Glorify God in Your Body

You were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. (1 Corinthians 6:20)

“Worship” is the term we use to cover all the acts of the heart and mind and body that intentionally express the infinite worth of God. This is what we were created for. It might be singing in church. It might be sweeping the kitchen floor.

Don’t just think about worship services when you think about worship. That is a huge limitation which is not in the Bible. All of life is supposed to be worship.

Take breakfast, for example, or mid morning snacks. First Corinthians 10:31 says, “Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” Now eating and drinking are about as basic as you can get. What could be more real or more ordinarily human than eating and drinking? And Paul says, in effect, let all your eating and drinking be worship.

Or take sex. Paul says the alternative to fornication is worship.

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. (1 Corinthians 6:18–20)

That is, worship with your body by the way you handle your sexuality.

Or take death for a final example. We will experience death in our bodies. In fact, it will be the last act of the body on this earth. The body bids farewell. How shall we worship in that last act of the body? We see the answer in Philippians 1:20–21. Paul says that his hope is that Christ would be magnified — worshiped, shown to be worthy — in his body by death. Then he adds, “For to me . . . to die is gain.” We express the infinite worth of Christ in dying by counting death as gain.

You have a body. But it is not yours. “You were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.”

You are always in a temple. Always worship.

John Piper 

Paul’s Salvation Was for You

Formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. . . . I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. (1 Timothy 1:13–14, 16)

Paul’s conversion was for your sake. Did you hear that? Here it is again: “I received mercy for this reason, that Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.” That’s us — you and me.

I hope you will hear this very personally. God had you in view when he chose Paul and saved him by sovereign grace just the way he did.

If you believe on Jesus for eternal life — or if you may yet believe on him for eternal life — Paul’s conversion is for your sake. The point of his conversion happening the way it did is to make Christ’s incredible patience vivid for you.

Remember that Paul’s pre-conversion life was a long, long trial to Jesus. “Why are you persecuting me?” Jesus asked on the Damascus road (Acts 9:4). “Your life of unbelief and rebellion is a persecution of me!” And yet Paul tells us in Galatians 1:15 that he had been set apart by God for his apostleship since before he was born. That’s amazing. It means that all his life up to the point of his conversion was one long abuse of God, and one long rejection and mockery of Jesus — who had chosen him to be an apostle before he was born.

That is why Paul says his conversion is a brilliant demonstration of Jesus’s patience. And that is what he offers us today.

It was for our sake that Jesus saved Paul when and how he did. To “display his perfect patience” to us (1 Timothy 1:16). Lest we lose heart. Lest we think he could not really save us. Lest we think he is prone to anger. Lest we think we have gone too far away. Lest we think our dearest one cannot be converted — suddenly, unexpectedly, by the sovereign, overflowing grace of Jesus.

John Piper 

Sin is Serious to God

PRAY OVER THIS

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:23-24

 

PONDER THIS

When you are saved, sin will never be on your account again. God will not impute sin to you. Now you say, “Well, Pastor Rogers, what if I get saved and then I sin again?” Did I hear you say, “What if”? You know, some people have the idea that, “If I’m living right when I die, I’ll go to Heaven.” Do you think your goodness is going to get you to Heaven? No! “Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit” (Psalm 32:1-2). If He were to put one-half of one sin on your account, you’d die and go to Hell. God is a holy God, but He will not impute iniquity. Now that doesn’t mean you can sin and get by with it. Sin is serious to God, and He deals with it seriously.

We need to keep a short account with God, confessing and repenting of our sins regularly. His grace is abundant, but it has come at a cost. It is a gift to be treasured, not squandered. He will not impute sin onto your account any longer. What amazing grace! When you understand grace, you can understand why John Newton wrote the famous line, “Amazing grace! How sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.”

Where do you struggle to believe God will not count sin against you if you are in Christ?

What makes God’s grace seem too good to be true?

PRACTICE THIS

Have a conversation with a friend about God’s grace. Share the areas where it’s hard for you to believe, seeking to encourage one another in the reality of God’s grace.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Are You Caught in The Comparison Game?

