Avoiding Sexual Sin, Part 3 By Kevin B. Bullard

In part two of this 4-part series, I dwelt on the importance of guarding your heart. In part three, I'd like to focus on offering your body to God.

Offering Your Body to God
If you are ever to stay out of sexual sin, it is a must that you consciously offer your body to God on a daily basis. We're told in Galatians 5:17 that the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit desires that which is contrary to the flesh. We can see this point clearer in Paul's writing to the Romans where he tells them that no good thing dwells in our flesh (7:18).

That means the flesh is constantly lusting after wrong things and wanting to indulge in pleasures - whether innocent or deadly and full of sin. The job of the Christian, then, becomes to discipline his or her flesh and keep it in subjection to the Word of God. Obviously, this is a whole lot easier said than done, but it is possible and is required if you are to stay away from sexual sin.

Paul gave counsel and command to the Romans in this area. Here is what he said:

For everything comes from him; everything exists by his power and is intended for his glory...And so, dear brothers and sisters I plead with you to give your bodies to God. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice--the kind he will accept. When you think of what he has done for you, is this too much to ask? (11:36-12:2).
More than likely, you've heard the command to present or offer your body to God as a living sacrifice. But, did you know why you were to do it? The answer is found in the last verse of chapter 11. You're to offer your body to God because 1) it came from Him, 2) it exist by His power, and 3) it is intended for His glory (goodness).

Let's explore the offering of the body to God for a moment. When buying a car or house, you're likely to "make an offer" to the seller for a certain amount. If the seller likes the offer, a deal is in the works. However, if the seller doesn't like your offer, he or she will probably present a counteroffer. When the final offer is made and agreed upon, the deal is then made on the basis of the offer. The hope is that it will be a win-win situation for both the buyer and the seller.

When you offer your body to God as a sacrifice (something that is costly, and is given in exchange for something more costly), the same thing is taking place. When you make an offer of yourself to God, it has to be a deal that He'll go for. Though it may take you a while to let go completely and offer yourself unreservedly to God, He is patient and will wait. In exchange for your body, God offers you peace, protection, life, and blessing. It's a win-win situation. You wind up with God's best, and He gets your body. Have you ever stopped to think about why He wants your body so much?

God wants your body so that He can further His purposes in the earth. Dominion in the earth realm was given to mankind. For God (Who is the Holy Spirit) to have any type of say in the earth, He's going to have to have a body. Otherwise, He's illegal. Spirits aren't allowed to just run around rampant in the earth...they must use a body. The same goes for Satan. He is a spirit, and must have a body to do anything in the earth.

For this reason, God purchased all of the bodies in the world through Jesus' death at Calvary (1 Corinthians 6:20). What He wants now is for men to willingly offer their bodies to Him - the One who has already paid for them with the blood of His Son.

Since you still have the physical control of your body - even after offering it to God as a sacrifice, it is imperative that you exercise discipline in the handling of your body. Remember: Though God will help you keep yourself pure, it is still your responsibility to physically keep it out of situations it doesn't need to be in. You're not a robot, so God cannot control you by some cosmic joystick. You are the only one who can physically control your body.

The Apostle Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 24-27 about being disciplined and controlled. He writes:

Do you not know that in a race all the runners compete, but [only] one receives the prize? So run [your race] that you may lay hold [of the prize] and make it yours. Now every athlete who goes into training conducts himself temperately and restricts himself in all things. They do it to win a wreath that will soon wither, but we [do it to receive a crown of eternal blessedness] that cannot wither.

Therefore I do not run uncertainly (without definite aim). I do not box like one beating the air and striking without an adversary. But [like a boxer] I buffet my body [handle it roughly, discipline it by hardships] and subdue it, for fear that after proclaiming to others the Gospel and things pertaining to it, I myself should become unfit [not stand the test, be unapproved and rejected as a counterfeit]. (AMP)

Like Paul writes, the responsibility for physically controlling your body is yours! To keep yourself from sexual sin, you're going to have to "conduct [yourself] temperately and restrict [yourself] in all ways." That means you probably need to keep from viewing certain things on TV or at the movies. It means you probably need to say away from certain places that lead you into sin. It means that you probably need to stay away from certain folks who continually cause you to fall into sexual sin.
Though your body may not appreciate it now, you must handle it roughly and discipline it by hardships. Of course, this is not talking about physically mutilating or sadistically punishing your body. It is, however, talking about denying it the pleasures it wants to experience.

Paul mentioned this again in his letter to the church at Thessalonica:

Finally, my dear friends, since you belong to the Lord Jesus, we beg and urge you to live as we taught you. Then you will please God. You are already living that way, but try even harder. Remember the instructions we gave you as followers of the Lord Jesus. God wants you to be holy, so don't be immoral in matters of sex.

Respect and honor your wife. Don't be a slave of your desires or live like people who don't know God. You must not cheat any of the Lord's followers in matters of sex. Remember, we warned you that he punishes everyone who does such things. God didn't choose you to be filthy, but to be pure. (4:1-7, CEV)

The way the Thessalonians were to do this was by possessing or managing their bodies in sanctification (v4, NKJV). In other words, they were to keep their bodies separate from sexual matters that did not involve their wife. No wife - no sexual matters. Period.
Although this command from the Lord is scorned upon, lightly regarded, and seen as outdated and restrictive; this is the only way God has ever ordained that sexual relations be conducted. He has never condoned sex with children, sex with relatives, sex between men, sex between women, sex with animals, sex with neighbors, sex with friends, sex with co-wokers, sex with oneself or any other relation you can conjure up in your mind. His original intention for sexual relations has been and will always be between a husband and wife. Anything and all else is an abomination (see Leviticus 18).

The only way you are going to ever be able to offer your body to God in holiness and without restriction is to renew your mind to His Word which gives you the reason and method for offering your body. Romans 12:2 tells us about this mind renewal:

Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is.

For you to begin to manage your body instead of letting it manage you, you will have to renew your mind to His Word.

In part four of this series, we'll explore in detail the importance of using God's Word to steer clear of sexual sin.

** You may e-mail Kevin Bullard and read other articles on relationships, family, marriage and much more at www.understandthebible.org**