No. 519 Just for You Your Loan From God
Become a Living Temple of God
Just
You
For
Repent of Your Sin “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out” (Acts 3:19).
Trust in Jesus to Save You “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him” (John 3:36).
Confess Jesus as Your Lord “Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32, 33).
Follow Jesus as Your Master “Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me” (Matthew 16:24).
Find Rest and Peace in Him Jesus said, “I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you” (John 14:18). “Ye shall find rest unto your souls” (Matthew 11:29).
Live Joyfully With Christ in You “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).
Just for You is designed to bring YOU “a word in season” for varied experiences and personal needs. Keith Crider, Editor. Some articles are submitted by other writers. Published monthly by Christian Light Publications, P. O. Box 1212, Harrisonburg, VA 22803-1212. Phone (540) 434-0768. Sent free within the U.S. and Canada to those who will use them profitably for the Lord’s glory. We also sell other tracts, pamphlets, and books; school curriculum for schools and homeschools; summer Bible school materials; Sunday school curriculum; and weekly story papers for all ages. See www.clp.org.
“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service” (Romans 12:1).
For additional information or requests contact:
Present Yourself Fully to God
We will answer to God for our actions.
50m-10-13
Your Loan From God A salesman missed the driveway of a prospective client, so he pulled into the next lot and parked. He strolled across the front lawn to meet his contact, but when he was about halfway across, the owner appeared, yelling and gesturing wildly. “I just planted #519
that grass. Get off my lawn. You’re killing it!” As you may have guessed, the salesman did not make a sale that day. Mechanics must be very careful when they work on expensive automobiles. Leaving smudgy fingerprints on a satiny black finish is unacceptable, not to mention scratches or dents. The cost of repairing such damages will come out of the mechanic’s own pocket. Property owners in some cities have to deal with gang graffiti on the walls of their buildings. Graffiti devalues property; it must be hidden under a fresh coat of paint. Anyone who owns a valuable asset wants to keep it in good condition. He will do all he can to keep it from depreciating. If it is damaged, he will try to restore it to perfection. After God created the world and everything in it, the Bible says He “saw that it was good.” After He created man on the sixth day, He saw that “it was very good” (Genesis 1:31). God’s creation was perfect. God’s enemy Satan was intent on destroying that perfection. He wanted to ruin God’s plan, so he tempted Adam and Eve to sin and they fell for it. Because of Adam and Eve’s sin, God cast them out of Eden. But even as He did so, He promised to send One to redeem them and restore the original perfection of their relationship with God. Satan is still God’s enemy, and he is still working to destroy, damage, and devalue all that belongs to God—including us. But God is still working to redeem and restore us. Part of His plan to redeem us is that He Himself comes and lives in us. In writing about moral purity, the Apostle Paul
said this: “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?” (1 Corinthians 6:19). Amazing! Our bodies are designed to become God’s temples—where He lives. So how should we take care of God’s temple? Just like a fine lawn or a spiffy car, our bodies can be devalued by defacement, neglect, and abuse. Just as we would not borrow or rent a car and have a custom mural painted on it, so we should not abuse or deface the bodies God created for us.
“Would you notice if someone messed up your property?” Does God think tattoos are an improvement on the body He gave you? Or is it like painting a cheap mural on someone else’s shiny BMW? What about alcohol? drugs? Do these things keep our bodies healthy or tear them down and devalue them? In 1 Corinthians 6 Paul went on to say this: “Therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s” (verse 20). Do the earrings, nose-rings, and other hardware that some insert into their bodies glorify Him? Do they improve upon God’s good creation? Is this the way He wants us to care for His gifts to us? We dare not assume that it doesn’t really matter or that God won’t notice. Would you notice if someone messed up your property? Psalm 139 gives us a glimpse of the marvel of our physical bodies and how God mysteriously creates them in our mother’s
womb. “I am fearfully and wonderfully made. . . . Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them” (vv. 14, 16). This pictures our heavenly Father tenderly supervising each aspect of our development before birth. God took an intimate interest in you even before you were born! We cannot pretend that He does not notice when we abuse His “fearfully and wonderfully made” gifts to us. If we decorate our bodies with tattoos, aren’t we saying to God, our Creator and Owner, “I am not pleased with how You made me. I think I’ll decorate this body to suit me.” When we drink, smoke, or use mindaltering drugs, isn’t that saying to Him that His gift is not important to us? And when we sin, aren’t we turning our backs on God, telling Him we don’t want Him in our lives?
The devil wants to mar God’s creation. Our bodies won’t last forever—they age and become diseased. We really won’t be around very long. But God gave them to us to care for and to use for His glory. And He will judge us for how we use them. Your body is a valuable asset, on loan to you from God. Are you taking care of it? —Gary Miller
Just
You
For
Repent of Your Sin “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out” (Acts 3:19).
