“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. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. And will be a father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty” (KJV, 2 Cor. 6:16-18).
“And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols?”
Paul’s teaching in 2 Corinthians 6:16-18 is based upon the need to be set apart. God has called the Christian to be in the world but not of the world. Thus it should be evident if someone is a Christian. The line should not be blurred.
Paul asks a rhetorical question. What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? The temple of God in the Old Testament was designed for God alone. The temple’s construction was given much consideration, and the grandeur of the temple was evident as well.
The Christian can gain an understanding of the text by looking at God first. What would God do if an idol was brought into His temple? He would do one of two things.
First, He would act like Jesus, Who looked upon the idolatrous practices of the money changers and drove them out.
Second, God may leave His temple as He is holy and desires to be set apart.
“for ye are the temple of the living God”
In connecting the previous statement, it is clear that the Christian should act like God. He must realize he is a temple of the living God. Therefore, he is called to be like Jesus, Who was zealous for purity.
He is also called to respond like God and set himself apart from idols.
Being the temple of God is foundational for set-apartness. Many laws in the Old Testament do not apply any longer. But this does not mean there is no value in understanding them.
For instance, God sought to establish the Israelites in the Promised Land. As a result, He gave them many laws to set them apart from the neighboring nations. He told them not to eat pigs or boil a goat in its mother’s milk. These practices, and more, were done to sanctify the people.
Elsewhere, God told them not to sow different kinds of seeds in the same field or make an article of clothing with two different pieces of material. The lesson was the same. They were to set themselves apart and were to think about it constantly.
“as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them”
God gives His reasoning for desiring the Christian to set Himself apart. It is because of God’s desire to dwell within the Christian and walk with him. God is holy. Therefore, God will only manifest Himself where set-apartness is evident.
The indwelling God is a reality for the Christian in the New Testament. Jesus said, “In that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you” (John 14:20).
Elsewhere Paul said, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me” (Gal. 2:20).
From the beginning, God desired to walk with His people. This can be seen in God walking in the Garden in the cool of the day.
But due to sin, God set Himself apart from man. But when man seeks to set Himself apart from the world, he will experience the presence of God once again.
“and I will be their God, and they shall be my people”
What does it mean to be God’s people? Indeed it is more than simply saying, “I am a Christian.” There must be a visible manifestation if it is true. If a tree is known by its fruit, then a Christian must also be identified as a person of God through observation.
“Wherefore come out from among them”
Since the Christian is a temple of God, God dwells in the Christian and walks with the Christian, and since the Christian is a person of God, Paul says, “Wherefore.” The conclusion is that the Christian must come out from among them.
The Christian must remove himself from false teaching, sinful habits, and old ways. There is to be an evident display of the Christian’s conversion and new identity.
“and be ye separate, saith the Lord”
Thus, the Christian is to be separate. Scripture says, “For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens” (Heb. 7:26).
Christ is meant to be the goal and example. It is essential never to forget this. Christ’s identity and attitude toward sin and falsehood were clear.
This did not mean Christ never associated with unbelievers, for He did. But he called them to repentance, and each encounter was ministerial in nature. He did not simply “hang out” with unbelievers and teachers of false doctrine.
“and touch not the unclean thing”
The unclean thing in Paul’s context is anything opposed to God’s holiness. God’s instruction to the Israelites, given through Moses, consisted of many clean versus unclean teachings. God desired for the people to take note of the holiness of God in all they did. So must the Christian be guided by knowledge of God’s holiness.
“and I will receive you”
Then the outcome of the matter is presented. God receives the one who sets himself apart. When the Christian sets himself apart, he acknowledges his death in Christ and forsakes the world. He embraces his new identity and realizes that life comes through losing his life rather than seeking to save it.
The Christian must take the words of Paul seriously. The life one lives before God is his offering to God. Paul tells the Christian to offer himself as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God. But then it is essential to remember Cain and Abel. Abel was accepted by God, but Cain was not.
To Cain, God said, “But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him” (Gen. 4:5-7).
“And will be a father unto you”
When someone gives his life as an offering to God, God will be a Father to him. Thus, the context is salvation, and it is clear there must be a set-apartness of one’s life from the beginning.
This may start small, but there must be a seed of what will ultimately flourish.
God is the Father of the Christian. This fact is made clear. God desires to take the Christian as His own and be a Father throughout all eternity.
“and ye shall be my sons and daughters”
Thus, the Christian is a child of God. Adoption into God’s family comes by way of faith. John said concerning Jesus, “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name” (John 1:12).
There must be a reception of Jesus which infers a turning (repentance) from the world before someone can become a child of God.
“saith the Lord Almighty”
John said that Jesus gives a person the power to become a son of God. Here Paul speaks of God Almighty. It is by the power of the Almighty God that someone is adopted into the family of God.
Final prayer
Father, I thank You for Your grace towards me. Please help me to live a sanctified life before You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.