Glorify God in Your Body

1 Corinthians 6:12-20

Main idea: God made sex special, but not ultimate, so no matter what glorify God with your body.

1. Correct your view of the body (6:12-14).
2. Correct your view about your body’s relationship to Christ (6:15-17).
3. Glorify God in your body.

To the child:

To the single:

To the married:

To the guilty:

• Automated Transcription
• 0:13
  morning faith Bible Church. For those of you who are visiting with us, today, we are so glad to have you. I love meeting all the new folks family visiting from out of town. But some of those such a joy, if you're new to us today are new to us recently, make sure you connect with some people right after the service is over, our family will love to greet you. But make sure you stop at the information center. And that would be really helpful for you to get connected to us in a variety of ways. I just want to highlight a couple things from the weekly. The first one has to do with our deacons. And we have been working at making our deacons more robust. It's an office of the church according to First Timothy three, and you can see the men and women who are our deacons. And that set there for you. So you can understand maybe who you can go to who to pray for but who you can go to if you want to serve, or you need help. They're here to help and serve. And they need obviously the lowest need people to help them facilitate the ministry life of faith Bible Church. The second one is on our finances, and praise God that he continues to provide. And thank you for your faithful giving a bunch of you stepped up in the middle of the year in your giving. And continue with that so that we can continue the work that God has for us. We're in a unique time at Faith Bible Church and happened with Paul funchess. Now it's happening with Jared Milliken, where these were people we were sending. And as they're being sent, they need to devote time and attention to getting ready. And somebody else needs to start covering their responsibilities. So you don't quite double up on what that cost but it's a little bit more. So we have a couple of transitions like that this year, that's going to push next year's budget. So be praying for us, since people that are moving on need to also be filled. That that is that's a little extra expense. So pray for that and other issues in our in our budget. And we'll just continue to communicate that with you. If you're new and a new member giving regularly as is really doesn't take a lot of individual increases or personal when we do it collectively, it really makes a big difference. So if you can jump in and even a small way it does cumulate and really help the mission that we're trying to fulfill. Let's take a look at our let's take a look at our text today stand with me for the reading of God's Word. And it's in First Corinthians chapter 612, through 12 through 20. And it is a really powerful passage in the culture that we live in. Few of us can and are able to escape all of the temptations in sexuality. So this is going to be very, very helpful. First Corinthians six I'm gonna read 12 through 20. All things are lawful for me. But not all things are helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be dominated by anything. Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food. And God will destroy both one and the other. The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord and the Lord for the body. And God raised the Lord and will also raise us by His power. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? So they then take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never. Do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her for as it is written, the two shall become or the two will become one flesh. But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him. Flee from sexual immorality, every other sin. A person commits his outside the body but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. 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 are bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. This is the word of the Lord. Our God and Father we thank you for the gift of your son or Jesus. We thank you that you have bought us by your death that you promised Reza direction that you give your spirit to us for power. And we need that power to hear and understand this word. In this time in our life. Father, I pray that you would be working in the dads, and in the men who want to be dads and either can't because they're not married or can't, because they're not able to get pregnant. Pray for them, encourage them. Like we always encourage the gals, to raise up godly sons in the faith. Those that have them, help them pause and reflect for that impact. We pray for men and women here who had earthly fathers that were harmful, not helpful. They may be flooded with memories or difficulties. And I pray that or Jesus that you would remind us of your good father was good all the time. We're just saying about that. May that truth? Stick with us. We ask this in Christ's name. Amen. You may be seated. Well, the debate about sex, about gender about reproductive rights in our society today is really defined by one question. Just one question would really be the dividing line. Likewise, the battle against impurity giving in to online porn, adultery, or any other sexual sin is defined in any given point by the same question. So any moment one of those temptations or Crossroads comes the same question? Is the line in the sand? What's the question? It's one that we're not used to asking this way. But it's this, who am I meant for? Who am I meant for? We're used to asking the questions. What do I live for? Who am I? What's my purpose? We're used to asking those kinds of questions. And they're important, they're good questions. But this word, who am I meant for? Gives a personal reference now what do I be my meant? Its intent. Who am I intended for? Now that that is a question. And that gives this passage and our life full meaning. Now, if I'm intended just for me, just biological, just for me, then I should be able to pursue whatever I want. If I have impulses, I should just be able to pursue them. If I'm intended for me in society, then I should pursue me as long as I don't hurt society. So if I am in meant just for me, as long as they don't hurt anybody, I could pursue whatever impulses I want. That's the worldview that drives Pride Month. It's the worldview that drives the multibillion dollar porn industry. It's the worldview that drives 50 Shades of Grey, if I'm meant for me, then really what I need to be ultimately concerned about is my own happiness. As I define it, that's that's what the world around us is doing. But if I am intended for the Lord, if I'm intended for the Lord who is my Creator, then my body, my gender, my appetites, my goals and desires are his some of you are newer to us and some of you visit from the neighborhood and thank you for not running out because like this is countercultural. He might be trying to sort out two realities. Reality one sex is really important. We positively you have passions and desires for sex, and it can be very pleasurable and it can be it can help people feel very close to each other. We know that everybody is protective of sex. Everybody isn't. Here's what I mean. Nobody just has sex with anybody. Nobody, I mean, even people who are saying, you know, I can have multiple partners, they're like they're still picky. Everybody is protective of sex. Negatively we know the sex is really important because there's so much pain. There's so much pain, so much emotional and mental Eng Wish, if you've been sexually abused, there's so much guilt. If you've been an abuser, there's
  
