One of the many joys
of being saved is realizing that Jesus didn't just claim the allegiance of our
spirit. He claimed our bodies, too!
Romans 12:1 (New
Living Translation)
"And so, dear
brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of
all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice - the kind he
will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him."
1 Corinthians
6:19-20 (New Living Translation)
"Don’t you
realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and
was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with
a high price. So you must honor God with your body."
How is this a joy?
Because we realize
that nothing in our life needs to be outside the realm of worship. When we
exercise or eat or try to lose some weight, that can be an act of worship, an
act that proceeds out of our heart of love for the Lord.
Because we love the
Lord, we want to give Him our best. So, we take care of the body that belongs
to Him that He has temporarily entrusted to us.
It's not just a
body, though. God dwells inside it as His temple. When we truly come to
understand that principle, we will be even more motivated to give Him a place
to dwell that is worthy of His presence.
Why is this
important? Well, one of the reasons is because our culture is so infatuated
with epithelial tissue (a.k.a. 'skin'). Even Christians can succumb to getting their bodies slim and trim so
that they can merit the attention of others. They don't mind getting their
bodies into shape so that they can impress others with how they appear. Their
motive is wrong and they are stepping dangerously close to the line of
temptation that has claimed so many lives (and marriages).
Take care of God's
temple today. If it needs a 'spring cleaning,' begin today.
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