1 Corinthians 6
One of the phrases that most clearly
displays the radical individualism that U.S. Americans revel in is, “It’s my
body! I’ll do what I want with it!” It comes up when people discuss abortion,
nutrition, exercise, and other matters. To many this line of reasoning is like
laying a trump card that beats all other cards on the table. Except, what if we
are wrong? What if these are not, strictly speaking, our bodies?
Paul preaches, “You are not your own,
for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” God is saying, “I paid for you. The price was
very high; the blood of my son! You are mine, body and all.”
On the one hand this is a strong word of
God’s Law. It speaks to sexual immorality (hetero- and homosexual), business
conduct, drunkenness, and much more. These are things we should not participate
in. Why not? We belong to God and are accountable to Him. He has every right to
make demands of us because He not only created us, but also redeemed us at great
cost to Himself. We can say, “All things are lawful for me!” all we want, defiantly
claiming a freedom we do not own. God says, “You are Mine, and what I want for
you is better than what you want. Slavery in My service is better than the
so-called freedom the world offers.”
On the other hand this message that we
can glorify God with our bodies is a beautiful word of God’s Gospel. The
redemption that we have in Jesus makes us holy, and that holiness “infects” all
aspects of our lives. It is not just the pastor, missionary, or church worker
who does righteous work. We all do. Jesus’ salvation has such dramatic impact
on our lives that all things that we do in faith are holy to the Lord – even our
physical work.
When we cut our grass, wash our dishes,
work on automobiles, crunch numbers, apply our minds to problems, change
diapers, pull weeds, fix plumbing, set up computer networks, drive truck, or
whatever we do with our bodies, it glorifies God when we do it in faith that
Jesus has given us forgiveness for our sins. He is pleased when we use these
bodies in faith. Indeed, in the end He intends to give us new resurrected
bodies in which we will perfectly glorify God.
Lord, help me live in Your forgiveness and
glorify You with my body. Let me see that I am Yours and, knowing it, give
thanks to You. Amen.
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