Why should a Christian take care of his body?

Welcome to our Friday “Ask Beau” post. The purpose of this weekly feature is to provide you, our readers, with biblical responses to questions you have about practical issues that you face.

We invite you to submit questions for future “Ask Beau” posts by contacting us at beau.stanley@gracebrethren.org or viewfromthepugh@yahoo.com or by leaving a comment.

Today’s question: Why should a Christian take care of his body? Doesn’t 1 Timothy 4:8 say, “Bodily exercise profiteth little”?

Here, as always in the Bible (and with any other text, I might add), context is important. The verse continues by saying, “. . . but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come” (KJV).

Paul’s point is not that there is no value in caring for the body, but rather that exercise is relatively unimportant compared to godliness, because the benefits of godliness extend beyond this life. A number of modern versions (ESV, HCSB, NET, NIV) convey the meaning of Paul’s words in 1 Timothy 4:8 with translations like “Bodily training is of some value” (ESV; emphasis mine).

It is true that a godly attitude will lead us to elevate spiritual concerns above physical concerns, but a godly attitude will also lead us to be good stewards of our bodies (1 Corinthians 6:19). God is displeased when we make physical fitness an idol, but He is very pleased when we tend to our physical fitness while keeping it in the proper perspective.

Why should a Christian take care of his body? There are a number of reasons. First, a man honors God by being a good steward of his body. Second, a man may promote his own spiritual discipline by being physically disciplined. Third, a man who tends to his fitness doesn’t unnecessarily offend people by sending the message that this life is insignificant.

If we had to pick spiritual fitness or physical fitness, we would be wise to pick spiritual fitness. Fortunately, the two are not mutually exclusive.

So if you are one of the few men reading this blog who has six-pack abs, you might be OK.

— Beau Stanley

(EDITOR’S NOTE—Photo: Jupiterimages/Comstock/Thinkstock)

Technological innovation at Grace

I’m excited to tell you about something new we’ll be rolling out tomorrow at GracePolaris during the Sunday sermon.

Most of us have had the experience of listening to a sermon and having a question come to mind. Sometimes these questions have disappeared into the recesses of our brains by the time we have the chance to pose them to someone who would know the answer.

Over the next several weeks, you can avoid this frustration by texting your question to Grace during or after our sermons. The mechanics are pretty simple: just text 95030 and your question to 22333.

Grace will collect the questions (comments are OK too), and in the days following the sermon the pastor who preached will answer some of the questions on our Web site. The responses will appear on a page located in the same place as the sermon audio and video.

Twitter users can get in on the fun as well. Send a tweet with your question/comment using the hashtag #gracesermon041711 (each sermon will have a new tag in the #gracesermon[ddmmyy] format) and all of us on Twitter will be able to see what was on your mind. The pastor’s posted responses will incorporate selected questions sent via Twitter as well as via text message.

— Beau Stanley