished Task:
No man knows the day nor the hour when the building process will come to a cessation, but one thing we know;
God is still saving souls! There are nations yet unborn: Tribes, tongues, and people; having not one word of Scripture
in their own language; millions and millions upon this Earth who have not yet heard one word concerning, “Jesus Christ
the Savior:”
Build on, O God Almighty! Build on, O Lord Jesus Christ! Build on, and on, and on! Yea,
Lord, finish Thy work! Thou Master Builder, build Thy Church!