PRAY OVER THIS

“What then? Are we better than they? Not at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin. As it is written: ‘There is none righteous, no, not one; there is none who understands; there is none who seeks after God.’” Romans 3:9-11

 

PONDER THIS

Sometimes we think that because of our environment or pedigree, we’re excused or better. I preached one time at a church and a lady could hardly wait to get to see me because my last name is Rogers. She said, “You, sir, are a Rogers.” And she said, “I am a Rogers. My father was a Rogers, and my maiden name was Rogers.” Then she just smiled and threw her shoulders back and she said, “You know, I have studied our family background, and you will be pleased to know that we came over on the Mayflower.” I said, “Well that’s interesting.” I said, “I traced it back further than that.” She said, “You did?” I said, “Yes, we have come all the way from a crooked farmer and a drunken sailor. The farmer was Adam, and the sailor was Noah, and we go all the way back.” We are sinners by birth, by nature, by heritage. It doesn’t matter about our race or our background.

 

The people in the Book of Romans were wanting to stretch themselves out in the gutter alongside somebody else and say, “I’m better than he or she is.” But you 

see, that’s not the standard. The standard is the glory of God, and that’s the reason Paul would say later in Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We need to quit comparing ourselves to one another.

     

Why do we often struggle with comparison?

To whom do you compare yourself? In what areas do you tend to compare yourself with others?

PRACTICE THIS

Write down some areas of comparison you struggle with and bring them before God in prayer.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

We are Spiritually Weak

PRAY OVER THIS

“For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.”

Romans 5:6

 

PONDER THIS

We are sinners by birth, sinners by nature, sinners by choice, and sinners by practice. The Bible says all have sinned and come short of the glory of God (see Romans 3:23). Sin is the primary source of our weakness. Many of us do not realize we are paralyzed. You may say, “I’m not weak. I lift weights. I’m very strong.” I’m not talking about physical weakness. You may say, “I’m not weak. I have a PhD.” I’m not talking about intellectual weakness. You may say, “I’m not weak. I have a million dollars in the bank.” I’m not talking about financial weakness. I’m talking about spiritual weakness that has paralyzed you.

Do you know what our weakness is? We don’t have the strength to be godly. We are without strength, so Christ died for the ungodly. God’s plan for all of us is that we be godly. I don’t care how hard you try to be godly; you don’t have what it takes. You see, you may be strong to do as you want, but you’re not strong to do as you ought. While we were yet without strength, Christ died for the ungodly. The primary source of our weakness is sin, and the paralyzing force of our sin is that we cannot be what God would have us be.

Is it easier for you to see your strengths or weaknesses? Why?

How have you experienced hope through Jesus in the middle of your spiritual weakness?

PRACTICE THIS

Take some time and make a list of your weaknesses. Pray over those things, asking God to be the strength in your weakness.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Who’s to Blame? Us or Adam?

PRAY OVER THIS

“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned—" Romans 5:12

 

PONDER THIS

You may read this verse and respond, “Wait a minute, that’s not fair. Why should I get in trouble because of Adam? I had absolutely nothing to do with Adam and Adam had nothing to do with me.” But you don’t really believe that. Listen, if Adam had died without children, you wouldn’t be here. In reality, Adam had a lot to do with you. And you are in the image of Adam, you have the characteristics and the tendencies and the sinful disposition of Adam that you have inherited from him.

Adam did have something to do with you, but you still may say, “It’s not fair that I should go to Hell for Adam’s sin.” Well don’t worry about that, you’ve sinned enough yourself, haven’t you? We should be grateful that God deals with one man because, not only was it fair, but it was also wise and gracious. If we are condemned through Adam, one man, thank God we can be saved through one Man, Jesus. Think about it. It is wise and gracious that God allowed Adam to stand for us, so that Jesus, our resurrected Lord, might also stand for us.

Have you felt that it was unfair that you are condemned due to Adam’s sin?

How often do you reflect on the reality that you have been shown grace through Jesus’ work?

PRACTICE THIS

Take time this week to reflect on your sin that would have condemned you apart from Adam’s individual sin. Spend time in prayer, thanking God that He was willing to save you based on the work of one Man, Jesus.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers