Monday, June 8, 2026

2 Corinthians 6:14-7:2  

The Temple of the Living God  

14 Do not be mismatched with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and lawlessness have in common? Or what partnership is there between light and darkness? 15 What agreement does Christ have with Beliar? Or what does a believer share with an unbeliever? 16 What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God, as God said,  

“I will live in them and walk among them,  
    and I will be their God,  
    and they shall be my people.  
17 Therefore come out from them,  
    and be separate from them, says the Lord,  
and touch nothing unclean;  
    then I will welcome you,  
18 and I will be your father,  
    and you shall be my sons and daughters,  
says the Lord Almighty.”  

7 Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of flesh and of spirit, making holiness perfect in the fear of God.  

Paul’s Joy at the Church’s Repentance  

2 Make room in your hearts for us; we have wronged no one; we have corrupted no one; we have taken advantage of no one.  

In elementary school science, we learned about density with a simple experiment: mix vegetable oil and water in a jar.  

Because they have different densities, the two liquids won’t truly combine. You can shake the jar and cloud things up for a moment, but given time they separate again.  

Illustrations only go so far, but this one can help us hear what Paul is saying. He calls God’s people to live “in the jar” of everyday life alongside others, while remaining distinct in our identity and values. That distinctness isn’t for superiority or separation for its own sake. It’s so that we can live as “the temple of the living God”—a people through whom God’s presence is made tangible in the world.  

In other words, we are called to be a place where people who don’t yet know God can encounter God through love, service, worship, and care. As followers of Jesus, we don’t show up passively. We have a role to play—and that role is good news. When the church shows up as God’s hands and feet and heart, our neighbors catch a glimpse of how willing God is to make the first move toward them.  

How are you showing up in the world today as good news for your neighbor? Where do you feel tempted to get “mixed up” by the values of our culture? What might your neighbor—and you—gain if you show up as Christ has sent you?  

– Pr. Jason   

Jesus, thank you for making me a messenger of your good news. Help me to  get clear on who I am in you so that i can be who i am called to be for the world. Amen.