1 Corinthians 7:17-24 Seek God's Calling

1 Corinthians 7:17-24  Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him.  This is the rule I lay down in all the churches.  Was a man already circumcised when he was called?  He should not become uncircumcised.  Was a man uncircumcised when he was called?  He should not be circumcised.  Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing.  Keeping God’s commands is what counts.  Each one should remain in the situation which he was in when God called him.  Were you a slave when you were called? Don’t let it trouble you — although if you can gain your freedom, do so.  For he who was a slave when he was called by the Lord is the Lord’s freedman; similarly, he who was a free man when he was called is Christ’s slave.  You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men. Brothers, each man, as responsible to God, should remain in the situation God called him to. 

Paul believed emphatically that every person who knew Christ was called for a purpose, God's purpose.  Each had a place in the body of Christ.  Each needed to lift his or her eyes to see that spiritual reason for living and not settle for anything this world has to offer.  God's plans for our lives are much greater than our purposes.  As Paul told the church in Colosse, Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.  For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.  (Colossians 3:2-3)  God desires us to be his children, part of Christ himself.  We are to reflect him, not ourselves.  As Paul knew for himself, he was called for a purpose, set apart for a purpose.  Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God — the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures regarding his Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of David, and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.  (Romans 1:1-4)  So are we all called.  For the message of our lives should be Jesus Christ our Lord, our hope of glory.  Nothing is greater, no message is more important, no life is better lived than to live for Christ.  That is why in the above passage, Paul says remain in the state that you find yourself.  The message that Christ is Lord is so important that nothing else in life can compare with this reality.  If we spend our time living for ourselves, trying constantly to change our circumstances, always worrying about who we are and where we are, we might miss the most important reason for living, Jesus Christ.  The message of our lives will be me and my will rather than not my will but yours be done, Lord.  By centering on "me," we will lose the reason for life, which is Jesus Christ came to save sinners and He is Lord of all.  Because He is life, He alone is worthy of our lives, our worship, and our praise.  In Revelation they circle the throne and sing: Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!  (5:12)

In today's passage Paul says, stay as you are if possible for the glory of the Lord.  Was a man already circumcised when he was called?  He should not become uncircumcised.  Was a man uncircumcised when he was called?  He should not be circumcised.  Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing.  This condition of circumcision is temporal: in view of eternal existence with God, this status is of no consideration.  If you are a slave when called to follow Christ, remain so if you have to with the knowledge that your real life is IN CHRIST.  If you are free when called, remain free, but do not become a slave of men for any purpose.  Does God want us to be slaves to people?  Of course not.  But we are to fix our minds continually on the higher calling that we are slaves to God, for Jesus purchased our freedom with his precious blood.  Twice in this letter, Paul reminds the believers they were purchased by Christ: You are not your own; you were bought at a price.  Therefore honor God with your body.  (1 Corinthians 6:19-20  See also 1 Corinthians 7:23)    Otherwise, Paul wants us to know, slave or not in this world, we are as slaves to Christ for his glory.  We are not to be consumed by our circumstances in life: we are to be consumed by our purposes in the eternal body of Christ where He has placed us.  His purpose, not ours; his will, not ours.  For the flesh, this is a hard pill to swallow sometimes.  For the fleshly man or woman, this is not the reason for life.  The carnally minded individual wants to be all that a person can be in this life, to win this world and everything in it; for tomorrow death comes; and dust is each person's destiny.  But winning in God's economy, in the life he has set up for us, means committing to Christ, to see all life in an eternal perspective, knowing our destination will be with him as sons and daughters.  That is why we are so willing to become servants to Christ and to the world He created, to live for others and not for ourselves.  As Paul said, For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.  If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me.  (Philippians 1:21-22)  

