"I encourage you to lay down all the lies and doubts you have believed about your body. Society sexualises and distorts body image to make us feel ashamed of ourselves, but the Lord CARES." Who does our body actually belong to? Is it wholly ours to do with it what we wish? "
by Charissa Cheong
The female body is sexualised beyond recognition in every area of our society. We don’t even need to open magazines before sexual images of women meet our eyes.
Instagram and other social media are dominated by unrealistic, photoshopped images of bodies.
Women are growing increasingly concerned about body image because of its portrayal in the media.
Girls are turning to cosmetic surgery and using unhealthy weight control methods to alter their appearances at younger ages than before.
"Long before I entered adulthood, I, like many girls, was painfully aware of the pressure that society had placed on my body - to look, behave, and present myself in a particular way to be accepted. "
And yet, in the Church environment I grew up in, bodies were never addressed apart from within the collective phrase, ‘the body of Christ’.
As helpful as this analogy of community and union was to me as a child, it also confused me.
I became distanced from my flesh, imagining that when God looked down on me, what He saw was a ghost-like ‘spiritual’ being inside a body that was largely irrelevant to Him; a small part of a much bigger whole.
Paul in Corinthians, however, is extremely focused on the role of the body in our relationship with the Father.
He not only speaks of our ‘flesh’ representing our sinful nature, but tells us that “the Lord cares about our bodies” (1 Corinthians 6:13)
But cares in what way? A common misconception about God is that He wants to police and restrict our bodies, whilst modern society promotes sexual and physical freedoms.
Another key appearance of the word ‘body’ in my adolescence was the common phrase “Your body is a temple”.
This was often used by older women to caution me against drinking at parties, eating too much chocolate and most importantly, asking to get a tattoo or body piercing.
But this phrase was not coined by my mum, aunty or Sunday school teacher.
It was written by Paul in Corinthians and serves a much larger purpose which I hope you will explore with me.
What I hope we learn is that when God says He cares about our bodies, He means this in the most intimate and extraordinary way possible.
Our bodies are not our own
“Run from sexual sin! No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body. Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So, you must honour God with your body.” (1 Corinthians 6:18-20)
For obvious reasons, Paul makes no mention of tattoos or calorie deficits.
What he does mention explicitly is sexual sin; a sign that we believe our bodies are ours to manage and ours to give away.
In actuality, Jesus BOUGHT our bodies when He went to death on the cross for our sins.
HIS body was beaten and abused, so that we could be set free!
Now that sin has no hold on us, we honour Christ by willingly surrendering ourselves to Him.
We are reminded that our bodies do not belong to us and ownership over them is God’s alone!
This is not a cruel model of ownership like a master owns a slave, but a beautiful picture of a loving Father who has given us the best gift - the Holy Spirit living within us.
Paul describes this gifting as a bright light inside a fragile clay jar. Though our flesh is still imperfect, the Holy Spirit is able to fill us with radiance.
Another image that Paul uses is one of a house: “You are God’s building” and the foundation is Christ Himself, living in our hearts (1 Corinthians 3:9-11).
Because Christ is in us, we must honour Him.
When we commit sins of the flesh, the Spirit must endure it.
And why should the Spirit of the Lord have to deal with such things, when Christ has already PAID for the whole house?
Imagine saving up to buy your dream home and having it immediately invaded by squatters who don’t pay any rent?
Jesus has given us His Spirit, and the Spirit should rightfully take up every inch of space in our hearts.
Now let’s come back to the image of a ‘temple’.
More than just a house, our bodies are also supposed to be a place where God’s name is continually praised.
Often, we are tempted not to worship God with our bodies, but to worship body image, fitness and sexual lust.
We allow these things to become idols in our hearts. But “what union can there be between God’s temple and idols?” (2 Corinthians 6:16).
If our bodies are a temple of the Holy Spirit, then we cannot honour God and worship these things at the same time. If we do, we are not functioning as we were created to, and we insult the presence of God.
So what does honouring God with our bodies look like?
One of my favourite worship songs right now is ‘Make Room’ by The Church Will Sing. These are some of the lyrics:
“Here is where I lay it down Every lie and every doubt This is my surrender
And I will make room for you To do whatever you want to”
Sisters, I encourage you to lay down all the lies and doubts you have believed about your body and who it belongs to.
Ultimately, it is the world that produces these bad fruits in us.
Society sexualises and distorts body image to make us feel ashamed of ourselves. But the Lord CARES for our bodies and wants to be united with us through them.
He asks us to make room’ for Him by clearing out the idols that have cluttered our hearts with sin.
He does not restrict us, He sent His Son to die so that by grace we can be free from the things inside us that are unlike Him and that weigh us down.
Never believe the lie that God does not want a personal relationship with you because of the sins of your flesh.
In Revelation, Jesus speaks to all who believe in Him, saying: “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.” (Revelation 3:20)
It is up to us to decide whether Jesus will be a tenant in our bodies or the one sovereign owner.
Will we leave Jesus standing out in the cold when we want to sin or invite Him in permanently, to be a friend, teacher and partner for life?
Once we open that door, the Grace of Christ has the power to erase our sin and transform us into new creatures!
Conclusion
Please stop believing that your body is not important to God.
Paul tells us that even after death, we will not be formless ‘spirits’ but have eternal bodies, created by God and free from the impurities of human hands.
If we let our bodies belong to humans; to society, we submit ourselves to insecurity, corruption and emptiness. But when we surrender our bodies into God’s hands, we are free to cherish them for what they really are – pure and treasured temples of the Holy Spirit.
By Charissa Cheong
About the Article Contributor :
Charissa Cheong is a Malaysian-born student living in the UK, studying English literature. She has been published in local and national UK publications and also writes for her University Newspaper. Raised by two believing parents, she hopes she can continue to lead a life of loving and serving others, using the abilities given to her by her Father above.
References :
‘Eating Disorder Statistics & Research’, Eating Disorder Hope
‘Report on the APA Task Force on the Sexualisation of Girls’, American Psychological Association
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