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  so much at stake. Maybe you feel used by your sexual partner, maybe you use sex, have hopes of securing something else. Or a close personal relationship. Maybe sex is filled up with expectations that the other partner, the other person, the spouse is not ready to fulfill. Maybe you transitioned, thinking the new gender was really gonna make you happy. And now you're more miserable than ever. We all know sex is really a big deal. Gender is a big deal. And a lot can go wrong. On the other hand, you might be asking this other question. And these these are things realities that we navigate as sex too important. Like to make too much of it? Why do Christians oppose the LGBTQ ideas? Why why do they oppose that? I mean, what's their problem? Can't can't someone just be what they want to be? If you're single, and sex is portrayed as the ultimate experience. You could feel like a second class citizen. Other singles who don't have convictions are experiencing it, and they're looking at you like, what's wrong with you. Or Everybody talks about how it's the pinnacle experience in marriage, and you're single, and you can't experience it. And you kind of feel like a second class citizen who might be married and come to a realization that sex is not as awesome, as you were told it was going to be. Again, it gets over emphasized. So it's true, it's really important. But it's not ultimate. What the Apostle Paul does today is take the Gospel. And he sets a course for Devine defining our reality in the body. And while sex within marriage between one man and one woman is so supposed to be good, and God glorifying, it's also not ultimate. Here's how I would word the big idea. God did make sex special, but not ultimate. He made it special, but not ultimate. So no matter what, glorify God with your body, I find this incredibly hopeful for singles. Say, what do I do with my body? You're gonna serve the Lord with it because it's the Lord's body. If I'm married, what am I going to do with it? I'm going to serve the Lord with it. So this keeps us from being too casual about sex because the apostle Paul, following Jesus following the Old Testament says, sex is really important. But it's not ultimate. This is going to keep us from being too casual. Indulging outside of God's intent, it's also going to keep us from worshiping it. mean the classic preaching points are issues about sex, money, and power. This is going to help us deal with what's really ultimate. This is going to keep us from being enslaved by it. So talk about just Just a minute. So the gospel is the answer to the guilt of sexual sin that allows us to fully enjoy it inside God's intent. And above all, gospel delivers us from the pain of past abuse, and provides us forgiveness. For President guilt. You should walk today isn't everybody paid really good attention first hour. He talked about sex the whole hour. I mean, literally, I was too long. I got it. Throughout the longer sermon, go to the second hour, or go back to the first hour. But I want to say this the gospel promises the power and motives to flee sexual sin and glorify God God with your body, which is the title of the message glorify God with your body. So Paul is gonna give us three changes in our thinking to know how to glorify God with our bodies and sex. That's the main, although there's lots of application to some of the theology that comes out here. So here's the truth three changes. Number one, correct your view about the body, correct your view about the body. There are many airing views about the body, that show up here. In this text, there is this, this phrase, though, you your body is meant for the Lord. That's going to be the correct view. So right out of the context, if you're in chapter six, immediately before last week, this, this whole idea flows right out of this section about those who are in Christ, those who are not in Christ, and you could tell by the character of their life. So he immediately picks up an issue. And most scholars and commentators note that there's three things that were almost certainly slogans in the Corinthian culture. First one, verse 12, All things are lawful for me, and then he repeats it. But he says, All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be dominated food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food. Those Those two are slogans that people readily said, and they were borrowed and corrupted by the Christians. First of all, what's what's it mean? All things are lawful for me, okay, if you're new to the Bible, what's Paul talking about? Cuz he doesn't say, No. He actually just makes corrections. Why? For the, for the Jews, who are the small amount of Jews who are in this church, they had a whole bunch of Old Testament laws, Paul would have taught through that, as he taught through the gospel, and what happened with the coming of Christ for Jewish laws, those laws were fixed on what we call the Old Covenant or the Mosaic Covenant. And with Christ, when He came in, he gave his body he was raised from the dead, his blood was spilt. And it gives us the spirit, we're under a new covenant, a new sacred commitment to God as king. And we as people, the old rules of the Old Covenant, those are obsolete, the new rules of the New Covenant are what we live by. So people would say things like, All things are lawful for me, all the food rules, they're gone. Now, they were trying to apply it to all things, including sexuality.
  
