MANAGING YOUR BODY At the root of all sin and rebellion against the Lord and His ways is an identity corrupted by the Fall and turned inward into self, selfishness, and self-centeredness This entire reality can be summarized as the flesh The inward constant tendency for self-gratification The primary means by which the self manipulates a person in its mind and spirit is through the physical flesh, or the body At the core of all sin is selfishness and self-centeredness If we do not understand God s purpose for our bodies, we will become slaves to them and the flesh which is ubiquitously present to facilitate that that enslavement Galatians 5.16-23 As long as you live in your body of flesh, your non-physical flesh will war, fight, and intensely set its desire against the Spirit often using your physical flesh to fulfill its sinful desires If the flesh wins, you will not do the things you please (or what you know is right and in your spirit truly desire to do) Crucifying the flesh is the denying of that which your flesh passionately desires! The body becomes the primary means by which the desires and passions of the flesh are realized, manifested, and enjoyed Therefore managing one s physical reality or, his or her own body is KEY to spiritual success Too often an undisciplined body leads to an undisciplined spirit Too often a sluggish body leads to a sluggish spirit Too often a lazy body leads to a lazy spirit Too often neglected body leads to a neglected spirit Too often an indulgent body leads to an indulgent spirit Too often an unhealthy body leads to an unhealthy spirit Our bodies are given to us by God as the means by which we, in our SPIRITUAL reality, as humans live and exist in the world of God s creation David Copp / Page 1
1 Thessalonians 5.2-5 There is therefore a direct correlation between the governing of our bodies and the governing of our spirits, minds, emotions, etc. A disciplined body releases a greater ability and capacity to have discipline in other areas of our existence and life If one can steward, discipline or manage his or her own body, then the passions and desires that are manifested from, in, and through the body will also be able to be managed That which God had given to each human, the body, was sold by those humans into slavery to sin Romans 6.12-13 Romans 7.14-25 God has redeemed humanity back to Himself through Jesus Christ, and as a result given kingdom men and women their bodies back in order that they might, through accurate stewardship, glorify God in their bodies once again My body is a temple of the Holy Spirit 1 Corinthians 6.19-20 Therefore, in that my body does not belong to me, but to the Lord, I must govern or steward my body and use it as the means of me accomplishing God s will in and through my life One of the primary keys to spiritual success is physical discipline Mark 14.37-41 It is important to remember that God did not give our bodies to us for us to gain pleasure through them, apart from the will of God, but that through our bodies we (spirit, soul, and body) might do the will of God and fill the earth with the glory of the Lord 1 Corinthians 6.13 Food is for the stomach and the stomach is for food, but God will do away with both of them. Yet the body is not for immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body. Notice clearly that your body is for the Lord, but also that the Lord is for your body! God views you, as spirit, soul, and body, as a unified whole person and His work of salvation is for the sanctifying, or making holy through a daily continual process, of you 1 Thessalonians 5.23 David Copp / Page 2
God did not send His Son just to save your soul, or your heart, or your Spirit, but all of you It the presentation of our bodies as a living sacrifice that releases the will of God in our life through our worship-filled transformation Romans 12.1-2 The goal is not to look like some body builder, but to be sanctified entirely, as a whole person, at the coming of the Lord As members of the Body of Christ we are to nourish and cherish our own individual bodies Ephesians 5.29-30 Physical stewardship begins with the disciplining of the body to let it know that the Spirit is in charge, and not the body! 1 Corinthians 9.24-27 Paul is speaking here about our spiritual life using the metaphor of athletics, with which he would have been very familiar, but we run and compete for an imperishable reward, or wreath Notice that while the metaphors are natural, the result is spiritual; the end process to secure spiritual success is physical discipline: I discipline my body and make it my slave so that I myself will not be disqualified In this passage Paul directly connects long-term spiritual success with physical discipline as cause an effect not fasting, praying, worshipping, etc.but a disciplined body! Jesus connected long-term failure in doing His will in the Kingdom to laziness Matthew 25.24-26 There is no avoiding the fact that the Lord directly connects the wicked life of the unfaithful slave to laziness Laziness is a moral issue that is taken advantage of, released, and works itself out via an undisciplined body Paul s word translated discipline [1 Corinthians 9 / NASB], is a very strong word in the Greek: hupopiadzo and speaks of continuous blows given by a boxer to disable an opponent The only other place this Greek word is used is in Luke 18.5: David Copp / Page 3
Yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her legal protection, otherwise by continually coming she will wear me out. pointing to the continual pressure that wears someone out This is not saying that the physical body is EVIL and needs to be punished, but that it is a living machine that, if disciplined, is a powerful gift from God in accomplishing His purpose If you do not discipline your body it will rule you; or we could say, If you don t run your body it will RUN you! Or, If you don t weary your body out, your body will weary you Every time you make your body do something that tires or wearies it, you are reminding it that you are in charge! Every time you make your body do something that tires or wearies it, you are reminding it that you are in charge! Other translations of 1 Corinthians 9.27 read: But [like a boxer] I buffet my body [handle it roughly, discipline it by hardships] and subdue it (The AMP) I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should (TLT) I harden my body with blows and bring it under complete control (TEV) I don t know about you, but I m running hard for the finish line. I m giving it everything I ve got. No sloppy living for me! I m staying alert and in top condition. I m not going to get caught napping, telling everyone else all about it and then missing out myself. (MES) I am my body s sternest master (PHI) Generally speaking, the body is not to be pampered, but disciplined to be an obedient slave to your kingdom desires Your body must be cared for, but not pampered into thinking whatever it wants or doesn t want to do will be the way life goes Your body must be your slave that you might be the Lord s slave! A disciplined body leads to a disciplined life David Copp / Page 4
