Resisting Temptation
1
Corinthians 6:18-20
"Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin
a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins
against his own body. Or 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, for
you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body."
Is it
appropriate to have a discussion on sex, while in church? Perhaps a better question would be, should
the Church be silent on this topic?
Apparently, the Apostle Paul did not think so.
Notice, Paul
didn't say, "Flee from sex...". As author Ed Wheat, M.D, points out in
his book Intended for Pleasure,
"Knowing and understanding what God says about any phase of life leads to
wholeness in that area; nowhere is this more necessary than in the sexual
realm..." He goes on to say,
"As a Christian physician, it is my privilege to communicate an important
message ... You have God's permission to enjoy sex within your marriage." The fact is, God made sexuality. It's our wedding gift from Him. What we should "flee" is treating that gift outside
His intended purpose.
When
confronted by lawyers, Jesus said the greatest commandment was to love God, and
the second was to love our neighbor (Matt. 22:34-ff). In explaining this, in 1
Corinthians 13:5, Paul said it "is not arrogant or rude" (ESV). Paul is not referring to refined
manners; for, every other use of this word in scripture refers to shameful
and/or sensual, inappropriate show or use of the body. Addressing the proverbial
"elephant in the middle of the living room," Paul is saying agapé
never employs sensual impropriety in what we wear, how we act, or what we look
at. With the temple for Aphrodite,
the Greek goddess of love, in the center of Corinth (filled with temple
prostitutes), he was addressing a culture that confused spirituality with
sensuality, robbing people of true fulfillment in either arena, while God offers
true fulfillment in both.
Finally,
when Paul addresses us as "bought
with a price," one should focus on value. God gave His own life for you. What does that make you worth? And, if you truly embrace the value He places on you (and
others), should that not impact how we treat each other in every realm,
including our bodies?
David Rucquoi, Darien, 20 years at Hope, serving as an Elder.
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