Verse: 1 Corinthians 6:18-20
18 Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body. 19 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.
Thoughts
This is definitely one of the reasons people resist they way of Jesus. They don't like that there is a Christian "sexual ethic" - a way to live our lives as sexual beings that God blesses.
I was talking to a person one time and they said, "why would God care what we do with our bodies?"
This verse tells us why. Because our bodies -- YOUR BODY -- is sacred, special, blessed, loved, and amazing.
In the time that Paul wrote this, the Temple was the most sacred place in the world for the Jewish people. It was the center of their religion, and it literally housed the presence of God. It was like the White House for the US government. It wasn't just a building, it represented so much more.
So when Paul says this it is revolutionary and mind blowing: your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. Can you hear this? Your body isn't just a mass of cells randomly thrown together. Your body also isn't just this shell that you can do whatever you want to or with.
Your body was bought with a price: the price of Jesus' blood. Your body is valuable beyond measure. And your body houses the very presence of God.
Can you even begin to wrap your mind around this?
That is why God has a sexual ethic for us. He doesn't want us to tarnish, stain, or abuse the body that houses his Spirit.
Maybe this will help someone out there. The sexual ethic of the Bible isn't about just ruining all your fun, or being prosaic, or being stuck in the past. No. It is actually counter cultural and revolutionary. It is also liberating and life giving. It is the way Jesus intended it. And the reason is that he has invested so much value in you, that he doesn't want you to harm yourself. He knows how valuable you are - more than you even do!
We learn at a young age to take special care of really valuable things right? Well, the lesson today is to take special care of our bodies. Let's learn to esteem what God has given us like he does!
Prayer
Help me to understand how holy and sacred my body is!