“Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take away the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? May it never be! Or do you not know that the one who joins himself to a prostitute is one body with her? For He says, ‘The two shall become one flesh.’ But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him.”

Expanding on the Christian’s motivation for living a morally upright life, the apostle continues with the body analogy. While Eastern religions have little regard for the physical world, biblical thinking treats the tangible, material world—and in particular the human body—as important. Rather than simply repressing bodily appetites, Christians are called upon to redirect those appetites in a new and godly direction.

Paul subtly shifts the analogy of fleshly living (as exemplified in uncontrolled eating) to prostitution, a wrong-headed way to fulfill sexual drive. To the elite and sophisticated of this world, such analogies might seem rather crude, but Paul’s teachings combine deep truth with rugged realism. This is an apt illustration of how the Corinthians were living—the ultimate living for sensual indulgence. Yet at the same time Paul conveys a profound truth of the Corinthians’ relation to God as being “one spirit.” He is not implying that every one of the Corinthians engaged in gluttony or illicit sex, or that his teaching only applies to those two things. But those two capture the essence of the Corinthians’ life choices: they were living for their own pleasures, just like the non-believing pagans were doing.

So, what are the truths that we believers must embrace to live as we ought? Our bodies are now considered “members of Christ.” We are the body of Christ. The analogy is fluid, and from a literary point of view complex. But the meaning is clear. In sexual union, two people unite in a way that God has long called “one flesh” (Gen. 2:24). To engage in sex with someone other than one’s spouse (e.g. a prostitute) misdirects sexuality. To this Paul vehemently interjects, as he frequently does in his letter to the Romans, “May it never be!” (Greek: “me genoito”). He comes down with full apostolic and moral weight like a fist slamming on a table. Other English translations render this: “Never!”

All sins are like prostitution. This is because we were made for God—and when we sacrifice our relationship with Him in order to live for self-pleasure, we act like other things are more attractive or better than He is. How can we who have been joined in “one spirit” to Christ, prostitute ourselves by chasing after worldly living? Never!

Lord, I shudder to think of all the times I have considered my behavior as “little sins.” Please forgive me. Thank You.