S
1Cor 3:16,17
16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? 17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.
1Cor 6:19,20
19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.
2Cor 6:16
16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
1Thes 5:23
23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
There is no problem with these verses that tell us that our body is the temple of God and that the Holy Spirit (who is God) dwells in us. The portion of scripture you refer to in Mt 15:17-20 is speaking of a man being defiled by that which proceeds out of the heart. This is why we are to guard our heart in Prov 4:21-23 for out of it flow the issues of life (of the old man Adam). The word 'keep' is nastar (verb)- meaning to guard and watch over.
In 1Thes 5:23 the word 'preserve' is tereo (verb)- and has the same meaning as nastar above. So we are to watch over our body and guard it against that which can defile it. This word does not mean just to preserve inwardly but also outwardly, knowing also that our outward man is perishing, we are to also preserve that, to be in good health even as your soul prospers / 2Cor 4:16, 3Jn 1:2.
We understand the that our body is the temple of God and defilement of that temple comes from what proceeds out of the heart, which are the works of the flesh / Gal 2:19-21, Mt 5:19,20. The practical side of destroying the temple (or body) is not preserving it. When you smoke tobacco and your body dies from cancer that is by not preserving your body. When you consume too much alcohol over a period of years and your body dies from a hardened liver, that is not preserving your body. When you do the same with pharmaceutical drugs (legal or otherwise) and your body suffers the adverse effects and dies prematurely, that is not preserving your body. If you continue to live in some form of fornication and sin against your body and come down with a disease that kills your body, that is not preserving your body. If you subject your body to a diet with loads of cholesterol, saturated fat and a lack of live enzymes and amino acids with little or no exercise, that could be a deadly combination for your heart and when that goes so goes the body or the temple.
Do we want to encourage believers or anyone to smoke, to drink alcoholic beverages, to consume excessive amounts and combinations of pharmaceuticals, to stay on unhealthy diets and tell them that it will not defile their body and temple that God resides? Would that be wisdom, knowing what we know in the days that we live in? Wisdom is the application of knowledge and knowledge moves us out of the avenue of ignorance and stupidity.
If you are a believer, knowing what we know today about the harmful effects of smoking, and you continue to smoke tobacco and take in over 50 carcinogens (toxic poisons with over (4000) chemical compounds created) into your body every single day, that is sin because you know what it can do to you and it is a good thing not to do / James 4:17. Do you think that God is going to give you grace as you continue to smoke or do these other things that are killing off your body? And you risk dying early from cancer and other related causes. That is not wisdom and it is absolutely defiling the temple and body that God has given you. No one is judging you but you are certainly judging your body and using it as a cesspool for toxic waste.
Does this condemn you or convict you? Either way, you should stop it all together and get your body on a path of recovery. Remember this, there are plenty of professionals out there to help you and God has plenty of grace to give you strength and help in the time of need. For anyone to tell or suggest that these things do not defile the body lacks wisdom and understanding.
16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? 17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.
1Cor 6:19,20
19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.
2Cor 6:16
16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
1Thes 5:23
23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
There is no problem with these verses that tell us that our body is the temple of God and that the Holy Spirit (who is God) dwells in us. The portion of scripture you refer to in Mt 15:17-20 is speaking of a man being defiled by that which proceeds out of the heart. This is why we are to guard our heart in Prov 4:21-23 for out of it flow the issues of life (of the old man Adam). The word 'keep' is nastar (verb)- meaning to guard and watch over.
In 1Thes 5:23 the word 'preserve' is tereo (verb)- and has the same meaning as nastar above. So we are to watch over our body and guard it against that which can defile it. This word does not mean just to preserve inwardly but also outwardly, knowing also that our outward man is perishing, we are to also preserve that, to be in good health even as your soul prospers / 2Cor 4:16, 3Jn 1:2.
We understand the that our body is the temple of God and defilement of that temple comes from what proceeds out of the heart, which are the works of the flesh / Gal 2:19-21, Mt 5:19,20. The practical side of destroying the temple (or body) is not preserving it. When you smoke tobacco and your body dies from cancer that is by not preserving your body. When you consume too much alcohol over a period of years and your body dies from a hardened liver, that is not preserving your body. When you do the same with pharmaceutical drugs (legal or otherwise) and your body suffers the adverse effects and dies prematurely, that is not preserving your body. If you continue to live in some form of fornication and sin against your body and come down with a disease that kills your body, that is not preserving your body. If you subject your body to a diet with loads of cholesterol, saturated fat and a lack of live enzymes and amino acids with little or no exercise, that could be a deadly combination for your heart and when that goes so goes the body or the temple.
Do we want to encourage believers or anyone to smoke, to drink alcoholic beverages, to consume excessive amounts and combinations of pharmaceuticals, to stay on unhealthy diets and tell them that it will not defile their body and temple that God resides? Would that be wisdom, knowing what we know in the days that we live in? Wisdom is the application of knowledge and knowledge moves us out of the avenue of ignorance and stupidity.
If you are a believer, knowing what we know today about the harmful effects of smoking, and you continue to smoke tobacco and take in over 50 carcinogens (toxic poisons with over (4000) chemical compounds created) into your body every single day, that is sin because you know what it can do to you and it is a good thing not to do / James 4:17. Do you think that God is going to give you grace as you continue to smoke or do these other things that are killing off your body? And you risk dying early from cancer and other related causes. That is not wisdom and it is absolutely defiling the temple and body that God has given you. No one is judging you but you are certainly judging your body and using it as a cesspool for toxic waste.
Does this condemn you or convict you? Either way, you should stop it all together and get your body on a path of recovery. Remember this, there are plenty of professionals out there to help you and God has plenty of grace to give you strength and help in the time of need. For anyone to tell or suggest that these things do not defile the body lacks wisdom and understanding.
