Not All Is Helpful
“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.
1 Corinthians 6:12
Paul is here correcting a misunderstanding (summarized in the phrase “all things are lawful for me”) that is common regarding the fulfillment of the law in Christ. Having learned that Christ has fulfilled the obligations to the law to which we have failed to live up, some fall into an incorrect view that sin is no longer a particularly bad thing.
However, just because Christ took the punishment for sin does not mean that sin itself has been made safe! First, there is no true benefit to any sin, it is unhelpful. However, not only is it a waste of time when something beneficial could be done, it seeks to dominate those who practice it. Though all sin is destructive, it as an addictive element. When nurtured it grows out in a person’s life until it controls them.
For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.
Galatians 5:1
A false definition of liberation may lead some to believe that they are more “free” if they can seek to fulfill every desire of the flesh they may have. However, this is actually an act of submitting to the dominance of sin in one’s life.
Not For Indulgence
“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.
1 Corinthians 13=14
Again, he is writing against a sort of “proverb” of the time, which is about more than food. To paraphrase, people were saying “if something was made to be used in a certain way, than it is never wrong to use it in that way”. It is clear, in context, that this was regularly used to justify sexual immorality.
He reminds the church that while it is true that God made things to work together, he ought also to be feared for he has the power to destroy those things which he made. Therefore, while our bodies have been made with the capacity to engage in sexuality they have ultimately been created to be used in service to God. Bringing in the resurrection, he reminds them that their bodies were not only made for the specific purpose of glorifying God but that they are for serving that purpose with eternity in mind.
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.
1 Corinthians 6:15-17
While our bodies are designed in a way that allows for sex, it is not something that should be taken up lightly. It ought to be understood as a massive commitment to the other person. There is a unity formed with one another in the act and therefore it becomes a very serious issue. Those who join themselves spiritually to the Lord in faith ought not to join themselves in the flesh to anyone who is not going to labor lifelong with them in service to their Lord.
Body is a Temple
While the following verse is often brought up in relation to eating healthy or exercise, the context it is found in has to do with the importance of avoiding sexual immorality.
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
While most sins are things which proceed from your heart out into the world, sexual sins are unique in that one takes into their flesh union with another person in an unworthy way. This verse calls to mind, for me, those times when Israel would bring idols into the temple of God. The temple, which was built with the purpose of honoring God, was joined in service to that which blasphemed him instead. Those periods in Israel’s history resulted in some of the worst times of judgement.
While one may wish to treat sex as something trivial, the reality is very different. As believers, it is especially significant with whom we are creating such strong bonds. If our goal is to serve the Lord with our lives to the best of our ability, there are few individual choices in life that will aid or hinder that goal as significantly.
Those who believe in Christ are free from condemnation for our sins and have a great deal of liberty in him. However, sin is still a very dangerous thing not only because it is unfruitful but also because it can quickly come to dominate a life which entertains it. Sexual sin is even more dangerous, because the ties which are created can be particularly lasting and destructive.
Many today want to pretend that all sins are equal. While all sin, when given dominion over a life, leads one into self-destruction there are those which are far more dangerous and should be avoided with special seriousness. Flee from sexual immorality!
