"Ascribe to The Lord, O mighty ones, ascribe to The Lord glory and strength. Ascribe to The Lord the glory due his name; worship The Lord in the splendor of his holiness." Psalm 29:1-2
Why do we take care of our bodies? Why have we been advocating training our bodies to be physically healthy? Why have we been encouraging healthier eating habits? If the answer still is not obvious, let me say it again: We take care of our physical bodies to bring (or ascribe) God glory!
You may think this should be obvious to believers, but there are some traps that people fall into, and we're going to address some of those traps this week. I want you to be prepared as you continue to pursue godliness through Christ.
Why do we take care of our bodies? Why have we been advocating training our bodies to be physically healthy? Why have we been encouraging healthier eating habits? If the answer still is not obvious, let me say it again: We take care of our physical bodies to bring (or ascribe) God glory!
You may think this should be obvious to believers, but there are some traps that people fall into, and we're going to address some of those traps this week. I want you to be prepared as you continue to pursue godliness through Christ.
1 Peter 5:8 tells us to "be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." Our enemy delights in taking things that God has said are good and twisting them, perverting them, and ensnaring people to believe something else (think about his talk with Eve in the garden at the beginning of Genesis 3)!
From society we see the perversion that the goal of healthy eating and exercising is to be sexually appealing. Yes, sex sells, so it's no surprise when most ads out there depict men half dressed with their 6-packs on display or women scantily clad baring all but their most private areas. Inherent in these ads are the lies that this is what you and I should truly look like, that we are only desirable and valuable to others and society like this. The truth is that our worth and value has already been defined by Christ: you are valuable and desirable. Before you were born, Christ knew you and left His home where He was worshipped constantly for who He is. He came to this world, where He was mocked, beaten, spat on and killed because of who He said He was, so that He could pay for your sins and make you His own. Yes, you are valued and loved as you.
Let's look at the opposite extreme: God loves me and has saved me, so I don't have to do anything. I can eat whatever I want and be as lazy as I want - God will still love me, He has to. Although it is true that if you have placed your life and faith in Christ that God will love you and accept you no matter what, can we consider for a moment what it means to believe and be God's child? When you believe and confess, "Jesus is Lord" (Ro. 10:9), what are you saying you believe and are confessing? What is a Lord? A Lord is a master, king or ruler. It means you listen to and obey your master. What He says is law! Consider all the Scriptures we've looked at over the weeks! Think about 1 Corinthians 6:12, "'Everything is permissible for me' - but not everything is beneficial. 'Everything is permissible for me' - but I will not be mastered by anything." Just because you can continue sinning doesn't mean you should! If you do, the question remains, is Christ really your Lord? (Also read Romans 5:20-6:23).
One last lie to touch on is the thought that I have to take care of others and taking care of myself is selfish. Yes, this lie is prevalent! The truth is that God has called you to take care of those in need around you (for many of us, we need to open our eyes and look around us and serve others more whole-heartedly) as well as yourself. Your body is God's home here on earth (1 Cor. 6:19) and should be taken care of as such. Just as you work to take care of your home, to be organized and fairly picked up and clean, take care of the body God has given you because it is His home too.
The devil is cunning and he knows your weaknesses, but what does God say about your weaknesses? "But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong" (2 Cor. 12:9-10). Friends, let's not pretend we don't have weaknesses. Instead, confess these weaknesses to Christ and to each other - turn to Him because His strength to defeat these lies will amaze you and encourage others.
From society we see the perversion that the goal of healthy eating and exercising is to be sexually appealing. Yes, sex sells, so it's no surprise when most ads out there depict men half dressed with their 6-packs on display or women scantily clad baring all but their most private areas. Inherent in these ads are the lies that this is what you and I should truly look like, that we are only desirable and valuable to others and society like this. The truth is that our worth and value has already been defined by Christ: you are valuable and desirable. Before you were born, Christ knew you and left His home where He was worshipped constantly for who He is. He came to this world, where He was mocked, beaten, spat on and killed because of who He said He was, so that He could pay for your sins and make you His own. Yes, you are valued and loved as you.
Let's look at the opposite extreme: God loves me and has saved me, so I don't have to do anything. I can eat whatever I want and be as lazy as I want - God will still love me, He has to. Although it is true that if you have placed your life and faith in Christ that God will love you and accept you no matter what, can we consider for a moment what it means to believe and be God's child? When you believe and confess, "Jesus is Lord" (Ro. 10:9), what are you saying you believe and are confessing? What is a Lord? A Lord is a master, king or ruler. It means you listen to and obey your master. What He says is law! Consider all the Scriptures we've looked at over the weeks! Think about 1 Corinthians 6:12, "'Everything is permissible for me' - but not everything is beneficial. 'Everything is permissible for me' - but I will not be mastered by anything." Just because you can continue sinning doesn't mean you should! If you do, the question remains, is Christ really your Lord? (Also read Romans 5:20-6:23).
One last lie to touch on is the thought that I have to take care of others and taking care of myself is selfish. Yes, this lie is prevalent! The truth is that God has called you to take care of those in need around you (for many of us, we need to open our eyes and look around us and serve others more whole-heartedly) as well as yourself. Your body is God's home here on earth (1 Cor. 6:19) and should be taken care of as such. Just as you work to take care of your home, to be organized and fairly picked up and clean, take care of the body God has given you because it is His home too.
The devil is cunning and he knows your weaknesses, but what does God say about your weaknesses? "But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong" (2 Cor. 12:9-10). Friends, let's not pretend we don't have weaknesses. Instead, confess these weaknesses to Christ and to each other - turn to Him because His strength to defeat these lies will amaze you and encourage others.
Gracious Father, I praise You for being perfect and for promising to make Your power and strength known through my weaknesses. Help me to believe Your promises and that Your opinion of me and how I look is the only opinion that matters.