Note: This is a continuation from our bible study on A Clean House of God.
The temple of God needs to be physically clean, mentally, clean, and spiritually clean. But it is not only known by what it looks like, what goes in and out of it, and how it operates, but also who associates with it.
During the days that a physical temple was standing, we know that only certain people were allowed to enter it. If you were unclean, the inner sanctuary was off limits. In fact, even having a “court of gentiles” did not mean that just anyone could associate with the “dwelling place of the Most High”.
Do we take the same ‘hard-line’ approach to who can associate with our own “temple”? (aka – yourself per 1 Cor 6:19-20)
“He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed. Evil pursues sinners, but to the righteous, good shall be repaid.” – Proverbs 13:20-21
This is similar to the saying “you are known by the company you keep”. As the physical dwelling place of Yah, in order to remain unleavened and sinless, we must keep ourselves Socially Clean as well.
Who do you spend your time with? We all know this scripture well: “evil company corrupts good habits” (in 1 Corinthians 15). But do we actually pay attention to it?
It is true, that those we associate with will dictate our character and actions!
I recently heard about a study done on self-made millionaires, which showed they do not associate with negative people. Instead, they actively search out people with positive outlooks on life because these millionaires know that those feelings WILL rub off on them.
Now, we can be full of pride and think to ourselves, “no, I’m tough and strong, I won’t let ungodly people influence me or rub off on me” or even “that person isn’t so bad”. Or how about “I’m going to influence them, they won’t influence me!”
Those types of thoughts are lazy, self-serving, and eventually self-deceptive.
Before we recognize that we have adopted the leavened traits of someone else, it happens!
“What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people.” Therefore, “Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you. I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters”, says the Lord Almighty.” – 2Corinthians 6:16-18
It is so very clear here.
Yahweh says to SEPARATE ourselves! He will dwell with us, be our father, if we do so.
The parable of the wayward son fits in well here: A son takes his inheritance from his father and leaves, spending it all on material things of life. As he is associating with ungodly people, actions, and things, he is apart from his father. It is only after he separates himself from his lifestyle and the people surrounding him that he returns to dwell with his father.
It’s the same for us. We must separate ourselves in order to keep our house of God socially clean.
What did Yeshua do when He found people who were contrary to Yah’s way within Yah’s house? He entered the temple and overturned the money tables, rebuked them, chased them out with a whip! He didn’t welcome them with open arms. He didn’t ‘just hang out’ with them.
We must be equally as zealous for our temple, actively removing all negative influences in order to be clean.
Let’s also scrutinize our interactions with others:
“Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that Yahweh is gracious. Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Yeshua the Messiah.” – 1 Peter 2:1-5
Peter says that in order to be a spiritual house of God, we must put aside all forms of negative interaction. Anger, intent for harm, deceit, double standards, gossiping, speaking negatively about someone. How do we act towards others? Is it in a way that a temple of God would act, or a temple of something pagan?
Unrighteousness is not just about failing to keep the Sabbath or not following one of the other laws that we keep.
Unrighteousness is about failing to have the type of character that is expected of someone whom God dwells within.
We become socially leavened when our interactions with each other, with those in the world, with our families, are not upright.
Happy Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread to you all!
