Redemption

"Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?  You are not your own; you were bought at a price.  Therefore honor God with your body." (1 Corinthians 6:19,20 NIV)
The main theme of this passage is the reason why we should care about our bodies: redemption.  If the Bible could be summed up in one word, it would be redemption.  From the fall to the cross, God sovereignly orchestrated the events of HiStory according to His redemptive plan.  From what, though, did God redeem us?  Some say that God saved us from ourselves, but that makes little sense, if we were made in God's image.  God rescued us from the chains of sin which have enslaved every person on planet earth, from Adam to the babies born seconds ago.  Most are familiar with concept of a ransom, which is what redemption is.  Kidnappers demand ransom money before they will free their hostage(s).  But how does God ransom us from sin?  How does one person's death two thousand years ago free everyone living hence?  The answer lies in Jesus, who willingly exchanged his perfect, sinless self for each and every person who is willing to accept Him as an exchange.  Sin demands death.  But the beauty of Jesus' redemptive work on the cross is that Jesus has met Sin's demands for all time.  We have merely to accept the ransom, and we are redeemed, rescued from the bonds of slavery to sin and spiritual death.

But we have an obligation, having once been ransomed, to honor the Redeemer.  We must not simply live, we must live for Him, telling others in word and deed how they too can be rescued.   If we live in this way, we will truly honor God with our bodies.
"Redeemed, how I love to proclaim it!
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed through His infinite mercy,
His child and forever I am."