1 Corinthians 3:16-17 (NKJV)

Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.

Some people have isolated the phrase “God will destroy him” out of its context to mean that true believers after being in-dwelt with the Holy Spirit of God can loose their salvation.

Explanation

According to the previous section in the same chapter, the temple being referred to here is the collective body of believers – the local church (1 Cor. 3:10-14), not our individual bodies. 

Moreover, the Greek word translated “you” refers to believers collectively, not individually. 

In no way is this verse about the loss of salvation or a person’s soul. This is even confirmed by the previous verse (1 Corin 3:15) that assures us that each worker will be saved even if they lose their reward. 

1 Corinthians 3:15 (NKJV)

If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.

This does not mean, however, that believers can follow their hearts and not worry about God punishing/correcting them if they continue to defile the temple. 

As the previous verses (1 Corn 3:1-22) demonstrate, this passage is part of an extensive teaching on maintaining unity as well as a warning not to let loyalty to human leadership keep us from making rational decisions. In addition, it also serves as a reminder for church leaders that God’s house must be preserved with extreme care.  

The context of Paul’s words is concerning internal strife and division within the church.

During the early Christian era, certain false ministers attempted to destroy God’s temple—the church—by promoting dangerous teachings. Some of these individuals sought to incorporate Greek philosophy into Christian doctrine, diluting the gospel message. Additionally, the Judaizers in the church sought to undermine the gospel by teaching salvation through works, insisting that adherence to the law was necessary for salvation.

Paul strongly refuted this, affirming that salvation comes solely through faith in Jesus Christ. Any addition to this truth was considered a false gospel.

The doctrine of “salvation by works” is like building with worthless, corruptible materials on the solid foundation of Christ, which leads to spiritual ruin.

A modern day counterpart to these false builders would be liberal ministers who deny Christ’s deity, reject the inspired Bible, see Jesus’ death as a martyr or just as an example of love, reject a literal hell, and dozens of other heretical beliefs. In addition, some evangelicals have watered down the gospel as a means to to gain numbers, power, success, and money by making the message acceptable to people.

Here are some practical things that may defile God’s temple:

• Dividing the church by creating groups and factions within the body (1 Corinthians 1:10-13).
• Abandoning the simplicity of the gospel by seeking wisdom or teachings outside of its core message (1 Corinthians 3:18-20).
• Sexual immorality, as addressed in 1 Corinthians 5.
• Taking a brother to court, creating conflict among believers (1 Corinthians 6:1-8).
• Divorce, disrupting the unity of the family and church (1 Corinthians 7).
• Misusing Christian liberty by using one’s rights in a way that causes a weaker brother to stumble (1 Corinthians 8-10).
• Misconduct at the Lord’s Supper (1 Corinthians 11:17-34).
• False teaching, corrupting the truth of the gospel (1 Corinthians 15).

We must keep in mind that this passage is part of Paul’s discussion of the issue of division in the church at Corinth. His Epistle begins with four chapters dedicated to this subject. In other words, what he means is that those who divide the church destroy it. The church of Jesus Christ is a living organism not a mere organization. If you cut a cake into six pieces, you are not destroying it; you are just preparing it for serving.

This is because a cake is an organization. In contrast, if you divide a dog into two, you have destroyed him because he is an organism. As the Corinthian church became divided into four cliques or parties (1 Cor 1:12), so did its members (1 Cor 1:2). As a result, it was in danger of being destroyed.