Devotional
Sanctity of the 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” (1 Cor 6:19—20).
Jul 23, 2025By Paulson Pulikottil
Both body and spirit are essential in Christian spirituality. Humans cannot exist without a body in this world or the future. Though the spirit departs from the body at the point of death, unlike other religious traditions, the Bible teaches the resurrection of the body when the human spirit unites with a glorified body. The Bible affirms that the "perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality" (1 Cor 15:53).
Even today, the bodies of those who have trusted in Christ are the temple of the Holy Spirit. It is the sanctorum of the Spirit of God that they received from God when they accepted Jesus Christ as their Saviour and Lord. Thus, the Bible upholds the sanctity of the human body as an essential aspect of spirituality.
What we do with our bodies is crucial. The boundary lines between what is moral and what is immoral had blurred in the city of Corinth. Sacred prostitution, where people had sex with priests and priestesses to appease divinities for prosperity and fertility, was rampant. Many members of the Corinthian church came from backgrounds in various religions. Apostle Paul reminded them that Christian spirituality is more than a belief; it is more than a cognitive shift, not just a spiritual experience but a total surrender of body, mind, and spirit.
Our bodies are not for pleasure, but we should surrender them to the Lord for his service. Our bodies are not just ours; they belong to God. God has given us these bodies and expects us to offer them to him in worship. We should surrender our bodies to God's control and let Him use them as He pleases.
I am eternally grateful to the Lord for a person who modelled Christ for me. As the first act of the morning, he would surrender his body, naming all its organs from head to toe to the service of Christ, asking the Lord for the grace to use them for His service.
This awareness that we belong to Him, our body, mind, and spirit, is the foundation of Christian spirituality. Our bodies must serve the Lord and no one else.
Your body is a sacred vessel, a temple of the Holy Spirit. Christian spirituality is more than belief—it's full surrender of body, mind, and spirit. Today, offer your body to the Lord. Let your hands serve, your feet walk in righteousness, your eyes seek truth, and your heart beat with love for Christ. Make this your daily act of worship—a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God.