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  So he says this in two ways, it kind of reflects views of the body. All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful. That's the view that my body is my body. Whatever I'm built to do, I've got, I've got a gender, it's got body parts. I use them, says, well, All things are lawful. But you really don't just belong to you. Because not all things are helpful. He brings in the social climate here, not all things are helpful. You can think you can pursue whatever you want. But what you should be pursuing is loving and caring and helpful. Sure, you have some freedoms, you're Miss applying them to sex, because that hurts other people. If you do it outside of God's good plan. Not all things are helpful. Paul is going to unpack the whole, helpful and unhelpful starting in chapter eight through chapter 10. But he's given us a prelim of this now, second one, he says is not all that All things are lawful for you but I will not be dominated by anything. There are impulses in the body. They say sure, I'm free to pursue them, but they can master us. Food, drink sex can master us they have powerful motivations and over overuse in slaves us. So the Apostle says I will be dominated by anything. Yeah, I am free. But I am not so free, that I would be mastered by another thing. That answers this view of the body that I am just for the body and I can have as much as I want. No Limits since it's my body and my impulses without limits experienced them Ha, they can become enslaving. It's well known in Christian and secular culture, that there are drug addictions, alcohol addictions, food addictions and sex addictions. People can can become dominated. They says verse 13, food is meant for the stomach and stomach for food which is it is merely biological. This is this is the secular age, the scientific age, the the evolutionary age, I got body parts, foods for stomach stomachs for food, which became a euphemism sort of a polite way to say, I can experience sex however I want, I've got the parts and I've got the drive, why not? You're not merely biological. That's not all you are. And he says, God will destroy both one and the other. And the word destroy here has a positive and negative, I don't have time to go through all the uses of it. But with the sinful body, there will be there will come a time and he's going to talk about it in a second, where Jesus will So change the body, that he will destroy its corrupt passions. It's a glorious truth. God will destroy one in the other, he will destroy the body's propensities, he will do something new, and I'll get to where that is. And he will also judge. So food in this present body is not ultimate. It's not ultimate, this is going to be changed, the simple part is going to be purged out so to speak. So he answers three false views about life in the body. And then comes the sledgehammer. The body is not meant for sexual immorality. That's not what it's intended for. It's not meant well, what is it intended for? What is it intended for? It's not meant for the body? What is it intended for? I mean, it's not meant for sexual immorality. What does it meant meant for, but for the Lord, your body is intended for the Lord, since the Lord Jesus is both Creator and Redeemer. He is intended us for himself. And it goes the other way too. It's not meant for sexual immorality. That's not what it's intended for. But for the Lord and the Lord for the body, again, new to the Bible, go back to Genesis, you find out in these promises to Abraham, that he is going to be the father of many nations, that there is going to be a time where we will experience it in full, where, where it says they will be my people, and I will be their God. What does it mean? That the bodies for the Lord, it's his, it's for him, so our worship, our service, our love, our deepest affections are for him. And that's what our body is for. And he is for the body, in in that we are in a body, we are embodied, and he loves us. And he, he wants to be a father like person to us, he wants to be a shepherd like person to us, he has every intent for our good and for our flourishing. And this is what you have to pause. It might be a concept that you've not thought of some simply think, you know, I got this body, I'm gonna get old, I'm gonna die. Why not just enjoy some things, it's going to be the false view that we're gonna see in First Corinthians 15. Later on, as we study the book.
  
