Care for the Holy Place You Share

My dear son,

I treasure the community in which you share faith and life. It is precious enough to be called my temple, where the Spirit dwells. Do not regard the people within it merely as opposing sides to defeat or defend.

When opinions differ, listen fully to the facts and reasons. You can speak honestly rather than bury a disagreement. But stop before me when words begin tearing people down or when conflict itself becomes something to enjoy.

Notice whose voice is hard to hear in your gathering today. Care for your shared life with words that respect one person. I want you to cherish the community I love with both kindness and truth.

With all my love,
Your Father

1 Corinthians 3:16–17

WEB

16Don’t you know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you?
17If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is holy, which you are.

A short reflection

Paul calls the divided Corinthian congregation God's holy temple, inhabited by the Spirit, and warns against destroying that community.

World English Bible (WEB) · Public DomainRead the chapter