1 Corinthians 6:12-20 The Temple of the Holy Spirit
Format for Your Devotions
Instructions: Do not read my example devotion until you have completed your own devotional time in the scriptures. Reading my thoughts first may limit your own understanding. Let the Holy Spirit speak to you alone before looking to see what anyone else has to say, whether it is me, a Bible commentary, or a friend. Let God speak to you before you let another person speak to you. I have provided a format, but modify it to fit your needs. For example, I usually combine my application and prayer together talking to God about the application to my own life. You can go through this devotion process mentally, speaking out loud, or in writing as you wish. Don’t worry if you are not following this process exactly. Sometimes, I add extra information and sometimes I emphasize one part more than others. However, you should always think about what you learn about God from this passage.
Step 1: Pray–Ask for the Holy Spirit’s guidance first of all and that God may reveal the lessons that He wants you to have that day. Request that God protect you from Satan’s distractions (and the devil will try to distract you whether it is pinching the baby or putting you to sleep). Ask to see God more clearly as you read and think about the passage.
Step 2: Read the passage–Read to get an overview of the information first. Then start looking at specific parts after the first reading. You may read a larger or smaller section than I have here because you do not have to follow my organization at all.
Step 3: Understand the passage–You can summarize, ask and answer your own questions about the passage, visualize the story, analyze the characters, and relate this passage to other scriptures and personal experiences.
Step 4: What does this reveal about God?–What do you learn about the Father, Son, and/or Holy Spirit from this passage?
Step 5: Apply this to your own life.
Step 6: Prayer
My Example Devotion: February 13, 2020 1 Corinthians 6:12-20
Note: In the devotion examples, I leave my questions and thought processes in the text because I am trying to demonstrate that a devotional time is a dialogue with God about what you are reading from His word. As such, any questions or ideas that you have should be explored by talking it out with God. These example devotions are not my attempts to teach you what the meaning of a particular scripture is. They are an attempt to teach you the process of devotions, which is a combination of prayer and Bible study where you explore ideas with God as you read His word.
“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 up by his power. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never! Or do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her? For, as it is written, “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 is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. Or 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 were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
(Understanding the Text) The Corinthians lived in a culture that promoted sexual immorality. There was always someone available to have sex with because of the temple prostitutes. Supposedly these men and women wanted to have sex because they considered it part of their worship, so there was no guilt about having an unwilling partner. Thus, the Corinthian Christians didn’t have much to deter them from having sex with someone who was not their wife, except for loyalty to Jesus.
Paul starts out with saying that even when something is not prohibited, it still might be a bad idea because it is not helpful. It does not promote spiritual growth and renewal. Card games would fall into this category.
(Understanding the Text / Revelation of God) His next argument is addiction. We can be dominated by something because we think we need it and can’t do without it. Sexual addiction was a problem then as it is now. Paul is saying that to be addicted to anything, i.e. dominated by anything. He gives the example of eating. “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.” I don’t understand the parallelism here, and I think that it might be important. Just as food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food, the body is meant for Jesus and Jesus is meant for the body. My guess is that we should not lose our spiritual life based on a physical need that will be destroyed one day. Our bodies will be destroyed and changed into new bodies and the food of today is nothing tomorrow. I understand this idea in general; I know that this passage is broadly stating that we must offer our bodies to God and only use them to honor Him and that being sexually immoral is not honoring God, but what is the shared relationship of food/stomach and Jesus/body? Jesus compared Himself to the bread of life and said that we need to eat Him, but I don’t think that symbolism works with the actions of the physical body here. I’m not getting something. I think maybe it has to do with what Paul says later: “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God?” Food goes into the stomach and then becomes a part of the body. Jesus, through the Spirit, has entered into our physical bodies and literally lives inside of us. Thus, when we do something physical, it affects Jesus living in us. Paul is essentially saying that we are not alone in our bodies. When we accept Jesus as our Lord, He lives in our bodies with us. We are somehow physically connected to Jesus through the Spirit.
Paul’s third argument is that sex involves more than putting food into the stomach. In the process of having sex, a man and woman become one in some way other than simply a physical joining. Paul says that when we become Christians, we have given our whole self to Jesus including our bodies. He says that the Spirit lives in us and that is affected by our bodies. Then he makes the point that when the Corinthians had sex with a temple prostitute, they were taking their Spirit-filled bodies and connecting with corruption. Paul says that sexual immorality is different than other sins which hurt other people and are directed outwardly. Sexual immorality is directed inwardly at oneself. Paul says that the Corinthians do not have the right to hurt themselves because they belong to God. Their bodies as well as their minds have been committed to God, and they need to be loyal to God in heart, mind, and body.
(Application / Prayer) My application for myself is Christianity is not just a spiritual commitment. We commit ourselves to Jesus with our whole lives. We commit our hearts, intelligence, loyalty, pleasure, bodies, and personality to Jesus. We let Him into every part of our lives. This is why God described Himself as a jealous God in the Old Testament. I pray to serve You in all ways in my life.