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  You are an embodied person. Now, you look around go, that's a, you said embodied like, am I supposed to think that's special? Here's what I mean. When God created Adam, he formed him out of the dust of the earth. And he breathed his spirit in him didn't mean he made his lungs work. It means he gave him a soul or he gave him a spirit, you are an embodied soul. So that means your body is not this extra part that you won't need later. I'm just stuck in the body for now. And then I will go that was the Roman thought and the Greek thought, finally, we'll be free of bodies and we'll just be these souls in their perfect essence. But the gospel following the bible says you're an embodied soul. So what your body and soul do together is forever related to the Lord. And you can't tear them apart. Even at death, Paul is gonna say and Second Corinthians five, there's some kind of existence that you have with sensory life after you die. And what we have here is a resurrection. But this is so far reaching, your whole life is embodied. In other words, there's nothing you do that isn't at some sense spiritual, the most mundane things you do are still spiritual, they're still part of your soul. All of your life is embodied soul before the Lord Jesus, everything matters to him that you do in the body. Everything matters to him. Everything can be worship to Him, sweeping up the cat litter in the laundry room, that's where our cat litter is, can be worship to Him. What he's talking about here is that sexual intimacy is embodied. And soul work, its body and soul work. Its body and spirit work. This is a profound truth that changes sexuality. And it changes everything we do. You need the right view of the body, you are embodied. Now. Look, look at how he finishes this up. You're not just embodied, but you're embodied, you'll be embodied forever, Paul moves to this connection with the resurrection. Because Jesus the one great thing that Jesus did, God Himself took on a body. And Jesus is forever, body and spirit. And Jesus died for our sin and was raised from the dead in a body. He says, verse 14, and God raised the Lord and will also raise up by us up by His power, there is a hope for your body, the same body, you get this body back perfected, not another body, it's not like you know, he takes our all our soul all our experiences, all our memories, and he takes them out like a USB drive, and he finds a new computer, and he sets you into a new USB drive, that's your new body that's eternal, imperfect, that's, that's not what's going to happen. What's gonna happen is the body that goes in the grave, is going to be resurrected, and reunited with your perfect spirit. So it will be perfected body perfected spirit, from the experience that you had in the past for all eternity. So because it's the same body now and for eternity, pay careful attention to what you do in the body
  
