of three times in first and second Corinthians, the apostle Paul regards the individual Christians body, as the temple of God, once in Ephesians, he talks about all of the members, all of the people, the corporate body of Christ, as God's temple, but three times in first and second Corinthians, he's referring to the individual Christian, as the temple. So Paul is speaking here about the physical human body. And what he is dealing with is a culture that was existing in Corinth, at the time, and that was the culture of pleasure. So what I want you to do is notice something we're gonna look at context here, I want you to go back to verse 12. Paul says, All things are lawful for me. But all things are not helpful. Just because I can do anything. They're not right. I shouldn't do all things. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any I'm not going to be addicted to anything. Foods for the stomach, and the stomach for foods. But God will destroy both it and them. Now the body is not for sexual immorality, but for the Lord and the Lord for the body. And God both raised up the Lord, and will also raise us up by His power. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a harlot? Certainly not. Or do you not know that he who is joined to a harlot as one body with her, for the two he says, shall become one flesh, but he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him, fleeing sexual immorality, every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commit sexual immorality sins against his own body? 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, for your body at a price therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's? Now, verse 13, was a slogan spoken by people who lived in Corinth, I want you to notice what it was. It says foods for the stomach, and the stomach for foods people were saying that all over the streets of corn, that was a modern common slogan in Corinth 2000 years ago. And what it meant was this. Food is a necessity, but it's also a pleasure. And for that matter, so as sex, it's a necessity for procreation, but it's also very pleasurable. So they use this little slogan to justify their excessive behavior. They used it to justify gluttony, sexual immorality, drunkenness, it was a lifestyle of hedonism. It's all about getting pleasure from my body. So Paul says, that may be true, that food and sex are both necessities as well as a pleasure. But what you need to know is your body serves a higher purpose than just your pleasure. It is God's place. It's a holy place. So get this, you have a body. But you are not just your body, your body and spirit. Paul says that in verse 20, that you should glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's, so you have a spirit, but you also have a body and the body is the means by what your spirit communicates to others around you. You want to share your feelings, your innermost thoughts, how you process things, your values, that comes through the medium of your physical body, but Paul calls it a temple. Something they would be familiar with, because in Corinth, there were many temples, and I've been to Corinth and I've seen the ruins of the temples to Aphrodite and Apollo and sklep, EOS and others. But if they were Jewish in their background, some of them were, they would automatically think that there was also a temple in Jerusalem to the true and living God. And that would have special meaning to them. Because a temple was a place of worship, a temple was a place of prayer, a temple was a place As of sacrifice, celebration, temples were built in cities to remind inhabitants of that city that God had a plan and a purpose for their life. So when he says your body is a temple, it's very significant. So these temples were built, but they were also kept clean, you know, they would build a temple, they wouldn't just let it go off on its own, they would maintain and clean that temple, even in Jerusalem. If if you remember, I'm not holding you accountable to remember this small detail. But back in First Chronicles chapter 23, after Solomon built the temple, it says that he employed 38,000 People 38,000 Men Levites to help the priests with their daily responsibilities, and 24,000 of them were to look after the work of the house of the Lord, that if they were to maintain the temple, clean the temple, make sure it was just right. And then we even say that Jesus twice in his ministry, we call it cleansed the temple I've ever heard that terminology. That didn't mean he had a sponge in a bucket. He's out there cleaning the temple, I meant that he took a whip, and he drove out of the temple, those who are buying and selling, and the temple courts, he cleanse the temple. Likewise, when we view our body as a temple, we are raising the viewpoint of our life where it raises life to a higher plane. Because now I see my body not just as a tent, though it is temporary. I don't see my body as a tenement, I don't see my body as a trash can I see my body as a temple. So your body is a holy place. Second, affirming truth, second positive truth about your body. Your body is a holy place, but your body is has a holy person. That's what makes it a holy place. Did you see what he said, your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you and whom you have from God? In ancient pagan temples, there was the belief among the pagans that the god or goddess that they worshiped at that temple, was housed in that temple. So they would put up an idol, a statue. And they actually believed that the god or goddess inhabited that likeness, that idol that was represented. Now this was far different from Jerusalem. Was there any statue in the temple in Jerusalem, any picture of God? How many pictures of God or statues were there? This many zero, because of the second commandment, they couldn't make statues, they could make images of God. They believed, however, the God was present there, they called it the covered the holy presence of God in the temple. But they knew that the the power of God and the might of God does not dwell in temples, as Solomon said, and Stephen repeats in the New Testament, for the most High, does not dwell in temples made with hands. He does, however, dwell in this temple, the physical body of the Christian, he takes up residence in your body. Jesus Christ said, in John 14, speaking of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth dwells with you, and he will be in you. So your body is a holy place because your body houses a holy person, the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Triune God. What does that mean to you practically? Well, what it should mean is that you ought to see your body as the base of operations from which the Holy Spirit works in the lives of people around you. Just as Jesus moved from Nazareth to Capernaum, and made Capernaum, to headquarters for three and a half years of His earthly ministry, start looking at your body as H S. H. Q. Holy Spirit's headquarters. Right now in my physical body, he is taking up residence in me. So Jesus wanted to win you, so the Holy Spirit can dwell in you. That's part of his redemptive plan. It's not just to save you, it's to save you and then use you by planting His Holy Spirit in you as the base of operations. So my body as a temple should be used to worship and serve the true and living God, hold that thought. When Paul writes his letter to the Philippians, which we covered in depth on Sunday mornings not too long ago, he said a strange phrase and chapter three. He spoke about those whose God is their belly. That weird phrase, whose God is their belly whether go ha, hallelujah belly, I praise you worship. That's just