I read Psalm 27 this morning as part of my devotional time. There are several verses from this Psalm that have spoken to me before in different ways, but one spoke to me this morning in a way that I had not thought of before. Verse 4 says, “One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple.” ESV
In the past I have been impressed by this verse and thought of this as a desire to be able to stay and worship God in the temple. In David’s case the tabernacle, a tent constructed per the specifications given to Moses, served as their temple. David did have a desire to build God a permanent temple, but God did not allow David to do it. He was allowed to make preparations for it, including gathering materials for its construction, but it was left to Solomon to build it. So, we could take his desire in two ways, either to be able to dwell in the tabernacle, or to build a temple and spend all his time there. In my previous thinking I would put myself in David’s place imagining dwelling in a church, a beautiful modern-day sanctuary.
This morning, I am led to see another way to envision this scripture. This comes from the recognition that in Christ, our own bodies are a temple of God, in which the Spirit of God dwells. Scriptures from 1 Corinthians, 3:16-17 and 6:18-20 state exactly that; our bodies are meant to be temples of God. Paul carries this thought further pointing out that each of us are joined together in the body of Christ creating one great temple of God (Read John 2:20-22 and then Ephesians 2:19-22).
This perspective shows us that David’s desire to dwell in the temple of the Lord is fulfilled in us in Christ. We truly can, if we seek to, dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of our lives. Our bodies are God’s dwelling place, living temples of our Lord. Also, we are all made in the image of God and thus I can look at my wife and children and Christian brothers and sisters and others in my life and see the beauty of the Lord; images of God. Furthermore, I am always residing in my body and can at any time inquire in his temple.
The recognition of our bodies as a temple of God is not new to me, but making the connection to David’s desire somehow takes that abstract concept and turns it into a tangible reality for me. God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, is in here with me. In the same way, may God also be with you.