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  you have to have the correct view of life in the body. Now he adds another layer. So I've written in the outline. Correct your view about your body's relationship to Christ. One of the most common fundamental errors about life in the body is we think, as Christians yes, we're gonna die. And then we're gonna go to heaven. non Christians think this too. We're gonna die. And we're gonna go to some spirit reality in which I get to do whatever I want forever. And everybody always says that like, oh, so and so especially showing chose playing golf. So and so's dancing, he loves dancing, you know, funerals, you hear this all the time. Maybe I don't have any idea. But you're not going to be resurrected to do whatever you want for all eternity. He says this. I mean, there's, there's a link to this resurrection. If if you are a sexual center, and you're weighed down with guilt, the appeal for you today is to turn from your sin to Christ for forgiveness, and union. And as Jesus died, was buried, was raised, you will die and be raised in him to a permanent relationship with him. So there's a link by the resurrection, twin eternal relationship. There's a relationship now there's a relationship then they never part. They never separate once you're his. And he says this Then like think about this, think about this new relationship. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? He keeps asking the do you not? No question here? Here it is, again, you should you should know this. And when he uses the members term we've got to sort of purge out our thinking about membership. Like, some of you have a gym membership, which you use, like from January to February 5. Every year though, like I'm a member. Thanks. Move fitnesses Thank you. This is good Maria for that six weeks. But you could revoke it in the meantime, actually, you can't like they just seem to never get their hooks out. Or Costco, I pay my fee. I'm a member. Look at me, I'm a member. And she flags you. Hey, what do you remember if I'm a member of Costco? So we have to think differently. So if the Sultan does his own paraphrase translation of this, that is, I think, spot on. He says, Do you not know that you are the limbs and organs of Christ? That's how he translates this word members, because it's body part members. He's going to use this analogy in chapter 12. That will change your church life. You'll never look at church again. And never look at church the same again after we get through chapter 12. Because we're members of Christ and members of each other, another words were so close to him, like what happens if somebody just says, you know, you're a liver and you just leave the body. The body dies, somebody takes your liver, you're dead. You need to eat a heart. You need a you need a liver. Like they're they're inseparably unified. Obviously, Jesus doesn't need you to live. The point is the union. How close and intimate and personal God makes this membership? So we asked this question to us. Shall I then take members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? So it's in their day, you could go for the guys and gals. You could go to an assorted temple where there'd be worship and these fertility cults would have hireable prostitutes and you could say you were going to worship but everybody would go, right. Like the guys really go into a gentlemen's club. If you don't know what a gentlemen's club is great, if you do you know what I mean? They're not for gentlemen. They're for scumbags. I'm going to worship me right now. Hey, Jesus. Let's go. Let's go find a prostitute. Does that creep you out? This is what he's saying. You're so close to him. Hey, Jesus. Should we look at some porn? That's what he's saying. The bot is so intimately connected. So he asked has the question. Oh, hey, Jesus. From the girls perspective. I'm really lonely tonight. Should we find a guy? And maybe he'll stay with us? What do you think Jesus? If your skin's not crawling with that kind of language it should be. That's why it's so helpful. Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never Never. A Paul How does sex do this? How desex do this says Do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her for as it is written the two shall become one flesh. Paul's going back to Genesis 224 Where God makes Adam and God makes Eve he gives them to each other and that one flesh union is a description or the idealized intimate act it creates a oneness. So all sex is is unifying. It is unifying, not only in the act, but emotionally and psychologically and spiritually. I mean, just as a little aside, I try to tell all couples that we do premarital counseling with that, when you start sharing money, you're gonna gravitate towards sexual union you start sharing friendship, you're gonna gravitate toward sexual union, you start sharing sexual union, you start sharing friendship and money, like, because we're all a package. And there's this draw. So he's saying that anytime you go have sex with somebody who's not your spouse, it's it's moving toward the unifying Marriage Act. That's the two will become one flesh. The sharing of sexual intimacy is more than a physical act. There's profound personal emotional connection designed into sexual intimacy is so close that the two are considered one that realize in marriage, God designed man and woman to share sexual intimacy within marriage. Nobody's super excited thinking about Jesus watching. Nobody's really excited about that. Nobody's excited about anybody watching. But in the Lord's providence and goodness, he has blessed and smiles on self giving sexual intimacy and marriage, because He has created it as part of this marriage parable, where two people come together with a unified life and a unified friendship and a unified spiritual life. And they enjoy a sexual intimacy. And that becomes a parable, a story that displays the love and connection between Christ and the church.
  
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  Of course, you don't want to pursue those things. Because we're members of Christ. And we take Christ into our screen time. But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him. This is the cementing of that there's a union. And since you're embodied with a soul, and Jesus is embodied with deity, he is body and deity, Spirit, He is both of those and you are embodied with a spirit you are joined bodily and spiritually since there's zero that you do, not that you do, nothing that you do that is not connected at some level spiritually with Jesus.
  
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  So we're joined, and we become one spirit with him.
  
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  So is that's true of marital union. So it is with spiritual union. He's telling the Corinthians you're taking Jesus to the idol temple and joining him to a temple prostitute. You can't do that. Everybody says like, Ueki and you should. And then everybody goes, but I've lusted I've come from a bad past. Have I some of you have said I violated my marital faithfulness? I have done I'll get to the good news about that and when we end so all the morality of the believer is joining the Lord Jesus to that act, or that person or that screen you have to correct your view of the body and you have to correct your view about your body's relationship with Jesus. Number three, glorify God in your body. Paul says it too. We could say negatively Flee sexual impurity or immorality. We can say it positively glorify God in your body. That's how it this is bookended verse 18. He says or is it didn't Flee from sexual immorality. All the commentators noticed the Joseph story. So it's worthwhile going back to the Joseph story in Genesis in the mid 40s, where Joseph sold into slavery, hands up and pedophiles wife pot of ours wife wants, wants Joseph in a sexual way and he refuses, he refuses, he refuses one day she yanks his shorts off of him or the turban or whatever they were like, yanks it off. Joseph is terrified. He flees because he doesn't want to sin against the Lord sinned against Potiphar. But he's out the door naked in front of everybody. So this is this is kind of the seriousness. Flee from sexual immorality. And he says this. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body and the sexually immoral person Since sins against his own body, and you're probably thinking to yourself, I was pretty sure that bulimia, anorexia, suicide cutting, drunkenness, drug use. Punching walls when I'm angry, I was pretty sure all those hurt my body. Pretty sure all those hurt our own bodies probably to talking about. It's in this context, since sexual intimacy designed for marriage joins a person with another so intimately that if you do it wrong, you damage yourself in a unique way. And if any of you have pain, mental anguish, depression, anxiety, you name it, because of your sexual past, you know, you know, the unique problem whether it's guilt, or whether it's the residual from being abused, you know, or you are the abuser, you know, that it damages the body in a unique way. That's his point. That's his point. flees sexual immorality because it's so damaging to your body. It's so damaging unlike any other thing not that other things don't damage your body. So for those of you who are not Christ followers if you are what what would often say damaged goods or you got a pest or your broken persons actually want to tell you there's really good news because Jesus came and died for that sin. He came in died for that sin. He went to the cross for that sin. And God has a good plan. He has a good aim. But But I want to say this. You're not fleeing sexual morality, to morality. You're not fleeing sexual immorality. Take this in a limited way. To a promise ring that you can show everybody. Look mommy and daddy, I have a promise ring. I'm going to be chased. Like so many Christians flee to chastity. They flee to chastity is their answer. That's not your answer. It's to Christ. You flee to Christ. You flee from immorality to Christ. And Christ will change your chastity he will change your purity. One more layer as he is it goes to this because now we're getting to these belonging language, verse 19. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you whom you have from God, we've we've had this reference to us being the body of Christ earlier chapter three, which was Don't you know that you're a temple of God, and that was the collective we are collectively the house of God. But this is true you all individually, if you have trusted Christ believed on his promise, come to him in repentance and faith for the forgiveness of your sexual sin, and you'd look and turn to Christ. He then as according to that promise of that covenant puts His Spirit within you. Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you whom you have from God? So you wouldn't take your body and go to another temple with the Holy Spirit and with Jesus connected to you? And you wouldn't say, Hey, fellow Christians, let's go have fun at the prostitution house. You wouldn't do that. You'd be you'd be taking the Holy Spirit into that immoral act, or that immoral place. Hey, Holy Spirit. Let's pull up some screen images. You will you wouldn't do that. You wouldn't go worship at the altar of sex with the Holy Spirit. Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit whom you have and this wonderful, incalculable gift God gives the Holy Spirit who comforts who guides who awakens who enlightens who convicts who empowers who intercedes for us and seals believers until Jesus return. Let's Temple is a place where God dwells. And if you are a blood bought believing Christian, the Holy Spirit dwells in you, He does. This is this the end of 19. Therefore, you are not your own. You are not your own, you were meant not for sexuality, but for the Lord, with your body. Your body's meant for the Lord, not just your soul, not just your quiet times. It's just your Bible, reading your old body your whole life. So he says, You are not your own. For you are bought with the price, and this clearly depicts Lordship, you being under the kingdom and rule of Satan are now under the kingdom and rule of Christ who was good and this is the Lord you want. When you were your own God and Satan was your God, when the world was your God and you follow the lusts and passions of your flesh. All you reaped was trouble and trial and difficulty. If you're the master of your own life, your spiritual life and much of your physical life sucks, up Master is going to be bad. But if Christ is master whom God gave, because he loved you, and he gave him for you, he'll have a good shepherd, you have a loving Lord, you have one with steadfast love that never quits. You have endless Mercy and endless kindness, your endless righteousness and holiness and perfect, perfect justice. In the Roman world, what defined slavery was the quality of the master was a terrible slavery was a good slavery depends on the master. Jesus is the best, most loving, Master, you're not your own, because you are bought from one kingdom to put in another for a King and Master of your life. And Christ shed his blood to bring you under His Lordship. You are bought with a price that's that precious blood of Christ, you were bought with a price. So therefore glorify God in your body. glorify God in your body. So handful of things. Let's let's pepper through these to the child who has been really uncomfortable about the whole talk. You're in second grade. And you're like, when is this ever going to get over? I never want to hear about this ever again. You think sex is weird? Praise God. It's weird for a long time.
  
