The Grace Gifts of the Holy Spirit
4 - My Body - His Temple 2
Romans 12:
1 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to 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. This is truly the way to worship him. New Living Bible
In Part 1 of "My Body - His Temple", we listed four reasons why as Christian disciples, we should offer our bodies to God.
Here, in Part 2, we list some more reasons.
5. Since I am a Christian, my body is to bring glory to Christ.
2 Corinthians 4:
10 Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies.
New Living Bible
6. Since I am a Christian, my body is to be disciplined and brought under control.
1 Corinthians 9:
26 So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. 27 I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified. New Living Bible
7. Since I am a Christian, my body will be changed when Christ returns.
1 Corinthians 15:
51 But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed!
52 It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed.
53 For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies. New Living Bible
Yes, we are to give our best to the Lord.
The story is told about Queen Mary, the grandmother of the present Queen Elizabeth, who made it her practice to visit Scotland every year. She was so loved by the people there that she often mingled with them freely, without a protective detail. One afternoon, while walking with some children, she went out further than she'd planned.
Dark clouds came up unexpectedly so she stopped at a nearby house to borrow an umbrella. "If you will lend me one", she said to the lady who answered the door, "I will send it back to you tomorrow."
The woman didn't recognize the Queen and was reluctant to give this stranger her best umbrella. So she handed her one that she intended to throw away. The fabric was torn in several places and one of the ribs was broken.
The next day another knock was heard at the door. When the lady opened it she was greeted by a royal guard who was holding in his hand her old tattered umbrella. "The Queen sent me", he said. "She asked me to thank you for lending her your umbrella."
For a moment the woman was stunned, then she burst into tears. "Oh my! What an opportunity I missed!" she cried. "I didn't give the Queen my very best."
May we not find ourselves in a similar position when we stand before the Lord one day - not having offered Him our bodies as His temple.
Prayer:
Father, today we offer You our bodies which You have bought at a great price. We commit today to glorify You with our bodies and to discipline our bodies so that we bring them under control.
We thank You Father that our bodies shall be transformed into new and immortal bodies! And we thank You that we shall not miss the opportunity to give You our very best in offering our bodies to You as Your temple. We pray in Jesus name, Amen.
Hope we can get together again tomorrow,
God willing.
Meanwhile, have a great day
walking with The Lord Jesus Christ! |
