“Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself.” (1 Corinthians 6:19 NLT)

Nasty. Repulsive. Though he doesn’t know what an adjective is, I could tell that these two were circling in his mind.

My wife recently introduced our middle grandson to table food. We could tell that baby food wasn’t satisfying him any more. Every time when he sat down at the table with us to eat, it was evident that he wanted the real thing.

One night, my wife cooked a spread of vegetables — broccoli among them. Since his older brother loves broccoli, we assumed that he might. Additionally, it’s healthy. My wife mashed up a small piece and placed it in his mouth. His expression was priceless. Not a smile that said, “Give me more,” but a contorted scowl appeared that sent each of us rolling with laughter. Though he continued to chew on it and swallow it, he didn’t enjoy it.

Paul reminds me that my body is a temple of God’s Spirit. He took up residence when I trusted Jesus as my Saviour. God’s Old Testament temple was a holy place. Not just anyone or anything could enter — certainly nothing sinful. Since my body — and not a structure — is now the temple, nothing should change.

Most of what I chew I swallow. If it’s nasty or repulsive, I normally spit it out. But I have been known to swallow some things that I shouldn’t have, as well as some things that I didn’t particularly enjoy. Regardless of what I swallow, it comes out through the digestive process. Jesus says that what I swallow through my senses will also.

Chewing on sinful tendencies, explorations, and thoughts should produce the same contorted expression that I witnessed on my grandson. But rather than swallow them, as he did the broccoli, I should spit them out. Actually, I should never taste them in the first place. If I ingest them, they will pollute my temple and come out in ways that offend God.

The best way to keep from chewing on sin is never to taste it in the first place. God’s Word tells us what spiritual food is or is not beneficial for us. All that we must do is to read the menu. Though pleasurable for the moment, sinful food will never produce anything of lasting value. Let’s chew on God’s Word, and get the nutrition that we need.

Prayer: Father, guide us to the spiritual nourishment that will ensure godly living. Amen.

Copyright © 2022, by Martin Wiles <mandmwiles@gmail.com>, first published on the PresbyCan Daily Devotional presbycan.ca .
Greenwood, South Carolina, USA

Reprinted from PresbyCan with author’s permission