Living Stones in God's Holy Temple
August 24, 2025 · 2:17:30 · Watch on YouTube ↗
Summary
On this communion Sunday the church also rejoiced over three believers baptized at the beach the day before. The preacher opened with a simple picture: you can learn a great deal about people from their homes - their books, their photos, the hunting trophies on the wall - and even more from what fills the heart and overflows in their words. From 1 Corinthians 6 he reminded everyone that our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, bought at a great price, so that we are no longer our own.
Holiness, he explained, is both a gift and a journey. Through the sacrifice and blood of Jesus we are already cleansed and set apart so the Spirit can dwell in us, yet sanctification is also a daily process in which we are built up. Like costly tile or stone that stays useless while it sits in its box, a believer brings God no glory until he takes the place appointed for him. We are living stones being fitted together into a greater temple, the church, with Christ as the cornerstone.
To take that place means offering spiritual sacrifices - giving ourselves away instead of seeking benefit. In God's house the leader serves and lifts others up, the opposite of worldly hierarchy. At the Lord's table the congregation examined their hearts, received the broken bread and the cup of the new covenant, and remembered that only through Christ's death do we have life, forgiveness, and healing.
Key Points
- Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit; you were bought at a price and belong to God.
- People can sense the Spirit's presence, for what fills the heart overflows into our words and deeds.
- Holiness is both a finished gift in Christ and a lifelong work carried out in reverence for God.
- Like building material left in a box, we glorify God only when we take our appointed place.
- We are living stones built on Christ the cornerstone into God's holy temple, the church.
- True ministry offers spiritual sacrifices - serving others rather than seeking benefit for ourselves.
- The Holy Spirit was given for one purpose: to glorify Jesus Christ in us.
Devotional
Pause and remember that you are not your own - the Lord paid the highest price to make your life His dwelling place. Ask yourself whether you are still sitting in the box, admired but unused, or whether you have taken the place He prepared for you. Real holiness is not only what Christ has already given; it is the daily surrender of letting His Spirit build you into His temple. Offer yourself today not to gain something, but to be a living stone that carries the weight others lean on. When you take your place, people will look and say, how great is our God.
“Your body is a temple, and you were bought at a price - you are no longer your own.”
“Costly stone left in a box glorifies no one; you shine only when you take your place.”
“In God's house the greatest is the one who serves and lifts others up.”
