Values in Light of Eternity: Body Image

Paul says in Romans 8:18, "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us." In light of the eternal duration of our lives, the extent of our present condition is so comparatively brief as to be virtually nothing. We must keep this in mind when evaluating what is truly important. We will begin with body image.

Society obviously places a great deal of emphasis on physical appearance and consequently gives some people unrealistic expectations about body image and their own self-worth. What this post will attempt to do is provide a new perspective on body image which will hopefully be of some help to those dealing with such issues.

The Bible tells us that the body is good, contrary to many other religions and schools of thought. God made us to be both physical and spiritual beings, and we will remain that way. The Christian hope is in a bodily resurrection, that is, physical and not only spiritual. We know that Jesus is the "firstfruits of them that slept," or the first sort of new Man. His body was a physical one, capable of eating fish, but it also exerted new power over the physical world. I Corinthians 15, and especially verses 35-58, tell us that the spiritual body will be perfect, incorruptible, glorious, and powerful.

In light of the point made above in Romans, we see that our current physical bodies are ephemeral-- fleeting and impermanent. The bodies Christians will have for the vast majority of their lives will be perfect and glorious ones. In essence, being overly concerned about the appearance or state of my current body is comparable to being overly concerned about food stuck in my teeth.

We must be careful, however. This realization should not lead us to abuse or misuse our bodies. The Bible says in I Corinthians 6:19 "Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?" We must care for our bodies as temples, but we must not make them gods.