You live in a home, your own a vehicle, you borrow books from the library, and you use a car service for transportation. Each of these are instances of things not being yours to do with what you please, because if treated poorly, there is a cost (specifically financially) to your actions. The way we treat our bodies is not any different.
“19Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,” – 1 Corinthians 6:19 (ESV)
I will admit, I did not think of my body this way. I know, as Christians do, that my body is a temple for God and the Holy Spirit, but I did not put the consequences fully together. Study this morning brought me to a different understanding.
Commentary from my NIV Bible: “If you line in a building owned by someone else, you try not to violate the building’s rules. Because your body belongs to God, you must not violate his standards for living.”
And from my ESV Bible: “As with other gifts from God, Christians are to exercise responsible stewardship over their bodies.”
As children of God, we are to be good stewards of what God has afforded us. Our bodies are no different.
“20for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” – 1 Corinthians 6:20 (ESV)
As parents, if our boys want something, we often require them to pay for all or some of the item. This practice is to be sure they take ownership and will care for the item as opposed to treating it poorly. We also teach them that when they are interacting with someone else’s things they should care for it better than their own.
Our body is no different. We were purchased by Christ’s death on the cross and that purchase was for all of us, including our bodies. We are obligated to treat our bodies better than the things we purchase for ourselves for they belong to God.
How are you treating your body? Are you treating it as though you are a renter while here on earth? Do you really know; what is the meaning of your body belonging to God?
Trevor's Thoughts 