A Temple of the Holy Spirit

"But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart." --1 Sam 16:7

Most of us are familiar with this passage - Samuel the prophet has been told to annoint the next king of Israel, and is going through the line up of Jesse's sons. He sees an attractive one and says to himself 'this has got to be the guy!' But God responds in the verse above. "I have rejected him. Man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart." This is my theme verse as I embark on a pretty rigorous health overhaul. I've got access to gym equipment, my diet is pretty well under control, and I've even picked some sports to focus on that will develop the skills and strengths I desire to have. Shoot, I've even got the determination to make it happen! I've got all the equipment - but I hope I can hold on to a good heart motivation...

As I've been studying how to approach this, I was reminded of an interaction I had with a woman not to long ago. I was telling her how I hadn't been eating very much or very well over the past week, and she responded by saying "that's awful! You need to be more careful - you're body is a temple of the holy spirit."

I don't know when the mindset of "it's my responsibility to eat well and exercise because my body is a temple of the holy spirit" started, it's never sat right with me. In my study, I haven't found any scripture that directs us to think this way. I sometimes wonder if this isn't a dangerous way of thinking.

There's no scripture exhorting us anywhere to stay physically fit to the end of 'taking care of our temple'. The verses most often cited as a proof text that we are to stay physically fit because our bodies are temples are 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

"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."

Sounds convincing when it stands alone, but that is one of the most dangerous ways to read the bible. When considering a topic, we have to discipline ourselves to consider what the whole bible says about a given subject, not just what a single verse says about it. When you read this passage in context, we see that what Paul is talking about is sexual purity. "Glorifying god in your body", as used in this passage, is abstaining from sexual sin. Sexual sin defiles our temple - having physical flaws doesn't. A fit body isn't a prerequisit to God's presence, but a pure heart is - that's the whole reason we have to be justified. If a fit body were mandatory, we'd all have been made supermodels at the time of our conversion (and there would be ALOT more converts to Christianity!)

It seems, as usual, that as I embark on this mission to get healthier that God is concerned with my heart. I wouldn't think God is pleased if we're in great shape but our motivations in getting that way were sinful. I'm surprised how I often hear women use the temple analogy in the context of eating well and exercising, and it always makes me raise an eyebrow. I wonder if this way of thinking doesn't sometimes trap us - we end up striving only after changing our bodies under the guise of 'taking care of our temple', thinking that's what God wants, without addressing our hearts. "I'm taking care of my temple..." Sounds so righteous and godly when contrasted with being vain and proud.

Scripture is clear - directly and indirectly - that God doesn't look at us and see us as we see each other. He's examining our hearts. I haven't seen anywhere in scripture where eating well and exercising are perscribed as a way to take care of our temple. If it were, then God would have issued a command that some of his people couldn't keep - namely the physically deformed and disabled.

Don't misunderstand me. I'm the first to get up and cheer for eating well and exercising - and Scripture is clear that these are good things. Daniel and his friends drank and ate water and veggies for just 10 days and were discribed as "better in appearance" than the rest of their class who was eating meat and wine every day. Overeating is clearly discouraged in Proverbs 23:20-21. And the famous Proverbs 31 woman is commended for making her arms strong. "Making" implies work was done to get them that way. When I stand next to my husband, I'm aware that I don't have naturally strong arms, like he does. She had to work to make her arms strong - she must have exercised in some way, be it deliberate or through her daily tasks, and she is honored for it. But our motivation in doing those things should be to glorify God, not to change our bodies. If glorifying god is better done through a healthier, fitter body, we should certainly persue that! But we should all be in a place in our hearts where we really aren't concerned with our body's shape - only it's function to assist us in glorifying God in our actions. Granted, being fit usually helps us functionally to serve God, but it seems we have to tread carefully, realizing that fitness in itself isn't something God demands of us - a pure heart before him is. A healthier lifestyle should only be pursued in tandem with a healthier heart, never by itself for the sake of 'temple maintenance'. This is why I raise an eyebrow when I hear "I should take better care of myself BECAUSE my body is a temple" instead of "I should take better care of myself BECAUSE it will better enable me to glorify God in my actions."

What does Scripture have to say? It's pretty straight forward: "For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. " (Rom 14:17) The food isn't God's concern. Our hearts are. Scripture has alot to say about food, but it's all in context of our hearts and whether or not we're making the gospel more or less attractive to a watching world through our actions.