Obligations to the body

The believer’s responsibility to his soul can be summed up in the following way:
 (1) To make it a befitting house for our spirit and God’s Spirit. The body of man is, first of all, a house for his spirit and soul. For instance, Job likened his bones and sinews to a fence or knitted attire, and his skin and flesh to clothes (Jb.10:11). In the New Testament, Paul likens it to a house and a tent (2 Cor.5:1). In the same way, the Lord has chosen to dwell in us: “…as God hath said, I will dwell with them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people” (2 Cor.6:16, Eph.2:22). This imposes a heavy burden on us: the house of God must be kept clean, at all times. Jesus, by the symbolic act of driving away traders from the temple, gave us an insight into what to expect when we put our bodies to any use inconsistent with the purposes of God. Paul emphatically tells us: “If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy…” (see 1 Cor.3:16-17, 6:16-20).
(2) To make it a temple indeed, a place where spiritual sacrifices are offered to God. In driving out traders from the temple, Jesus reiterated the main purpose for building the temple: “My house shall be called the house of prayer” – or a house of fellowship (Mat.21:13). The house may have assumed a new form, but the purpose has not changed: “Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ” (1 Pet.2:5). Acceptable spiritual sacrifices include the offer of sanctified bodies in the service of God, the sacrifice of praise, the sacrifice of prayer and the sacrifice of giving (Rom.12:1, Heb.13:15, Psa.141:2, Rev.5:8, Heb.13:16, Phi.4:18).
(3) To subject it to the leadership of the spirit-man. Just like it is with the soul, to do otherwise would be unsafe for every component of the man, including the body. Paul had this in mind when he penned down these words: “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.” Likewise, in talking about the body, food and other material things, he says, “…all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any” (1 Cor.6:12). Herein is the secret of Jesus’ victory over the Devil, when He was tempted in relation to food: He exalted the needs of the spirit above the needs of the body (Ma.4:4).