KEYS TO A DISCIPLINED BODY NUMBER 1: Regimented Exercise There can be no true disciplining of the body without a regimen of exercise that is well-rounded, strategic, begin-able, measurable, grow-able, join-able, and consistent Regimen A prescribed course of medical treatment, way of life, or diet for the promotion or restoration of health A system of government; from the Latin word regere, to rule 1 Timothy 4.7-8 This passage, with its unfortunate translation, has been used by many to slight the importance of exercise, in the name of God! gumnazo To exercise naked, or train for the games as in a gymnasium The phrase is only of a little profit is better translated with a view towards time and not quality Margin: a little time In other words, bodily exercise profits for the short time that we live on the earth The word only is not in the Greek that simply reads, bodily exercise profits for short/little Adam Clarke writes, they are but of short duration; they refer only to this life When we take into context verse 7 with verse 8, we see that Paul is exhorting Timothy to exercise bodily for the spiritual purposes, not for the secular and/or pagan purposes as many of the Greco-Romans It is possible to take exercise into an obsessive path that leads to worshiping the creation rather than the Creator This leads right back to your body governing you instead of you governing your body! Remember, the goal is that your body is to be your slave, not your object of pride, obsession, and/or worship That which makes you right before God is not a healthy body, but a healthy internal you! A healthy and disciplined body is accurate stewardship of the Temple of the Holy Spirit and can help you in your godly disciplines, but is not equal to such David Copp / Page 5
A well-rounded, strategic, begin-able, measurable, grow-able, join-able, and consistent exercise regimen is essential for ruling the body and making it your slave If you do not use your body, it will use you Well-rounded It is important to create an exercise regimen for yourself that includes working the heart, the building and stretching of the muscles, and the activating of the joints; combined with good amounts of SUNSHINE Heart It is vital to get your heart-rate up regularly to facilitate blood and oxygen flow Begin by walking, adding small amounts of running to a regular pattern of time and distance The Intersections Muscles : Push-ups, sit-ups, chair-ups, weights, and stretches in both the standing and lying down positions create healthy muscles which lead to a healthy body Joints : Much like doors or hinges, our joints need to be continuously opened or turned to keep them working smoothly and properly for the long-term Twists knee bends, windmills, etc., are great ways to begin each morning getting the intersections flowing properly Strategic Create an exercise regimen that is begin-able, measurable, grow-able, and join-able Begin-able Create an exercise program designed for where you are today Make it realistic enough so that you can actually begin with small steps tomorrow It must be DO-able Measure-able Create an exercise program in which your progress can be clearly measured through timed and charted regimen sections and steps Grow-able Create an exercise program that can be added to and expanded as you increase in the discipline and governance of your body Join-able Create an exercise program with someone else so that you will have external motivation, accountability, and sharing of the pain and joy that will result If you would like help in designing, creating, and building an exercise regimen ask around for help or see me Consistent More important than anything is that you begin to do it consistently even if it is in small in scope, make it consistent Better to do something 1 day for 12 weeks than 3 days for 1 week Start small BUT START! David Copp / Page 6
NUMBER 2: GOVERNED EATING We are what we eat, therefore, there is no escaping the ubiquity of food in terms of our whole-person-ed reality healthy food makes healthy bodies Food is directly connected to our spirituality in that the mess we are all in at present is a direct result of an un-governed eating (cf. Genesis 3) Too often we eat for emotional or psychological reasons, making food the means of releasing pleasurefilled endorphins into our system and thus we become addicted to food and/or especially sugar, in the same manner that a drug addict or alcoholic is addicted to their substance of choice Stress, failures, frustrations, conflict, and the like lead us to eat and a cycle of eating is created and takes over our lives via our body If you will begin to exercise your body you can break that cycle as well as the emotional and psychological causes of that cycle You do not have to solve the root problem first, exercise will get to it! Paul was leading kingdom communities within a Greek and Roman world that celebrated the good life with food, drinking, and continuous social parties In the midst of this culture he finds and COUNTERS so-called christian preachers and teaching that allowed and promoted that type of lifestyle Philippians 3.18-19 whose god is their belly (marginal reading) whose god is their stomach (NIV) their god is their bodily desires (GNT) they do whatever their bodies want (NCV) The Scriptures are explicit in teaching us that we are not to allow our appetites to govern us, but rather, we are to govern them with a minimal amount of worry, concern, and/or obsession regarding food Matthew 6.25-30 Proverbs 23.20-21 Proverbs 23.1-7 We can govern our eating with regular checks on and management of our eating appetites and eating habits that feed them Smaller portions Saying no to immediate cravings Not going back to seconds Not licking the plate Various types of FASTINGS We are to enjoy life and all of its components, including food, without ever allowing any of those components to govern us David Copp / Page 7
NUMBER 3: HEALTHY EATING Healthy eating is not really complicated or scary, it is really simply based on common sense with a view to the way God created us and our food Too often the phrase healthy eating is quite intimidating and it need not be that way at all Too often the phrase healthy eating is assumed to be synonymous with dieting, but it is not Simply put, healthy eating is a way of life that views food as the means to provide and produce health in your body Our body is intricately designed to function in all of its parts as a whole with the requirement that it have the fuel to do so Unhealthy eating would be similar to putting the wrong kind of fuel in your car and expecting it to operate at a high level of efficiency Below are three guidelines that may not always be possible, but if managed and made a priority can become a normal part of your life and radically affect your body health Number 1 - Eat Unprocessed Foods Number 2 - Eat Balanced Meals Number 3 - Eat At The Right Time David Copp / Page 8