The Importance of the Body

I recently had a discussion with a friend that I’ve had with many a person: why is suicide wrong? Easy. 1Cor. 6:19. Before I could even finish quoting that well known verse, my friend (obviously prepared) interrupted and said, “That verse makes reference ONLY to sexual immorality!” Oh…um…let me go study.

“Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?”

This verse, in context, seems to refer only to hurting your body through sexual immorality (in a, pretty much, spiritual way). Aaaaaaagh! He was right! Well, I guess we should all go out and smoke and dip and mutilate our bodies and pierce everything we can because 1Cor. 6:19 only refers to sexual immorality, right? A few thoughts before you stray off the straight and narrow…

First of all, this argument that 1Cor. 6:19 is only referring to sexual immorality when it speaks of your body being the temple of God, and I am some how “taking it out of context” when I use it to say that obesity, suicide, drugs, et cetera is wrong, is absurd! Logically, it makes no sense. Here’s an illustration: A great friend of yours is going out of town for the weekend. He shows you his log cabin He has built for his family. In the log cabin is…well, his family (not too difficult so far). By putting you in charge of the house, he has in doing so, put you in charge of the safety of his family. Before he leaves, he STRESSES the fact that you should not, under any circumstances, put poisonous gas into the house. Does this give you license to chop up the wood the house is built out of as much as you’d like? Or set the house on fire? Of course not!!! So why when God has entrusted us with His Holy Spirit (be it literally or figurative…completely different article to be written…) and placed it in our bodies would we think that we can do whatever we want to our bodies as long as we flee sexual immorality? It doesn’t make sense!

Secondly, this argument fails against other scriptures. I’ve always pointed to this scripture alone to refute smoking, drinking, suicide, et cetera, but when this scripture was challenged, I decided that there is more than one way to skin a cat. Ephesians 5:28,29 couldn’t be clearer on how important it is to take care of our bodies. In the church we put so much importance on a man loving his wife like Christ loved the church, and we should! But the same amount of emphasis should be placed on the care of a person’s body! We are to nourish and cherish our bodies just as Christ nourishes and cherishes the church (Eph. 5:29)! That means we are to stay away from ANYTHING that could have a long-term negative effect on our bodies. I made this statement once and of course someone said to me, “So I guess you better not ever eat sugar again!” People, apples (that God made) have sugar in them. Just use common sense. If smoking is going to give me lung cancer, should I do it? No. If eating every donut in this donut shop is going to give me a heart attack on the spot, should I do it? Use your head.

In conclusion, I hope if you are reading this that you don’t think I am placing the importance of the body above the importance of the spirit, because I’m not. Paul said in 1Tim. 4:8 “For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come.” It is apparent all throughout the scriptures that our primary goal is to be concerned with the spirit, but in doing that, may God help us to never neglect the bodies that house His special gift.