The Body Is . . .
Physical redemption is a vital and actual union with the risen body of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which His life comes into our bodies and makes us strong and healthy.
A.B. Simpson emphasizes the profound connection between believers and Christ, asserting that true physical life and redemption come through a personal union with Him. He explains that it is not merely a temporary restoration of strength but a deep, vital union with the risen Christ that brings strength, health, and full redemption to our bodies. Simpson highlights that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, meant to glorify God, and that we are not our own but have been bought at a price. This understanding reveals the mystery of the gospel and the significance of our physical existence in relation to Christ.
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Just as it was Christ Himself who justified us, and Christ Himself who was made unto us sanctification, so it is only by personal union with Him that we can receive this physical life and redemption. indeed, it is not a touch of power upon our bodies which restores and then leaves them to the mere resources of natural strength and life for the future. Rather, it is the vital and actual union of our mortal bodies with the risen body of our Lord Jesus Christ, so that His own very life comes into our frames and He is Himself made unto us strength, health and full physical redemption. He is alive forevermore and condescends to live in these houses of clay.
They who thus receive Him may know Him as none ever can who exclude Him from the bodies which He made for Himself.
This is one of the deep and precious mysteries of the gospel. The body is . . . for the Lord; and the Lord for the body. Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, . . . and ye are not your own; for ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, which [is] God's (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).
Sermon Outline
- I. The Source of Physical Life and Redemption
- A. Christ is the source of justification and sanctification
- B. Personal union with Christ is necessary for physical redemption
- II. The Nature of Physical Redemption
- A. It is not a temporary touch of power, but a vital union with Christ
- B. Christ's life comes into our bodies and makes us strong and healthy
- III. The Importance of the Body
- A. The body is a temple of the Holy Spirit
- B. We are not our own, but bought with a price, and should glorify God in our bodies
Key Quotes
“He is alive forevermore and condescends to live in these houses of clay.” — A.B. Simpson
“The body is . . . for the Lord; and the Lord for the body.” — A.B. Simpson
“Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, . . . and ye are not your own; for ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, which [is] God''s (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)” — A.B. Simpson
Application Points
- We should receive Christ into our bodies and allow Him to live in us, that we may know Him more intimately.
- We should glorify God in our bodies, which are temples of the Holy Spirit and bought with a price.
- We should not view our bodies as mere houses of clay, but as temples of the Holy Spirit, worthy of God's glory.