As Jesus took His last
breath, the temple curtain split in half from top to bottom (Matthew
27:51). This curtain hung between the
Holy Place and the Most Holy Place in the temple. It separated the presence of
God from the Israelite priests. Only the high priest was allowed into the Most
Holy Place, and only after a strict regimen of cleansing. Most scholars believe
that God orchestrated this event as an object lesson for us. It signifies the
fact that we can now enter the presence of God by the blood of Jesus with
confidence in our salvation (Hebrews 10:19).
Jesus cleanses us from our
humanity, so that we may serve the Living God through His divinity within us (Hebrews
9:14). We are the temple of the Holy
Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19).
Christ lives in us (Colossians 1:27).
Our Spirit is the Most Holy Place where God dwells within us. God made us a
sanctuary in which He can dwell (Exodus 25:8),
cleansed from sin by the blood of the perfect Lamb of God (1 Peter
1:19). We are His priests and we shall
reign with Him during the Millennium for 1000 years (Revelation
20:6).
We are also citizens of
Heaven (Philippians 3:20).
Our great High Priest is our King as well. He gave His life to allow us access
to our Father’s throne. When we accept Him as our Savior, he sets His seal of
ownership on us and gives us His Spirit as a down payment of our inheritance (2
Corinthians 1:22). Once we repent of our
sins, ask for forgiveness and surrender our will to Him, He moves into our Born
Again spirit and resides within us all through our lifetime. He places us in
His Body and we work together for His glory.
It is so good and pleasant
for the Body of Christ to dwell together in unity (Psalm
133:1). Our love for Jesus and for one
another is a testimony to the world that He really does dwell within us (John
13:35). The bond of Christ’s love for us
and in us brings unity to all of us in His Body no matter where we live or how
old we are (1 Corinthians 1:10).
As the Spirit sanctifies each one of us, we learn to conduct our self as an
example of the gospel of Christ. We stand together in our faith and by one
Spirit. We think, act and believe as one Body (Philippians 1:27, 2:2).
We prefer one another above
our self (Romans 12:10) and we
search the scriptures together to come to a similar understanding of His Word (Acts
17:11). When one member of Christ’s Body
suffers, we all suffer; and when one rejoices, we all rejoice (1
Corinthians 12:26). As authentic
Believers, we are an exact representation of Christ (Colossian
1:15). We all share the same vision to
live Godly and the same purpose to save souls. We will all spend eternity with
one another in His presence (Titus 3:5-7).
We are also unified with the
Father through Christ by the Spirit (John 17:21-22). We share in the unity of the triune God and we live
as an example to the world of a God of love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness,
goodness, meekness, self-control and faith (Galatians 5:22-23; John 17:21). We put on the mind of Christ, speak the words given
to us by His Spirit and follow His will for each moment of our day.
Prayer:
Father God, You are our safe
haven and our power to deal with temptation and persecution (Psalm
46:1). Even in the most unthinkable and
earth shattering circumstances, with our faith in Your faithfulness, we have no
reason to fear (Psalm 46:1-3). We
consider trails as a time of great joy, because they are an adventure. We stop
our stressing and watch You work in our behalf (James 1:2; Psalm 46:10). We are Your children (Romans 8:15). You promise never to leave us or to forsake us (Hebrews
13:5). You, our Mighty God who saves us,
lives within us. You celebrate over us with delight. You calm us with Your
love. You even rejoice over us with thunderous singing (Zephaniah
3:17).
Thought for the Day:
Our hope in Christ is the
sure and steadfast anchor for our soul. – Hebrews 6:19Thank you, Stephanie Bentley for sharing this photo.
