Word for the day by Christian Education Forum
TEMPERANCE DAY
BODY: THE TEMPLE OF GOD TO BE KEPT IN HOLINESSI Corinthians 6:12-20
12 “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. "I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything.13 You say, “Food for the stomach and the stomach for food, and God will destroy them both.” The body, however, is not meant for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. 14 By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also. 15 Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never! 16 Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, “The two will become one flesh.”[a] 17 But whoever is united with the Lord is one with him in spirit. [b]
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.
The book of Corinthians is a series of letters written by Apostle Paul to the Corinthian church, a congregation that was divided and a congregation that critiqued the views of the church and its practices. Through the book, Apostle Paul tries to address the various critiques of the church and tries to draw the people's focus off the attitude “it's all about me "and tries to direct it towards the higher calling.
This passage in specific addresses the idea that “Everything is permissible to a Christian as Christ has set us free”, When we make choices with this mindset, we make choices that ultimately hurt our own self. For e.g.., The idea of indulging in certain foods because it makes us feel better and over time leading to overindulgence to those foods eventually hurts our own body. Or even living an immoral life as we have the freedom to do so as Christ has already paid the price and all we need to do is ask for his forgiveness.... all leads down a path that eventually hurts our own self. Apostle Paul tries to instruct us by saying in verse 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; you were bought at a price. Therefore, honor God with your bodies.” He is telling us that we have been ransomed for, we are already bought with a price, we are not our own, our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, and He lives in us. So, my individual body is not mine, but it is God's creation meant to be used for His purposes.
In the 1970s writer Tom Wolfe and Christopher Lasch wrote about the rise of a culture of narcissism among younger Baby Boomers, the "Me decade". The “Me decade” phrase became popular at a time when "self-realization" and "self-fulfillment" were becoming cultural aspirations to which young people supposedly ascribed higher importance than
social responsibility. We now live in generations that follow this “me decade” that continue to have these narcissistic traits.
Billy Graham once said” I don’t believe that young people today can live clean, pure lives without the help of God. The peer pressure is too great, and the temptations of what they see in the movies and on television and on the newsstands is too much. Only Christ can give them the power to say no”
With this in mind, I challenge everyone to heed Paul's instruction and know that we are no longer our own and our bodies are already ransomed for. Let us ask the Holy Spirit to clean our hearts, minds, thoughts and bodies to s
Prayer
Heavenly Father, We thank you for creating us in your image and loved us so much that you sent your Son to bear all our sins. We thank you that you were ransomed for us, and you have given us the Holy Spirit to live in us. We pray that You mould our minds, hearts and bodies to be worthy of your abode. Help us to live lives that honor you in every breath, word and step that we take.
In the mighty name our Lord and Saviour Jesus we pray. Amen.
Mrs Veena Thomas
The Mar Thoma Church Staten Island