If we truly accept our place in life and work for the Lord where we are, we will do well and find joy in this life and glory in the life that is to come.  Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.  Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.  For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.  When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.  (Colossians 3:1-4)  Circumcised or not, slave or not, married or not, prosperous or not, successful or not, we are to live every day for the Lord, listening to the still small voice of the Holy Spirit to guide us.  Our souls are not bound to this earth.  When this journey of temporary existence ends, we will be in God's presence.  Consequently, we should live now in that reality, seeing a harvest of the fruit of the Spirit from our labors for Jesus: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  (Galatians 5:22-23)  We should focus everything we do on the heavenly, not the earthly.  Yes, we must do what is necessary for our existence here, but our spiritual lives should always be focused on Christ and his plans for us.  Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.  Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another.  Forgive as the Lord forgave you.  And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.  (Colossians 3:12-14)  We are to live as Christ wants us to live, revealing him to a broken world.  We are to fulfill the two cardinal commandments, the commandments that suffice all others: love your neighbor as yourself and love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.  Regardless of our status or position in the world, we should be living sacrifices for the Lord.  We should be fully devoted to him, to no other, not to this world or to anything in it.   

1 Corinthians 7:12-17 Peace in the Spirit

1 Corinthians 7:12-17  To the rest I say this (I, not the Lord): If any brother has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her.  And if a woman has a husband who is not a believer and he is willing to live with her, she must not divorce him.  For the unbelieving husband has been sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife has been sanctified through her believing husband.  Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy.  But if the unbeliever leaves, let him do so.  A believing man or woman is not bound in such circumstances; God has called us to live in peace.  How do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband?  Or, how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?  Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him.  This is the rule I lay down in all the churches.

Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him is Paul's central theme in 1 Corinthians chapter 7.  The disruptions, upheavals, and excessive concerns in a Christian's life might hinder the purpose of the Good News that all people might be saved from sin.  In the above passage, Paul advises the husband or wife to continue in marriage, if possible, for the sake of saving an unbelieving mate.  But if the unbelieving mate desires to disconnect from the marriage, he says, allow the spouse to do so.  Why?  To live as much as possible in peace.  Attempting to force a nonbeliever to stay in a marriage will undoubtedly lead to a sustained period of conflict and struggle.  Little peace or contentment will be found in such a discordant environment.  In a divided marriage when one person's will or flesh is battling another person's will or flesh, the work of God's Spirit is diminished greatly, regardless of the presence of a Christian in the home.  Paul says, let the unbeliever leave so God's spirit of peace will rule over the home.  However, in the situation where the unsaved mate desires to stay married, then keep the marriage intact, especially considering that the unsaved one might be saved in the future.  Yet in both situations, staying married or not staying married, peace and stability in the home is important.  As we wrote in the last breakfast, contentment with godliness is important to further the gospel message.  Paul's instructions for the Corinthians is for them to reflect God's grace and mercy in whatever state they find themselves, for such godlike attributes will be a light in their marriages.  Bringing salvation to the world is the focus of Paul's life.  He wants husbands, wives, all people, to be saved, to find the Good News, to discover God's grace and mercy.  Discontent, disruptions, struggles in Christians' lives can obfuscate this focus of salvation for all people.  Do not be afraid.  I bring you good news of great joy THAT WILL BE FOR ALL THE PEOPLE.  Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.  This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.  (Luke 2:10-12)

In the above passage we find Paul exhorting Christians to stay married to unbelievers who are willing to live with them.  Through this union, which was established before God, the unbelieving mate and the children are sanctified or made acceptable to God.  Because of the believing spouse, this marriage is made holy to God as a result of the contractual marriage before God.  This holiness is the same kind of holiness that is referred to when we obey the law.  When we obey the law we are within the constraints of God's righteousness on Earth.  The law reveals how people should treat God and others, but obedience to this law does not bring salvation to people: only the blood of Christ brings eternal salvation to people.  The blood of Christ creates new creatures, born into the family of God.  Consequently, when we marry under the auspices or authority of God as Christians or when we come to the knowledge of Christ in our marriages, God accepts us as his own.  We are now under his grace and mercy.  The marriage partners and their children in a contractual marriage are accepted by God.  As children of God, our unions are blessed by him: sanctified.  But salvation, true holiness, is Christ IN US AND WE IN HIM, true acceptance of God's free gift.  No other arrangement is acceptable in eternity.  Our lives might reflect goodness and appropriateness here, which is honored by God now; but we must be BORN AGAIN to know God in his holiness and perfection.  No other avenue is open for man to find God.  We see this clearly in the account where Peter and John healed a cripple at the gate called Beautiful and offered this explanation:  "It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.  He (Jesus) is “‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone.’  Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”  (Acts 4:10-12)  

As we ruminate over today's scriptures, we must come to the conclusion that nothing should get in the way of us serving God one hundred percent.  God does not want our lives to be wrapped around the concerns of this life.  We are to be like the virgins with oil mentioned in Matthew 25:1-12.  At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.  Five of them were foolish and five were wise.  The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them.  The wise, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps.  The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.  At midnight the cry rang out: "Here’s the bridegroom!  Come out to meet him!"  Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps.  The foolish ones said to the wise, "Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out."  “No," they replied, "there may not be enough for both us and you.  Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves."  But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived.  The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet.  And the door was shut.  Later the others also came. "Sir! Sir!" they said. "Open the door for us!"  But he replied, "I tell you the truth, I don’t know you."  The world and its concerns can make us drowsy or indifferent to spiritual things.  Rather than having the indwelling oil of the Holy Spirit active in our lives, we might find ourselves asleep, allowing the Spirit of God to seep from our active lives.  Paul asks the Corinthians not to consider this world and the things of this world as so important that they forget the things of God.  Yes, relationships, marriages, and stability are important; but more important is our fixation on the life that lasts forever, the new creature's life, eternal life.  No matter what, we should keep the presence of the Holy Spirit burning in our lives.  Our lives should be full of the anointing oil of the Spirit.  When Jesus was going away, He told his disciples, When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, he will testify about me.  (John 15:26)  That is still the purpose of the Holy Spirit in us, to testify of Christ.  May we not become entangled in anything that keeps us from allowing the Spirit freedom in our lives.    

1 Corinthians 7:8-11 Content In Christ!

1 Corinthians 7:8-11  Now to the unmarried and the widows I say: It is good for them to stay unmarried, as I am.  But if they cannot control themselves, they should marry, for it is better to marry than to burn with passion.  To the married I give this command (not I, but the Lord): A wife must not separate from her husband.  But if she does, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband.  And a husband must not divorce his wife. 

In chapter seven of First Corinthians, we have a recurring theme: Because of the present crisis, I think that it is good for you to remain as you are.  (verse 26)  Paul beseeches the believers to remain contentedly in their present status in life, not adding upheaval by seeking change.  He desires for them to focus on the realities of the kingdom of God, rather than on their temporal existence.  Seeking the kingdom of God first should be their preeminent concern in life, not making their own lives easier or better.  Living for God should be their purpose in life; anything else is a waste of time; for the celestial is forever.  For Paul, nothing else but living for Christ truly mattered, especially since he believed with a passion in the imminent return of his Lord.  His commission to preach the gospel, given to him by Christ himself, burned in his heart; therefore, he was willing to give his whole life to God.  For the purpose of Christ, he was content in any state or circumstance he found himself.  Now, he encourages the Corinthians to have the same mind he has: to be content in whatever circumstance or station in life that they find themselves.  

(verse 20)

  N

evertheless, each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him.  This is the rule I lay down in all the churches.  And he goes on to say, 

Each one should remain in the situation which he was in when God called him.  

(verses 17 & 20)  Paul desired his converts to have the same passion he possesses: to lay down their lives and their concerns about their lives, to be totally committed to Christ.  

For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.  (Philippians 1:21)  He did not want the Corinthians to make choices that would bind them to this earth: For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality.  When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”  “Where, O death, is your victory?  Where, O death, is your sting?”  (1 Corinthians 15:53-55)  Paul does not want the Corinthians, who are now new creatures, clinging to the beggarly elements of this world that contain no eternal value.  He wants their hearts oriented toward to the heavenly, not the earthly.

