RSS

Building One Another


E. Stanley Ott

OUR BODIES OUR LORD'S Vol 11 No 20

September 18, 2012

Dear Friend,

 We live in a day in which we are barraged with matters relating to sexual behavior and in a culture that is rapidly finding ways to affirm all forms of sexual expression. When Paul wrote the Corinthian church addressing many aspects of personal behavior, including food, drink, and sexual practices, he concluded with a very powerful word:

“Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you were bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body (I Corinthians 6:19-20).* 

In two short sentences we see four huge ideas!

  • Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. Our Lord dwells in your body – and not in buildings!
  • You are not your own! No wiggle room here. The body you dwell in belongs to God! Period.
  • You were bought with a price.  The price Jesus paid to give you an eternal future with God was all he had to give, his very life. So the value our Lord places on you and the body you live in is high. Very high.
  • Therefore, glorify God in your body. This is one of those “therefores” where the huge ideas that precede the “therefore” lend tremendous force to the “why” of the requested behavior.

Think about how you are treating and using your body? Does it reflect the value our Lord has for you? Glorify God and not just in some abstract or simply verbal way – but with your body!

With joy - E. Stanley Ott
Copyright 2012 E. Stanley Ott
*Scripture from the NRSV