Culture and religion have a lot to say about an individual’s relationship with their body, as it is the mechanism through which we interact with the world. Different cultures and religions, though, have different understandings about what constitutes a person, and what that person’s relationship should be to their physical bodies.
The Greeks believed the body was a trap for the soul, and that death permanently separated the two, which was for the best. Hindu religions believe the same soul can reincarnate into different bodies. In the Bible, the person is described as being a soul, a spirit, and a body, all of which will go on into eternity.
Throughout life, many people will struggle with how they relate to their bodies. But the Bible provides a blueprint for how to have a relationship with your temporal body and how to prepare for the eternal body promised by the Word of God.
“For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them” (Psalm 139:13-16).
“You clothed me with skin and flesh, and knit me together with bones and sinews. You have granted me life and steadfast love, and your care has preserved my spirit” (Job 10:11-12).
“But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand” (Isaiah 64:8).
Every person was created to be unique in their body; even identical twins have small differences that make them distinct, although you may need to get to know them well to recognize it. While people will always suffer from insecurities, it is important to go to the Lord about them because He made you unique. He gave you your height, shape, eye color, skin color, and so much more! We should be grateful for the bodies God gave us, which are capable of incredible things that can honor the Lord.
“Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple” (1 Corinthians 3:16-17).
“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” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).
“So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit” (Ephesians 2:19-22).
When someone gets saved, the Holy Spirit indwells that person, which seals them for the Day of Redemption and helps them undergo the process of sanctification. He guides them to what is right, convicts them when they do wrong, and illuminates the Word to them. It also means the believer’s body is serving the same function as the Tabernacle and the Temple did in the time before the crucifixion. The Temple was cared for with love, and when it was torn down and abused, righteous people mourned.
People should take care of their bodies, because it is where God indwells, where He speaks to each Christian. It should not be abused, nor should people abuse another person’s body. Even if the person isn’t a Christian yet, they should be treated like they were made in God’s image, because they were.
“In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed” (1 Corinthians 15:52).
“For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened — not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee” (2 Corinthians 5:1-5).
“But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself” (Philippians 3:20-21).
Everyone will die, unless the Lord Jesus returns for His church. The body will get old, break down, lose its strength, and eventually die, and the spirit will go onto something else until the Last Day and the Judgment. That something else is the presence of the Lord, or eternal separation from Him.
While people should take care of their bodies, and there is nothing wrong with wanting to look good, it should not become a primary focus. It is easy to make this physical body an idol, subjecting it to extreme alterations to fight off the signs of aging and death. The body can become the focus rather than one’s relationship with God, which is eternal. One day our bodies will be made perfect, so it is more important to invest in the eternal relationship with Christ, and in sharing the gospel.
“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:1-2).
“For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does” (1 Corinthians 7:4).
“As it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death” (Philippians 1:20).
When we perceive something as belonging to us, it is easy for humans to become protective and selfish with it, including their physical bodies. The Bible clarifies that even our bodies are best used when they are used sacrificially. Husbands and wives do not own their own bodies, but give them over to one another. Men sacrifice their bodies for the protection of others, and women in childbirth. Our bodies should also be used in service to the Lord, rather than for selfish purposes. It is in this way that our bodies do not become idols and shackles which get in the way of a full relationship with the Lord.
It is impossible to understand life without the body, since it is the mechanism through which the soul and the spirit interact with the world. It is the home of the Holy Spirit for those who know and love the Lord, and it is the way people influence the world. Whether someone abuses their body by depriving it of food or giving it too much, they are disrespecting the gift of that unique body God gave them. If someone values their body more than their spiritual life or over other people, they have set it up as their false god. It is a delicate balance. Ultimately, when we put our bodies in their proper context, we can use them to be a blessing, to glorify God, and to use something temporal to invest in the eternal.
Sources
Allberry, Sam. What God Has to Say about Our Bodies. Wheaton: Crossway, 2021.
Bynum, Caroline. The Resurrection of the Body in Western Christianity 200-1336. New York: Columbia Univeristy Press, 1995.
Robinson, John Arthur Thomas. The Body A Study of Pauline Theology. Louisville: Westminster Press, 1977.
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