The moral conduct of Christ has to do with His absolute obedience to the Father, with His embracing of the holy ways of the Father, with His love of righteousness, and with His hatred of sin and rebellion. The same type of moral conduct is being created in each believer. We must be forgiven, cleansed, and delivered by the blood of the cross and by the power of the Holy Spirit. We must have the very Substance of Christ formed in us if we are to be changed into the moral conduct of Christ.

We are studying how the Word of God comes to maturity in us. We have mentioned that there are three aspects of the maturing of the Word of God, the maturity of the Word being the image and likeness of Christ. The three aspects are as follows:

The character of Christ formed in us.

Our becoming the Temple of God.

Our being clothed with a body of eternal life.

Our discussion was directed toward the first of these three aspects—the forming of the character of Christ in us. The character of Christ includes His Divine Essence, His attributes of personality, that we have termed His disposition, and His moral conduct. To develop the character of Christ in us requires the Word of God, the body and blood of Christ, and the Holy Spirit.

The Word, the body and blood of Christ, and the Holy Spirit are the grace of God. They have been given to us freely and cannot be added to by our fleshly efforts. Because of the blood of Christ we have been justified totally in God's sight, having been made free from all condemnation so we may follow the Holy Spirit all the way to the fullness of the image of Christ.

There are two aspects of our being made the Temple of God. The first aspect is that of our personal preparation for receiving the fullness of God into our personality. The second aspect is that of our becoming part of the Temple of God, the holy city, the new Jerusalem.

The corporate Temple of God will be assembled from individual "stones," each of which has been made perfect in advance. There will be no imperfect unit in the Temple of God. God is taking great care with each stone at this time so when the building comes together it will be perfect.

He is the Rock, his work is perfect: . . . . (Deuteronomy 32:4)

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:10)

The Temple of Solomon is a type of the corporate Temple of God. The stones were not shaped on site as they were being placed in the structure. Rather, they were prepared in advance before they were hauled to the building site. They had been formed so expertly that there was no sound of hammering while the Temple of Solomon was being erected. This extraordinary accomplishment was possible only because of the careful planning, skill, and effort that went into the stones prior to their being assembled into the Temple.

And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither: so there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building. (I Kings 6:7)

To be continued.