Trust in Jesus to Save You “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him” (John 3:36).
Confess Jesus as Your Lord “Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32, 33).
Follow Jesus as Your Master “Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me” (Matthew 16:24).
Find Rest and Peace in Him Jesus said, “I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you” (John 14:18). “Ye shall find rest unto your souls” (Matthew 11:29).
Live Joyfully With Christ in You “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).
Just for You is designed to bring YOU “a word in season” for varied experiences and personal needs. Keith Crider, Editor. Some articles are submitted by other writers. Published monthly by Christian Light Publications, P. O. Box 1212, Harrisonburg, VA 22803-1212. Phone (540) 434-0768. Sent free within the U.S. and Canada to those who will use them profitably for the Lord’s glory. We also sell other tracts, pamphlets, and books; school curriculum for schools and homeschools; summer Bible school materials; Sunday school curriculum; and weekly story papers for all ages. See www.clp.org.
“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service” (Romans 12:1).
For additional information or requests contact:
Present Yourself Fully to God
We will answer to God for our actions.
50m-10-13
Your Loan From God A salesman missed the driveway of a prospective client, so he pulled into the next lot and parked. He strolled across the front lawn to meet his contact, but when he was about halfway across, the owner appeared, yelling and gesturing wildly. “I just planted #519
that grass. Get off my lawn. You’re killing it!” As you may have guessed, the salesman did not make a sale that day. Mechanics must be very careful when they work on expensive automobiles. Leaving smudgy fingerprints on a satiny black finish is unacceptable, not to mention scratches or dents. The cost of repairing such damages will come out of the mechanic’s own pocket. Property owners in some cities have to deal with gang graffiti on the walls of their buildings. Graffiti devalues property; it must be hidden under a fresh coat of paint. Anyone who owns a valuable asset wants to keep it in good condition. He will do all he can to keep it from depreciating. If it is damaged, he will try to restore it to perfection. After God created the world and everything in it, the Bible says He “saw that it was good.” After He created man on the sixth day, He saw that “it was very good” (Genesis 1:31). God’s creation was perfect. God’s enemy Satan was intent on destroying that perfection. He wanted to ruin God’s plan, so he tempted Adam and Eve to sin and they fell for it. Because of Adam and Eve’s sin, God cast them out of Eden. But even as He did so, He promised to send One to redeem them and restore the original perfection of their relationship with God. Satan is still God’s enemy, and he is still working to destroy, damage, and devalue all that belongs to God—including us. But God is still working to redeem and restore us. Part of His plan to redeem us is that He Himself comes and lives in us. In writing about moral purity, the Apostle Paul
said this: “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?” (1 Corinthians 6:19). Amazing! Our bodies are designed to become God’s temples—where He lives. So how should we take care of God’s temple? Just like a fine lawn or a spiffy car, our bodies can be devalued by defacement, neglect, and abuse. Just as we would not borrow or rent a car and have a custom mural painted on it, so we should not abuse or deface the bodies God created for us.
“Would you notice if someone messed up your property?” Does God think tattoos are an improvement on the body He gave you? Or is it like painting a cheap mural on someone else’s shiny BMW? What about alcohol? drugs? Do these things keep our bodies healthy or tear them down and devalue them? In 1 Corinthians 6 Paul went on to say this: “Therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s” (verse 20). Do the earrings, nose-rings, and other hardware that some insert into their bodies glorify Him? Do they improve upon God’s good creation? Is this the way He wants us to care for His gifts to us? We dare not assume that it doesn’t really matter or that God won’t notice. Would you notice if someone messed up your property? Psalm 139 gives us a glimpse of the marvel of our physical bodies and how God mysteriously creates them in our mother’s
womb. “I am fearfully and wonderfully made. . . . Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them” (vv. 14, 16). This pictures our heavenly Father tenderly supervising each aspect of our development before birth. God took an intimate interest in you even before you were born! We cannot pretend that He does not notice when we abuse His “fearfully and wonderfully made” gifts to us. If we decorate our bodies with tattoos, aren’t we saying to God, our Creator and Owner, “I am not pleased with how You made me. I think I’ll decorate this body to suit me.” When we drink, smoke, or use mindaltering drugs, isn’t that saying to Him that His gift is not important to us? And when we sin, aren’t we turning our backs on God, telling Him we don’t want Him in our lives?
The devil wants to mar God’s creation. Our bodies won’t last forever—they age and become diseased. We really won’t be around very long. But God gave them to us to care for and to use for His glory. And He will judge us for how we use them. Your body is a valuable asset, on loan to you from God. Are you taking care of it? —Gary Miller
