I Want Some!!!
When God says that we should treat our bodies as temples, what EXACTLY does that mean? My frame of mind has always been that we should be happy with what God has given us and treat our bodies with respect, be healthy, put good healthy things in our bodies. So.....is it wrong to alter our bodies in any way? Such as putting tattoo's on them or enhancing our chests..... A friend of mine kind of changed my view on how we should treat our bodies. She says that our bodies are just a shell, it's not really us, our soul is what makes up who we are, therefore it is ok to alter our bodies if it will help our self esteem and make us feel good about ourselves. I can't decide if I agree with her because that's the answer I want to hear or if she is truly right. Does anybody really know what exactly is right and wrong?????
posted by Miss Direction @ 11:06 AM
2 Comments:
You have this meat shell carcass thing for a good 80 years, and it just wears out as time goes on. Might as well do what you want with it, that's how I see things.
I like the idea of the body being a temple. But there's all kinds of crazy ass temples out there. Some people like to buy add-ons for their temple, others keep 'em as is.
Some folks replace parts of their temple with other parts, and that's kinda f'in crazy to me, but to each their own too!
Yo... Mike from the Twin City Convention here...
I'll try to shed some light on what I believe this to mean... based purely on scripture...
In 1 Kings (v. 12-), Solomon prays, blessing a temple... here are some highlights:
"build this Temple to honor the name of the Lord... watch over this temple day and night, the place where you said you would put your name... If someone wrongs another person and is required to take an oath of innocence in front of the altar at this Temple, then hear from heaven and judge between your servants--the accuser and the accused. Punish the guilty party and acquit the one who is innocent... If your people Israel are defeated by their enemies because they have sinned against you, and if they turn to you and call on your name and pray to you here in this Temple, then hear from heaven and forgive their sins and return them to this land you gave their ancestors... And when foreigners hear of you and come from distant lands to worship your great name-- for they will hear of you and of your mighty miracles and your power--and when they pray toward this Temple, then hear from heaven where you live, and grant what they ask of you. Then all the people of the earth will come to know and fear you, just as your own people Israel do. They, too, will know that this Temple I have built bears your name... If your people go out at your command to fight their enemies, and if they pray to the LORD toward this city that you have chosen and toward this Temple that I have built for your name, then hear their prayers from heaven and uphold their cause... "
Of course, it's much longer than that, those are just portions of about thirty or so odd verses in 1 Kings 8.
So, you can see what the people used the temple for... The Lord puts his name on a temple and watches over it day and night, it is a place where the innocent are found innocent, and the guilty, guilty. It is a place to call on the Lord and be forgiven of your sins. It is a place where people who don't know the Lord can come and learn about him. It is a place where you can pray to God to uphold your (although, really, His) cause. And finally, it's where God lives.
Now, all of this happened before Christ. When Christ came, died, and arose, he sent the Holy Spirit so that God might live in us, not simply in man made temples. Hence, when Paul speaks (I believe in Ephesians 2), and says the body is a Temple, it means that it is the dwelling place of Christ. And is all inclusive to the benefits the Christians should receive from a temple. So... because your body is a temple...
You can pray directly to God... God will watch over you day and night... You should be fair and honest... You should spread the Word to people who don't know about God... God will use you (ie, his temple) for His 'cause. And, most importantly, he lives in you.
So... can you get piercings, tattoos, etc.? Well, depends... would you hang paintings on your walls? Sure, if they were tasteful. So getting "Fuck the Police" tattooed on your lower back... probably a bad idea.
Also, you should probably watch what you eat, drink, and what substances you allow into the body... such as drugs, smoking, etc.
That's just my interpretation. But the two people quoted in the Bible are definately, 100% right... Solomon being the wisest man who ever lived (a request granted by God) and Paul being the person chose to start the modern church.
Of course, if you're not a Christian, then I guess this doesn't apply... I don't really know of any other religious Dieties who make this kind of claim, to live ONLY in the believers... a lot of dieties claim to live in everything... or claim to be everything... or claim to be nothing... But, while God is everywhere, he only lives in "the temple," or, the believers.
Hope this helps!
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