In view of this contentment, the unmarried and the widows should stay as they are: unmarried or widowed.  But, if they burn with passion, they should change the circumstances of their lives and get married.  Paul's basic concern for them as Christians is for them to live decent and wholesome lives.  He does not want their lifestyles to bring a reproach on the gospel of Christ.  Paul told his spiritual son, But godliness with contentment is great gain.  (1 Timothy 6:6)  The gospel of Christ should bring people to a life of dedication to the Lord; such a life reflects God's holiness, his righteousness, to the world.  Stable, loving, and caring marriages reflect this same image of God.  Jesus was asked about marriages by the Pharisees.  Since the Pharisees knew some marriages in their community did not reflect the nature of God, and there were many divorces, they wanted to see what Jesus would say.  Of course, Jesus was not going to validate the present situation with many divorces within the Jewish culture.  Some Pharisees came to him to test him.  They asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?”  “Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’?  So they are no longer two, but one.  Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.”  Jesus states that the condition of marriage was designed from the very beginning to be a permanent situation.  Two would become one.  By their union as one, they were to live their lives as a  reflection of God's complete nature of being both masculine and feminine.  When they break up their marriage, they break up the image of the nature of God himself as He desired to reflect himself to the world.  For the purpose of the message of Christ, remaining as one in a stabile marriage provides a better witness for the spreading  of the Word, the Good News.  But because of the nature of the world, the violence and pain often propagated on people within a marriage, divorce is an ongoing reality because of sin, the waywardness of stubborn man.  

The disciples were concerned about the nature of man and the consequences of the hardness of his heart.  They wanted to know whether to be holy and upright, perhaps they should not marry to prevent divorce from becoming a part of their lives.  Otherwise, they recognized that the sinfulness of the heart of mankind was a permanent condition.  How could there not be divorces if this was the nature of people?  The disciples said to him, “If this is the situation between a husband and wife, it is better not to marry.”  Jesus replied, “Not everyone can accept this word, but only those to whom it has been given.  For some are eunuchs because they were born that way; others were made that way by men; and others have renounced marriage because of the kingdom of heaven.  The one who can accept this should accept it.”  (Matthew 19:10-12)  Jesus is saying what Paul tells the Corinthians: things that are should remain as they are.  Seek ye the first the kingdom of God.  (See Matthew 6:33-34)  Do not change what is.  If you are married, if possible, do not change your state.  If you are unmarried, do not seek a mate.  If you are a widow, do not seek to remarry.  Be content in whatever state you find yourself.  Paul said exactly this: I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.  (Philippians 4:11)  Contentment can bring great glory to God if you lift him up in your situation.  Your days and nights will be spent serving the Lord and not longing for something else.  Your heart will be set on the heavenly and not on the earthly.  As we read earlier in this study, Paul wants the Corinthians to remember their lives have been bought at a  price: Christ Jesus and his shed blood.  No other price could satisfy God's need for justice: to pay back the evil that man has created.  Jesus represents the perfect sacrifice.  The Corinthians needed to live their lives in full response to such a price.  We, too, thousands of years removed from Paul's teaching to the Corinthians, need to respond wholeheartedly to God's message of love with our total commitment to God's purposes for our lives.  We should not be concerned about changing our lives to make them better here.  We should be concerned about being living sacrifices for God: not our will but yours be done.           

1 Corinthians 7:1-7 Honor Marriage, Honor God!

1 Corinthians 7:1-7  Now for the matters you wrote about: It is good for a man not to marry.  But since there is so much immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband.  The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband.  The wife’s body does not belong to her alone but also to her husband.  In the same way, the husband’s body does not belong to him alone but also to his wife.  Do not deprive each other except by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer.  Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.  I say this as a concession, not as a command.  I wish that all men were as I am.  But each man has his own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that.

