Ephesians 2:21

In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.

From Background Notes [BN] for Feb 20th & 21st written by Pastor Bob Brown:

When Paul uses the language of "temple", he speaks of the "holy temple in the Lord", a rather specific allusion to the "sanctuary" portion of the Temple, the "inner temple", consisting of "holy place" and "most holy place".

At those sites, the priests would minister daily, preparing the "bread of God's presence", keeping the lampstand lit, and the incense burning before the curtain of the "most holy" sanctuary where once the ark of the covenant was placed, but now is vacant, symbolizing the continuing exile and incompleteness of God's people, Israel. All of that has changed. As the writer to the Hebrews reminds the reader, "We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat" (Hebrews 13:10). The covenant framed by Christ and put in force by his death and resurrection is declared to be a "better" covenant (see Hebrews 7:22; 8:6; 12:24). At the heart of the Temple worship offered by Christ is the marvelous promise: "Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them" (Hebrews 7:25). With this sentiment Paul offers a hearty "Amen!" Since Christ has proclaimed peace to the "far and the near", all may now "draw near to God" through Christ. This is why the Temple rises in the world, and will continue to rise until Christ completes the work he began at the cross, at his coming. Through the living Temple, the body of Christ, the newly formed people of God, God summons the nations to draw near to God and worship Him alone. Only in this way will God's glory spread throughout the world [BN,19]

Join us this week in Worship, Praise and Celebration at C1:
* Saturday 6:00pm
* Sunday 8:30am & 11:15am
* Family Xperiance (FX) 10am