1 Corinthians 6:12-20

“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you?” (1 Corinthians 6:19)

Following his vice list in 6:9–10 and getting ready for his teaching on marriage in chapter 7, Paul now revisits and broadens his discussion on sexual immorality from chapter 5. Whereas chapter 5 and 6:1–11 dealt with particular and somewhat narrow issues, these last verses of chapter 6 give a broader theological statement on Christian lifestyle using the practices at Corinthian dinner parties as a launching pad. The way Christ followers use their bodies and their material situations reflects their relationship to Christ. Christian faith makes no room for a separation of body and Spirit. The three-legged stool of gluttony (drinking, eating, and sexual immorality) so proudly exercised at Corinthian dinner banquets is irreconcilable with calling Christ Kyrios (“Lord”). Christian identity and Christian lifestyle go hand in hand. Christian identity becomes evident in a lifestyle that embodies Christ’s incarnational teaching.

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