Today's Readings: New Testament -
John 18:28-40
1 Thessalonians 4:1-10
Old Testament -
Psalms 140
2 Chronicles 6-7
Click on Text Links to Read Online
Focus Verses:
1 Thessalonians 4:3-7
3 It is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; 4 that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable, 5 not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God; 6 and that in this matter no one should wrong his brother or take advantage of him. The Lord will punish men for all such sins, as we have already told you and warned you. 7 For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life.
Insight:
Christian faith and life involves the body. True spirituality involves the whole person--body, mind, spirit, thoughts, emotions, feelings, knowledge, reason, and relationships. The body is our point of connection with the world around us. It is the place from which we act, relate, and move in the world.
Sexuality is a very important part of our humanity, and it is far more than physical. It involves and relates to our whole person—body, mind, spirit, thoughts, emotions, feelings, and relationships. Little wonder, then, that it is God's will that we should avoid sexual immorality—that we should govern our bodies with care and reverence before God.
Sexual immorality is self-destructive to our personhood, it destroys relationships, it distorts our view of self, it denigrates our view of others, it sabotages our understanding of God, and undermines our desire for truth.
Response & Action:
I reject the lies of sexual objectification. I reject the cheapening of sexuality that comes through exploitation, violence, and selfishness. I reject the devaluation of human dignity that results from the pervasive deception that says the body is nothing more than flesh. In a world filled with broken relationships, empty promises, disrespect, hopelessness, self-gratification, and crude perversion, I choose to value a whole and holy life. I believe that salvation and redemption are for the whole person, and therefore believe it is God's will to treat sexuality as important, beautiful, and holy. I will pursue honor and purity, and turn away from sexual immorality.
O Lord, help me to be a good steward of all you have given me. Grant me the wisdom and the will to guard my heart, to feed my spirit, to stimulate my mind, and care for my body. Help me to honor you with my whole self. Help me to see and value the connections between body, mind, heart, spirit, and relationships. Thank you for the hope and promise that are mine in Christ Jesus. It's in his name that I pray. Amen.
Spiritual Formation Verses: Romans 6:12-14
12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. 13 Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. 14 For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.
Resources:
Revolution of Character: Discovering Christ's Pattern for Spiritual Transformation
by Dallas Willard and Don Simpson
Wired for Intimacy: How Pornography Hijacks the Male Brain
by William M. Struthers
