Beyond the Weekend

September 5 | The Church as a Temple

September 5, 2022

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him. 1 Peter 2:4

Read: 1 Peter 2:4–10
Listen: 
1 Peter 2

TODAY’S MESSAGE

Step into a city in the first-century Roman Empire and you’d encounter a temple of some sort. They were often one of the most impressive buildings in the city. Their stature wasn’t by accident. They were meant to represent the grandeur of the god. These temples were a place where people believed the layer between the world of the gods and their world thinned. They could experience the presence of god there. A worshiper brought sacrifices to thank the god for their provision, appease the god, and ask for further favor.

This week, we look at a letter the Apostle Peter writes to new Christians living in the Roman province of Asia. It’s a part of the world located in the modern country of Turkey. Peter uses the familiar image of the temple to frame a conversation around what it means for them to be a church community. This passage helps us see the church is more than a building. Together, we are a temple. As a church community, we provide a space where God meets us, we worship him, and we display his grandeur.

IN YOUR CHAIR TIME TODAY

Ponder the implications of the church community being the temple of God. If that’s true, it requires something of us. It makes church way more than something we go to. Commit to being open to what God places on your heart this week. Ask the Holy Spirit to make clear to you how you need to respond.


2022 BIBLE MEMORY PRACTICE

Develop spiritual roots and tap in the power of God’s word by memorizing monthly a Bible verse! View previous verses at beyondtheweekend.org/biblememorypractice.

JAMES 1:19–20
My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.


Download a printable PDF of the BTW week here.

 

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