Historically speaking, there was a temple in the ancient city of Jerusalem, but in the New Jerusalem there is no temple (Rev. 21:22), for God Himself and Christ are the temple. We may ask, then, since God and Christ are the temple, are They the Dwellers within the city or are They the dwelling place? The answer is, They are both. They are the temple, where the serving ones will dwell and serve. A temple is a place where those who serve God dwell. We have already seen how the dwellers are the dwelling place, and the dwelling place consists of the dwellers. If we would dwell in the church today, we must be built into it, we must become a part of it. This is very subjective. The dwellers are also the dwelling place. If we are not built into the New Jerusalem, we will never get into that city. But here is something more: God is the very God whom we serve, but He is also the temple where we serve. That means that we serve God in God. These thoughts are exceedingly deep. Where are you serving God today? Are you in a material building or an organization? Oh, God and Christ are our temple! We must serve God in God; we must serve Christ in Christ. God Himself and Christ Himself are the temple in which we serve God and Christ.
The thirty-sixth point is that the holy city is also the dwelling place of God (Rev. 21:3). God and Christ dwell in this city. On one hand They are the temple in which we dwell, and on the other hand They are also the Dwellers within the city. This means that the New Jerusalem is a mutual habitation. God dwells in us, and we dwell in God. The church today is a habitation where God may dwell (Eph. 2:22), and God is the home where we may dwell (Psa. 90:1). This is not a new concept. Christ said in John 15, “Abide in me, and I in you” (v. 4). He is saying in essence, “I am your abode, and you are My abode.” So together with God we become a mutual habitation. How profound! To God we are the city, and to us God and Christ are the temple. We have the presence of God and Christ as the temple to us. We are not just before God’s presence and Christ’s presence; we are in God’s presence and Christ’s presence. The presence of God and Christ becomes a dwelling place for us. If we would serve God and Christ in the church, we must be surrounded by God and Christ, and covered by God and Christ. We must serve God and Christ in God and Christ. Oh, how much we need Him! He is the One whom we serve, and He is even the temple in which we serve. Do you realize and experience God and Christ in such a way? Do you serve God and Christ in such a way? This is intensely subjective.
Human logic argues that such a mutual habitation is absurd. Some may ask, “Who then is within, and who is without? If God and Christ are within us, how can they ever be outside of us? If God and Christ are in us, we can never dwell in God and Christ.” The best logician can never comprehend this. But consider, the air is within us and the air is also outside of us. The air is in me, and I am in the air. If the air were not in me, I would soon expire. And if I were not in the air, I could never breathe. It is not difficult to believe this subjective fact.
God and Christ are in you, and you are in God and Christ. Praise Him! We may experience this as a reality in our life. One day, in the new heaven and new earth, we will realize this in the fullest way. We will see how much God and Christ are to us. He dwells in us, and we dwell in Him; so we will enjoy His presence to the uttermost!
This brings us to our thirty-seventh point. Another reason the holy city is without a temple is that the whole city is the temple. And since the city is foursquare and equal in three dimensions, the whole city is not just the temple, but the holiest of all. During the time of Noah and Abraham, the small tent and altar had very little shape. There was no outer court, holy place, or holiest of all. When God and the two angels visited Abraham, they abode with him outside the tent (Gen. 18). Then during the time of Moses there was the tabernacle with an altar, a building with more shape. The holiest of holies in this tabernacle was in three equal dimensions. Later, the temple of Solomon was built in the same pattern as the tabernacle, with the dimensions all enlarged. These second and third stages of God’s building had more form. Finally, the New Jerusalem, as the ultimate stage of God’s building, has just one part: everything is swallowed up by the holiest of holies. There is no longer an outer court or a holy place. Neither is there a need for the temple, for the whole city is the temple, and every part of the city has been translated into the holiest of all. This is one reason the city is called the holy city. Such a city is the ultimate manifestation of God’s building.
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