“Bodybuilding”
Sermon Series: “Thrive”
Introduction: We live in a society that focuses on the outward over the inward, style over substance, appearance over character, and image over reality. Many people are obsessed with appearance. On the other hand, in a proper effort to focus on the heart, the church has often gone overboard in the other direction by only emphasizing the spiritual and ignoring the physical. In this message, we are going to seek to find a biblically accurate balance by constructing a biblical theology of the body. I want to impart some biblical convictions about the body with the goal of us applying them and stewarding our bodies in such a way that we thrive and bring glory to God.
Convictions
1. God made us as whole people, and He is looking for each part (body, soul, spirit) to be surrendered to Him (1 Thessalonians 5:23, see also Luke 2:52). Here are some errors that people fall in to when they get out of balance with this:
A. Some people believe the body is evil.
B. Some people practice asceticism, which is the heresy that harming or denying the body makes us more spiritual.
C. Some people take care of their bodies but they do it out of pride and vanity instead of for the glory of God.
D. Some people believe the spirit is all that matters so we just ignore the body.
2. Our bodies are decaying (2 Corinthians 4:16), but we have the hope of resurrection bodies through the resurrection of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15).
3. Our identity is in Jesus and not in our appearance (1 Samuel 16:7, Colossians 2:8-10, 23).
4. Our bodies belong to God (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).
A. He purchased us with the price of the life of His Son
(Hebrews 10:10).
B. He lives in us through the Holy Spirit. C. He owns us so we are not our own.
5. We are called to glorify God with our bodies (1 Corinthians 6:20).
Actions
What can we do in order to glorify God with our bodies?
1. Accept the way that God has designed me (Psalm 139:13-16).
2. Discipline myself to take care of my body to the best of my ability (1 Corinthians 9:24-27). In other words, we should accept the things about us that God has designed and cannot be changed and also take responsibility my body and what I can do to take care of it. I cannot claim to have self-control (see the fruit of the Spirit) if I have no control over my body. Here are some areas the Bible is specific about in regard to taking care of our bodies:
A. Sexual Purity (1 Corinthians 6:13-18).
B. Diet And Exercise (Proverbs 23:19-21, 1 Timothy 4:7-8).
C. Rest (Exodus 20:8-11).
D. Avoid Intoxication And Addiction (Ephesians 5:18, 1 Corinthians 6:12).
3. Find our ultimate satisfaction in Jesus. Do not let things become idols that take His place as functional saviors in our lives (John 4:1-26).
