“Heaven is My throne,
And earth is My footstool.
Where is the house that you will build Me?
And where is the place of My rest?
² For all those things My hand has made,
And all those things exist,”
Says the Lord.
“But on this one will I look:
On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit,
And who trembles at My word. Is. 66:1-2

Is the Lord saying something here? Is he asking men what temple they can build for Him? If God started this with Isaiah, then what did He say through the Apostles? Certainly Paul had a lot to say about it. In his letter to the Corinthians he said this:

⁶ Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? ¹⁷ If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.

I Cor. 3:16-17

But Paul hits the point home again in the same letter in chapter 6:

Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? I Cor. 6:19

And as if the Corinthians still didn’t get it, Paul wrote them a second time.

And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.” 2 Cor. 6:16

But Paul made thing perfectly clear in his letter to the Ephesians.

¹⁹ Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, ²⁰ having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone,²¹ in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, ²² in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. Eph. 2:19-22

Today, I don’t think it matters what building you assemble in as long as you realize that you are the temple and you were called to be the church. Not just to go to a building on Sunday morning. Christ has called each one of us into service. Whether it be preaching the Gospel to the lost, praying for others, teaching new converts. The point is that we all play an important role and not one of us was ever expected to remain in a state of infancy and ignorance to God’s will and purpose in our life. It becomes apparent when we leave the pews and podiums behind and gather in true service and worship.

I will go one step further. I believe it is Christ’s command that we worship and serve in the manner set forth in scripture. Look at the dismal failure that man’s system of pews and podiums have produced. There are too many false converts who disregard Christ’s holiness, commandments and put on a fake face. This includes the pastor in many cases. There is no place for the Holy Spirit to speak in God’s time because of man’s constriction on time. God cannot use people caught up in a pre-programmed program. Will he not hold us accountable for not listening for His voice? Please brothers and sisters in Christ. Consider carefully how you walk with Christ. If you were not aware of this before. Perhaps you will now take seriously our Lord Jesus’ call to come back to true service and worship as we serve each other and reach out to plant seeds by preaching to the lost. Let us be the example of Christ on this earth and not a people hidden away in a building called church once or twice a week!