Payment and purchase

I keep thinking about temples and "bought with a price". The things my mind stick on are the ideas that God was exact and particular about the tabernacle and the temple. There was to be no variance when the tabernacle was built. All the vessels were made exactly to his His order. He consulted no one and allowed no one to add to the ornamentation of His house.

Today, our bodies are His temple. Shouldnt we give them the same reverence that was given to His building?

Not only that, but Paul tells us "ye are not your own". My body doesnt belong to me. It's loaned to me, as one might loan a house or a tent to a friend. Wouldnt we expect that house or tent to be returned in the same condition it was given? Apart from general maintenance, we wouldnt expect the tenant to add or remove anything. Shouldnt it be the same with our bodies?

This then makes me think about this purchase on the Cross. Whom did Christ purchase? Was it just those who would be saved? or did He pay for the sins of the whole world?

As I think about it, there seems ample support for the idea that Christ's sacrifice paid for all sins. I picture a heavenly bank account, set up before the world was made. In it is the payment for all sins. At the cross, Jesus released that payment and made it available for anyone who will make the withdrawal.

That isnt to say that Sin was removed. The New Testament uses both terms "sins" and "Sin". There is a big difference between these concepts. "Sins" refers to my acts. "Sin" refers to the power of Sin to which I am a slave until I place my faith in Christ for salvation.

Although sins are paid for, unless we accept by faith the payment that Jesus made, that payment is not attributed to our account and we must reconcile at the last judgement. If we accept Jesus' sacrifice, by faith, then His payment is attributed to us (eternal grace), and the power of Sin is defeated in our lives (pragmatic grace). We are free from the law of sin and at liberty to serve Christ, which we were unable to do before.