Honoring God With Your Body

Honoring God with Your Body

Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God.

Romans 6:13

Give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable.

Romans 12:1

Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20

Isn’t it amazing how billions of people on this earth are made up of all the same body parts, and yet we all look so different? Some people’s bodies are strong and firm; some are weak and feeble. Some are large; some are small. Some are young and some are old. And amazingly, no matter the size or shape or age of our bodies, we can all use our bodies to honor God.

How do we honor God with our bodies? Does it mean we try to look good or that we do what we can do to stay healthy?

All of us are stewards, or managers, of the bodies God has given us. We’re to use every resource at our disposal—including our bodies—to bring honor to God. Giving your body to God for his use means that you give him your eyes, your tongue, your hands, and your feet rather than giving your eyes, your tongue, your hands, and your feet to sin. Everything you do with your body shows that Christ is more precious to you than anything else. Don’t think that you can give your heart to God and not give every part of your body to him too. Either you belong to God—heart, soul, and body—or you don’t really belong to him at all.

DISCUSSION STARTERS

Think through the various parts of your body. What can you do with those parts of your body to honor God? What actions would dishonor him?

Do you think a focus on wise eating habits and good health is honoring to God? At what point does it become dishonoring to him?

Why do you think God wants our bodies, too, and not just our hearts?