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  But one day, it will be beautiful. And not tempted at all that way. But you can still act like and think you exist for yourself. My trading cards are for me. My my screen times for me. My toys are for me. It's for me. It's for me. It's for me. All things are for me. Paul says not all things are helpful. It's all for me. Not all things. But I will not be mastered and many of you kids are mastered by other things. So what happens when sex starts becoming weird and sex starts becoming exciting, and you're mastered by other things. You will be mastered by that too. So if you're mastered by other things, you need to come to Jesus in repentance and faith. I don't care if the mastery is your YuGiOh cards. You need to come to him in repentance and faith. And you have a body to serve Him. So get yourself busy serving Him. Serving your him by serving your family. Not just pleasing yourself. To the single I would say this and I think there's a really profound help for the single. Your body is not meant for yourself. It's meant for the Lord. Yes, we're sexual beings were created with gender and this is to the glory of God. But sex and gender is not first the Lord is first sex and gender is not first the Lord is first. He is first he's ultimate. Remember Jesus never had sex. Jesus was never married. And Jesus fulfilled the greatest purpose of all creation and showing us the WAY and the TRUTH and the LIFE and giving up his body on a cross bearing our wrath so that you could be forgiven. I used to think this when I was newly saved, because I virtually had internal slavery and morality. You know, I just want to have sex before I die. Like, legally, I want to be married, you know and have sex that God bless. Like, I want to do that before I die. As if I missed out, and I'd be in heaven going. My eternity is ruined. Never had sex in the past? Do you think Jesus is sitting on the throne of heaven? Go on, you know, father of all the things I wish he would have, let me enjoy. I wish that was one of them. It can't be ultimate, it can't be ultimate. So you have all kinds of things you could do with your body, all kinds of rubber, your soul and body altogether, all kinds of things you can do for the Lord, for the good of the church, for the lost in this world. To the married to the married, you might be dealing with selfish, frustrated expectations. With your spouse, about sex, it is not self giving. It is taking, we're going to answer directly next week. But don't be enslaved to the idea that sex and marriage is supposed to be the ultimate expression of unity. It's real, and it's powerful. But it is to be self giving, not taking.
  
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  And if you violated your covenant, marriage vows. You might read consequences for that. But what I want you to know what ultimately defines you, it's not your failures. It's Christ. Your life can be rebuilt. What is ultimate for you and your spouse? What is ultimate is worshiping and serving the Lord together, worshiping and serving the Lord together. And finally, to the guilty to the guilty to the one who's guilty or weary from consequences of somebody else's sexual sin on you have or of your own. And often, often that happens where the person is abused, and then they go off and misuse sex themselves. And so now you're doubly guilty, like you have the pain of the past. And now you have the pain of your own guilt and you're just overloaded with pain. sexual fidelity or purity does not define you. Christ defines you. sexual impurity and failure does not define you. Christ defines you. Christ and His forgiveness and His newness. That is your new identity. I think what proves the point is the is the story out of John for we don't have time to unpack it, but I would encourage you to look at it. Jesus shows up in John four to a woman, a Samaritan woman out of well, and asks her for water and they start this question and she wants to start with the worship question. You know, like, where's the best place to worship? distract your question, and they start talking about true worship. And then Jesus says, Where's your husband went? Why don't you go get your husband and she says, Well, I don't have a husband, and Jesus, the all seeing Jesus knows and he says, You're right. You've had four husbands. And the one that you're with right now is not your husband. I want you to hear this. You might be not a two timer. You might be a five timer. And Jesus offers forgiveness and restoration. You can have a new heart she gets saved virtually on the spot. She goes to the village. She got to hear this guy. He told me everything about me. And it wasn't pretty. And he offered me the water of life
  