In our previous breakfast we wrote about being one with God through his abiding Spirit within us.  This oneness should not be broken, for we have a holy matrimony with God himself.  As we said, a triangular relationship with an outside lover plus God cannot be accepted, for God is a jealous God.  Now we see Paul bringing this oneness theme into the relationship of marriage.  He encourages men and women to be married because of the plethora of sexual activity outside of contractual marriage in the city of Corinth.  Corinth was known in the ancient world as a place of illicit sexual relationships.  Prostitutes plied their trade in the temple of Aphrodite, and hovels surrounding the temple were also places of sexual activity.  The idea of fidelity to marriage was not basic to the culture.  Even in marriage, the object of such union was for producing children, not necessarily for a lasting relationship of companionship till death do us part.  The concept of marriage was rather fluid in many cultures in the ancient world.  Jesus pointed this out: Some Pharisees came and tested him (Jesus) by asking, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?”  “What did Moses command you?” he replied.  They said, “Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce and send her away.”  “It was because your hearts were hard that Moses wrote you this law,” Jesus replied.  “But at the beginning of creation God ‘made them male and female.’  ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’  So they are no longer two, but one.  Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.”  (Mark 10:2-9)  From the beginning, God meant for man and woman to become one, just as God and man are joined together under the banner of faith in Christ's work.  As WE ARE ONE IN GOD, man and woman should be one on Earth.  Now, to propagate the gospel to the world, Paul says, It is good for a man not to marry.  When a man makes a decision to follow God's direction in full-time ministry, the will of his wife and the needs of the family must be considered   A man's obligation to fulfill God's will in his life comes under the earthly constraints of marriage.  A man cannot abandon his family with the defense that he is serving God.  If he does, he becomes an infidel.  Again, we must consider Christ's words: Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.

Because of the culture of sexual promiscuity in Corinth, Paul emphasizes the appropriate nature of sexual activity within a marriage.  The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband.  Sexual activity within a marriage should be based on a relationship of consent and respect.  The decision should always be under the umbrella of consent.  Both in their decision to get married have consented to give themselves to the other for sexual relations; knowing their bodies do not belong to themselves alone: The wife’s body does not belong to her alone but also to her husband.  In the same way, the husband’s body does not belong to him alone but also to his wife.  Their oneness is a shared experience.  They are not only obligated in their shared relationship with one another, they are to glory in their experience of intimacy.  No one else has a right to this intimacy with either of them.  They belong to each other because of their marital vows: the commitment they made to each other, to God, and to the world.  "Until death do us part" is a vow repeated in most marriages, saying that a man and a woman will remain together from that time on, and the death of one of the partners is the only appropriate extrication from the relationship.  Paul also mentions to the church the benefit of a man and a woman coming apart from sexual activity for a time to devote themselves to prayer.  This is a mutual decision and would benefit the couple and their relationship with each other and with their Father God.  Paul follows this by saying he has chosen to be single, but God has different purposes for different people in the body.  We know he considers the character of a husband and a wife important, for in another letter he instructs husbands: Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.  (Ephesians 5:25-27)  He goes on to tell them to love their wives as their own bodies.  When Paul describes the wife of a deacon, he says, their wives are to be women worthy of respect, not malicious talkers but temperate and trustworthy in everything.  (1 Timothy 3:11)    

The Corinthian Church sprouted from a culture of sexual immorality and degradation.  The Corinthians and the Greeks had lived promiscuously for centuries.  Their children grew up accepting illicit sexual behavior as normal.  However, in light of their new faith, the Corinthian church was now questioning this lifestyle.  Paul addresses this questioning by saying, since there is so much immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband.  Acknowledging the realities of their culture, he encourages them to accept a better path, one that God established in the beginning: to be one in marriage.  He wants them to know marriage should reveal God's plan for us to be one in union, just as we are one in him and will eventually be the bride of Christ.  The writer of Hebrews says this: Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral.  (Hebrews 13:4)  It is important that we honor marriage because earthly marriage is a preview of the oneness we will have in heaven and a likeness of what we have now IN CHIRST.  We are and ever will be one IN AND WITH CHRIST.  Our earthly marriages should not be contaminated by infidelity, for our heavenly marriage to Christ will be holy, without any impurity or infidelity.  We should live our lives for the glory of God.  Therefore, our marriages should be for the glory of God.  So whether you eat or drink or WHAT EVER YOU DO, do it all for the glory of God.  Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God — even as I try to please everybody in every way.  For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.  (1 Corinthians 10:31-33)  The Corinthian church was to remove themselves from their present culture in a way that would show God to the community.  We, too, in all that we do should show Christ, providing a contrast to the darkness in our culture.  If we do not, we will blend in with the world, dimming the oneness we have with God, losing the distinctive life of Christ, THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD.  In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.  (Matthew 5:16)   

1 Corinthians 6:18-20 Priceless Temples of God!

1 Corinthians 6:18-20  Flee from sexual immorality.  All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body.  Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?  You are not your own; you were bought at a price.  Therefore honor God with your body. 

