Defining the Temple is necessary in order to understand how the temple is defiled and defended. The temple in which God lives on earth today is the body of a born-again believer. This is such an overwhelming thought, that God actually indwells the believer with His Holy Spirit. This can become confusing to some who ask the question, "If the Holy Spirit of God lives in me, how could evils spirits get into me as well." How can sin and evil thoughts live in the temple of God? Evil spirits can get in the temple just like evil thoughts and sinful actions. By choices we make and gates that we open.

Our Body is a trinity, we are three in one. We are a spirit that has a soul that lives in a body. The best comparison I know is to look at our body, or more correctly our being, as a temple or tabernacle, as Paul calls it in 1 Corinthians 5:1. "For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens." Do you recall the Old Testament tabernacle? It was three parts; an outer courtyard, then the actual structure of the tabernacle included the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies. The Holy Place was twice as large as the Holy of Holies.

The Tabernacle is a picture of our being. The courtyard represents our flesh, the Holy Place-our soul, and the Holy of Holies-our spirit. The Holy of Holies is where the Spirit of God dwells. This is important in understanding how the temple is defiled. Where does the spirit of God dwell in the believer? In our spirit! Not in our soul and flesh, that is the part of us that we can yield to God or to disobedience. Our soul is made up of our mind, will and emotions. Our flesh is that which can be seen, touched, felt . . . it has substance. The spirit has no substance. It is intangible, it is our spirit that is born-again and it is in our spirit that the Holy Spirit of God takes up residence.

Perhaps the spirit is also the "inner man". It is very important to understand that we are a trinity. We are a three-part being. The spirit has been born again, the soul and the flesh are "being saved" as we yield ourselves and conform to the image of Christ. It is the soul and the flesh that can be inhabited by demon powers. It is the soul where spiritual battle takes places and often it manifests in the flesh.

The mind is the battlefield. The mind and the brain are separate but I cannot scientifically prove to you how I know this. The brain is physical, the mind is soulish. The seed of sin is in the mind while the fruit of sin may be manifested in the flesh. Demons do not, cannot, possess a believer but they can and do "oppress" believers and the oppression takes place in the body and soul.

How is the temple of God defiled? Do you recall how angry Jesus became when He entered the Temple and saw it "defiled" by those buying and selling, and by the money changers. "And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the money changers, and the seats of them that sold doves, and said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple; and he healed them." Matthew 21:1`2-14.

The things of the world had been brought into the Temple. That’s how it is defiled today, when we invite things of the world into our lives. This also becomes an invitation for demon spirits to inhabit the temple! Like rats are attracted to garbage, when our life has unconfessed sin, unbroken curses or un-forgiveness, the demons come and they defile the temple.

They must be "driven" out. They cannot be medicated out, nor counseled out. Neither can they be removed by you "willing" them to be gone. All Christian activity is helpful in keeping the demons somewhat "in check", but to be rid of them, they must be "cast out". They must be driven out in the Name of Jesus Christ! Jesus said, "In my name CAST out devils." Can the temple be defiled? Absolutely! Just as Jesus saw the Holy Temple of God defiled, He sees ours defiled by things we have permitted in our lives. Now the lie we have believed is that once we have confessed our sin, the demons leave. Not necessarily so. Repentance and confession of sin cancels the penalty of sin, we are certainly cleansed of sin, but have the demons been commanded to leave? The "permission" of the demon spirit to be there has been cancelled but I have found they often do not leave until they are commanded to do so. Notice that healing came after the temple was cleansed!

No sin could enter the Holy of Holies; it meant certain death to come into God’s Holy Presence with sin in the life of the High Priest. Just as sin could not enter the Holy of Holies, neither can demon spirits enter the spirit of a believer. The temple polluters that Jesus chased from the temple were not in the Holy of Holies, but in the outer court. So you see possession, is not the issue. The Holy Spirit possesses our spirit, He is the owner; we are purchased, redeemed, bought with a price. Defiling the temple involves the soul and the flesh. Our mind, our will, our emotions and our flesh . . . this is where the tormentors do their damage. A defiled temple is a troubled temple! A troubled temple must be cleansed by the Lord Jesus. "Cleansed" in this case is more than being forgiven. It is driving out the source of the defilement.

DEFENDING THE TEMPLE

Remember it is not possession! It is oppression and Jesus went about doing good healing all those who were oppressed of the devil. Do they have consent to stay? That’s the issue. Have you confessed the curse-breaking power of Jesus Christ’ Name over generational sin? Has anyone commanded the spirits to leave? Have you not only repented of un-forgiveness, anger, bitterness and similar sins, but have spirits that may have come by that doorway been commanded to leave?

JUNE 13 NIGHT OF MINISTRY   Special Guest Christian Comedian Karen Mayer Cunningham. Please make plans for this night at the historic Old Bedford School. Karen's son was healed of autism.

Please check our website for upcoming radio and TV interviews.