Body

Body

Did you know that you get a new stomach lining every three to four days?  If you didn’t, the strong acids your stomach uses to digest food would also digest your stomach! Did you know that your lungs contain over 300,000 tiny blood vessels and that if they were laid end to end, they would stretch 2400km (1500 miles)? Your body serves as proof of God’s creativity and love. The Bible says that God knows the amount of hairs on your head!  That’s how much he cares about you and your body.

Did God really take the time to create me? Yes, you were created in God’s image. It’s in the Bible, "So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them" (Genesis 1:27, NKJV).

What am I really worth? You were saved with the priceless and pure blood of Jesus. This means that you’re worth more than anything in this world! In 1 Peter 1:18-19, NKJV, the Bible says, "knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot."

Since it’s my body, can’t I do what I want with it? Your body is not yours. It belongs to God and serves as a temple of the Holy Spirit. It’s in the Bible, "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body" (I Corinthians 6:19-20, NIV).

We honor God by taking care of our bodies. We honor God by being careful with what we see, think, eat, hear, and say. The Bible says, "Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:31, NKJV). Taking care of our bodies doesn’t just relate to what’s inside us but also on the outside too. Check out the next section.

Should Christians get tattoos on their bodies? Getting tattoos is very popular with all age groups today. You may be surprised to learn that it was popular in Bible times too. It’s in the Bible, "You shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor tattoo any marks on you: I am the LORD” (Leviticus 19:28, NKJV).  Cutting oneself was a pagan religious custom, "So they shouted louder and, as was their custom, cut themselves with knives and swords until the blood gushed out” (1 Kings 18:28, TLB).

When the Jesus comes back, those who are dead in Christ will rise and have perfect bodies.  It’s in the Bible, “In the same way, our earthly bodies which die and decay are different from the bodies we shall have when we come back to life again, for they will never die.  The bodies we have now embarrass us, for they become sick and die; but they will be full of glory when we come back to life again. Yes, they are weak, dying bodies now, but when we live again they will be full of strength.”(1 Corinthians 15:42-43, TLB).

Just like the body has different parts that make a whole, so should the church. “Just as there are many parts to our bodies, so it is with Christ’s body. We are all parts of it, and it takes every one of us to make it complete, for we each have different work to do. So we belong to each other, and each needs all the others.”(Romans 12:4-5, TLB).