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  if you turn to Christ and repentance and faith, the weariness of your guilt and the heavy laden, of your burden of past damage can find rest. As you come to Jesus, you will now be Jesus. You belong to Him. So that old life five timings done. When you come to him, you say I'm done with one timing, two timing, three timing for time, I'm done with that, because I'm coming to Jesus, that's where my new identity is. It's in him. Your body is the Lord's, it's the Lord's. And remember, I said this earlier, Jesus was tempted and always as we are, yet without sin Hebrews two. And that's such great news for you. Because you are still going to face like a bowl of obscenity pressing against you. And that is powerful, and you are small, you are still going to see stuff you didn't want to see, you're going to choose to get closer to stuff that you shouldn't have gotten closer to. And all of a sudden, it just feels like this 2000 or 4000 pound bull. Now just pressing you and pressing you, and you're supposed to be just little old, you standing against it. You're trying to press back, but you know what's happening, you know that, that bulls are shoving you. But because Jesus was tempted in all ways, yet without sin. He is stronger than the bull of temptation. And he always was, he can press back and press back, and it was never able to overcome him. And now, when he prays for you, and your temptation, he provides a way out. First Corinthians 1013, we're gonna get to the way out. He provides the Holy Spirit's power. Because he knows and has experienced powerful forces and resisted he knows how to win. And he is able, as your high priest is interceding and as empowering spirit is yours. So if you're guilty, if you're weak, Jesus is for you. The Lord is for the body. That's the Lord's for the body like he wants to help your body resist. He wants the whole of you. How do we win in the battles of sexual temptation. We must fight sexual sin, with worship. With worship, first, structure second, worship, first structure second worship, we must set the Lord always before our eyes, we must participate in corporate worship, we must have private worship, we must have small groups of worship, we must have accountability. But all of it is worship, you win the battle against our morality with worship first structure. Second. If you start with structures first, but you never saw the worship issue, you will keep losing and losing and losing. Proof of this. Romans 12 One and two. I appeal to you. Therefore, after hearing all the gospel of what Jesus has done, I appeal to you brothers, therefore, by the mercies of God to present your bodies as a living sacrifice. It's a different word for bodies, but it's the same impact. It's all of you, as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. offering Him your heart and soul and mind in all of your body is spiritual worship to God. It starts with your worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind that by testing you may discern what the will of God is. What is good and acceptable and perfect. Starts with first at first and it goes to structures. What are the structures? A really good friend who can help you when you're weak? Do you have a way to quickly communicate with your tendency like every human tendency is when you fail sexually and when you fail any other ways to hide like Adam and Eve? You need to be instructors where people won't let you hide. Because it's your temptation to go hide. Good instructors where people are always shining light. Remember, truth shows sin. Showing sin shows the cancer when you show the cancer you can find the forgiveness in Christ. So bring it in the light. Worship first, and then go structures. The story of the woman at the well is such good news. If you need to change it's possible for you. It's possible for you find living water if you need to battle. You are not your own. You are bought with a price glorify God in your body. Let's pray. Father, we pray that You would help us these words mark them on our heart. Help us honor and glorify You. In Christ's name. Amen.

Dan Jarms

Dr. Dan Jarms is teaching pastor and team leader at Faith Bible Church in Spokane Washington, as well as associate dean at TMS Spokane. He has been married for over 30 years to Linda, and has three adult children. He earned his B.A. in English at the Master’s College, B.Ed. at Eastern Washington University, M.Div and D.Min in Expository Preaching at The Master’s Seminary. His other interests include NCAA basketball, gardening, brick oven cooking.

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