I Believe… I am a temple.

Last week we looked at why what we believe matters in the face of a storm. What about when you are faced with temptation? Does it matter what you believe? Absolutely!

In our Under Renovations series we looked at how we are living in the world but we ought not to conform to the culture and patterns of the world. There is always going to be temptation to conform. Well, everyone else is doing it so it must be ok. But is it really?

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 says, “Have you forgotten that your body is now the sacred temple of the Spirit of Holiness, who lives in you? You don’t belong to yourself any longer, for the gift of God, the Holy Spirit, lives inside your sanctuary. You were God’s expensive purchase, paid for with tears of blood, so by all means, then, use your body to bring glory to God!”

If we truly believe that what the Word of God says is true, then that means we must also believe that God has taken up residence in our hearts. He lives in us. He is a Holy God, living in broken vessels. Such grace that He would do such a thing!

Now, if we truly believe that, what must we do when we are faced with temptation? Give in and just say its ok because everyone else seems to be doing it? No. Not everyone has the Holy God living in them but you do. Therefore, you cannot measure your life with the standard of the world but you must measure it against the Word of God. If the Word of God calls something a sin, it is a sin. We must not dabble in it, even a little bit. We must subject our minds to the process of renovation and keep capturing every thought as a prisoner of war and running our thoughts through the Philippians 4:8 test before they turn into action.

If you believe your life is worthless and God is so distant from you, you will act as such. But if you dig into the word of God and realise that He promised that He would never leave you nor forsake you (Hebrews 13:5), then you will be reminded of His Presence in you and with you in every situation. God doesn’t step outside your body when you sin. He stays with you. Holy as He is, He loves you too much to leave you. It breaks my heart- just the thought of subjecting a Holy and Pure God to our unholiness and impurity. Yet He loves us so much still.

We must step out of darkness and allow the light of God to enter our hearts and our lives. There is no temptation that is too strong that we cannot overcome it. 1 Corinthians 10:13 says, “We all experience times of testing, which is normal for every human being. But God will be faithful to you. He will screen and filter the severity, nature, and timing of every test or trial you face so that you can bear it. And each test is an opportunity to trust him more, for along with every trial God has provided for you a way of escape that will bring you out of it victoriously”.

If we believe God has taken up residence in our lives, we must also believe that He will help us overcome every single trial and temptation that comes along our way. Does this mean we will become perfect people? No. Even God does not ask us to be perfect. We will still miss it or drop the ball or mess up sometimes but we must be quick to run back to Him for help. He is never looking at us with arms crossed but His arms are always open wide so we can run straight into His embrace. He is a good Father and a good God and He loves you. Don’t be stuck in sin, Jesus has the keys to unstick you and unlock the prison doors of shame. Run to Him always.

Love and blessings

Melissa Tsingano