Our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit.  God abides and functions in each of us to guide us and to inspire us as we give him freedom to do so in our lives.  Collectively, we are each members of the universal body of Christ here on Earth.  Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.  (1Corinthians 12:27)  The Holy Spirit abides in us as individuals and collectively as the church.  Individually, we are a part of the body of Christ; collectively, we are the visible body of Christ on Earth.  Therefore, anything that we do individually or collectively that is not right or holy will mar the image of God on Earth; our words and actions should represent the holiness, righteousness of God.  The world should see God by viewing lives of Christians as they live out their faith.  Christians are not just figuratively one with God; we are literally one with God because of the Holy Spirit within us.  Because I live, you also will live.  On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.  (John 14:19-20)  Because of this oneness, we are to honor God with our bodies.  Jesus' continuous cleansing of our lives through his work on the cross makes us accountable to him:  You are not your own; you were bought at a price.  We have been bought by the blood of Jesus Christ.  The blood of  Jesus  is the only legal tender in God's economy of righteousness.  Nothing else, such as good works, or high morals, or positive attitude, will be acceptable to God as righteousness; and without righteousness, no one will see God or be in his presence.  We do not simply live our lives as we wish and then go to a temple or a church to worship God occasionally.  As Paul said to those who built a temple for the unknown God, The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands.  And he went on to say, God determines all things and gives all men life and breath and everything else.  We must know this, For in him we live and move and have our being.  (Acts 17:24-25 &28)  

If we are to honor this God, Paul says, Flee from sexual immorality.  Flee, for sexual immorality is a sin of the body.  When we engage in such immoral practices, we accept the contamination of sin into the oneness we have IN CHRIST.  We bring this sin into the inner parts of our beings, bringing another relationship into the presence of God in us.  We read last week in Exodus 34:14 that God is a jealous God, and He will not tolerate allegiance from us to any other person or thing.  Allegiance to God is not a triangular affair where we try to serve God and the world simultaneously.  Unrestrained holiness and unrestrained sinfulness cannot abide within the same body.  Either we love one or the other.  James describes this situation when he speaks of taming the tongue: With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness.  Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing.  My brothers, this should not be.  Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring?  My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs?  Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.  (James 3:9-12)  God will not take second place; He will not allow a double-minded man to receive anything from him.  Sexual sin is allowing another person or spirit preeminence in your life.  This sin, as Paul describes it to the church, basically separates itself from other sins; for it is the activity of intimacy from within the body, finding pleasure in another lover.  The Bible refers to this sin as prostituting oneself or as having an adulterous affair.  In the Christian sense, these affairs break up the oneness we have with God.  Our temples: our place of worship, of praise, of relationship, have been blackened by infidelity when we replace God's love with the illicit love of another.  Paul told the church at Rome when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey.  (Romans 6:16)  No one should ever take God's place in our lives.  

A little later in this letter, Paul will say, You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men.  (1 Corinthians 7:23)  Binding yourself to another in a sinful union separates you from the God who loves you.  God has set us apart as his own adopted sons and daughters, a testimony to his grace and his mercy.  Consequently, we are not to be contaminated by the world.  As lights to the world, we are to abstain from any act of sexual impurity or immoral behavior.  Sexual immorality brings darkness to the world, creating chaos and confusion concerning the church of God.  Most of all, such behavior, attacks the very love relationship we have with the Lord.  As the Bible says, we cannot serve two masters.  Do not be yoked together with unbelievers.  For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common?  Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?  What harmony is there between Christ and Belial?  What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever?  What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols?  For we are the temple of the living God.  As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.  Therefore come out from them and be separate," says the Lord.  "Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.  I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”  (2 Corinthians 6:14-18)  Our spiritual lives depend on us not being closely yoked with unbelievers; and, of course, we should never be yoked sexually with anyone outside of a contractual marriage.  Our oneness with God is essential to keeping our temples holy and upright.  As we close, please take in these encouraging words from our brother Paul:  The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.  The night is nearly over; the day is almost here.  So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.  Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy.  Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.  (Romans 13:11-14)  God bless you.