Is the Church a Temple?

Of late, I have realized that the present day attractional church in America has more in common with the Temple prior to the death and resurrection of Jesus than to the movement which followed.  The Temple in Jerusalem was the center of Israel's world.  It was the sun at the center of Israel's religious solar system.  Yes the razing of the Temple and the Babylonian Captivity reshaped 1st Century Judaism, but the fact remained that the Temple whether literally or metaphorically was the heart of Israel's faith.  It was believed that God dwelled in the Temple, that his very presence was enthroned over the Ark of the Covenant, the Mercy Seat, and the two cherubim (indeed there are numerous Psalms and Scriptures passages that acknowledge the transcendence and omnipresence of God cf. 1Kings 8:27ff; Psalm 139, but the presence of God among humans was directly associated with the Temple as it had been the Tabernacle).  It was "professional" priests from the line of Aaron along with their assistants from the tribe of Levi who performed and executed the rituals of the faith.  This "professional" priesthood or clergy class received their sustenance and compensation from the people to whom they served.  Sound familiar.  For most denominational and non-denominational churches a building is the center of their activity.  Whether explicitly or implicitly, the message is conveyed that the presence of God among humans dwells in the Sanctuary or Worship Center or Educational Wing.  These are "sacred" spaces due honor, reverence, and respect.  The people come to the sacred building where they witness, experierence, and share in rituals delivered by "professional" clergy or priests.  It is the pastor/priest who has been uniquely set apart by God to lead the people into the presence of God.  Such a distinct and sacred calling necessitates that the people being served provide the sustenance and compensation for the pastor/priest.

The church as Temple is the antithesis of the 1st century church.  Fundamentally, the incarnation itself demonstrated that the presence of God had come to tabernacle or dwell among humanity.  The Word became flesh.  Emmanual, God with us, was the Temple (cf. John 2:18ff; Matthew 27:40ff) and it was his death that sheared the curtain that concealed the Holy of Holies in half from top to bottom (the top to bottom tear symbolizes God coming to humanity to remove all barriers to his presence).  Moreover, followers of the resurrected Jesus have become not only his body on earth, they have become a dwelling place for God.  Ephesians 2:21 states, "In him [Jesus] the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord..."  The presence of God now lives within the individual hearts and the community that confesses Jesus as Lord.  Living out this confession is not incumbant upon a centralized sacred structure or a professional priesthood.  Living out this confession is incumbant upon investing in a community committed to sacrifice, generosity, mutuality, worship, study, and prayer.  The edifice that dictates our faith does not bear an address; it bears scars.