Your Bodies are a Temple

 Sabbath School

First and Second Corinthians 

Sin in the Church

Lesson 4 - Friday Further Thought 

“Do You Not Know?”

Read 1 Corinthians 5–6

Seven times in 1 Corinthians 5 and 6, Paul asks the Corinthians, “Do you not know?” Each question demands an emphatic answer: “Of course you know!”

Paul is not asking because the Corinthians lack information. They had heard the truth. They had been taught the gospel. They knew what Christian living required. Their problem was not primarily a lack of knowledge. Their problem was that they were failing to live according to what they already knew.

This is an important spiritual lesson for us. Sometimes we think we need more information when what we really need is obedience.

Paul's repeated questions reveal his deep concern for the condition of the church. The Corinthians were tolerating serious sin, bringing lawsuits against one another, failing to understand their future responsibility as God's people, compromising their bodies through sexual immorality, and forgetting that their bodies were temples of the Holy Spirit.

Each “Do you not know?” was intended to awaken them.

“Do You Not Know That a Little Leaven Leavens the Whole Lump?”

Paul's first question concerns the influence of sin within the church. A small amount of leaven spreads through the entire lump of dough. Likewise, tolerated sin can influence an entire congregation.

The church cannot treat open, unrepentant sin as though it affects only the individual involved. Sin has consequences for the spiritual health, witness, and unity of the entire church.

This does not mean that the church should become a community of suspicious people looking for faults in one another. It means that we must not become so comfortable with sin that we cease to recognize its danger.

“Do You Not Know That the Saints Will Judge the World?”

Paul reminds the Corinthians of their future identity and responsibility. If God's people will one day participate in His judgment, they should be able to handle ordinary disagreements among themselves with wisdom and humility.

Instead, the Corinthians were taking one another to court and damaging the witness of the church.

This challenges us today. Christians should not be known primarily for fighting, suing, attacking, and dividing. The gospel should shape the way we handle disagreements. We should be people who value reconciliation, forgiveness, justice, and humility.

“Do You Not Know That the Unrighteous Will Not Inherit the Kingdom of God?”

Paul's question confronts the danger of living in persistent, unrepentant sin. He lists a variety of sinful behaviors, including sexual immorality, idolatry, adultery, greed, drunkenness, reviling, theft, and extortion.

The point is clear: the grace of God is not permission to remain unchanged.

Yet Paul immediately offers hope: “And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified” (1 Cor. 6:11, NKJV).

The gospel changes people. Our past does not have to define our future.

“Do You Not Know That Your Bodies Are Members of Christ?”

Paul reminds believers that their bodies belong to Jesus. Christianity is not merely about what we think or believe in our minds. Our bodies are also part of our discipleship.

What we do with our bodies matters to God.

This truth challenges the modern idea that the body is simply our own possession and that we may use it however we choose without spiritual consequences. Christians are members of Christ. Our physical lives must reflect our spiritual identity.

“Do You Not Know That He Who Is Joined to the Lord Is One Spirit With Him?”

Paul reminds the Corinthians that believers are united with Christ. This union must influence every area of life.

We cannot claim to belong to Jesus while deliberately embracing practices that contradict His character and teachings. Our relationship with Christ is not merely a religious label. It is a living union that should transform our choices.

“Do You Not Know That the One Who Is Joined to a Harlot Is One Body With Her?”

Paul warns about the seriousness of sexual immorality. Sexual intimacy is not merely a physical act without spiritual or emotional consequences.

God designed sexuality to involve a deep union. When sexuality is separated from God's design, it can bring profound damage to individuals, relationships, families, and communities.

The church must therefore take sexual morality seriously—not because the body is evil, but because the body matters to God.

“Do You Not Know That Your Body Is the Temple of the Holy Spirit?”

This final question brings the entire series to a powerful conclusion.

The Christian's body is not merely a biological organism. It is a temple of the Holy Spirit. God desires to dwell in His people.

Paul concludes, “You are not your own. For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's” (1 Cor. 6:19–20, NKJV).

This truth should shape the way we think about our bodies, our relationships, our sexuality, our habits, our entertainment, our speech, and our choices.

Why Should We Be Concerned Today?

The same issues Paul addressed continue to affect the church today.

We still face the danger of tolerating sin in the name of acceptance. We still experience division and conflict among believers. We still live in a culture that encourages people to view the body as something that belongs exclusively to the individual. We still face sexual temptation, greed, dishonesty, pride, and the temptation to follow cultural values rather than biblical truth.

Paul's questions are therefore still directed to us:

Do you not know?

Do you not know that sin spreads?

Do you not know that your actions affect the church?

Do you not know that your body belongs to Christ?

Do you not know that the Holy Spirit dwells in you?

The tragedy is that we can know the answers and still fail to live as though they are true.

The solution is not merely more information. We need the Holy Spirit to transform what we know into how we live. We need to allow the truth of the gospel to move from our minds into our hearts, our bodies, our relationships, and our daily decisions.

The Corinthians needed to remember who they were. So do we.

We are not our own. We have been bought with a price. We are members of Christ. We are temples of the Holy Spirit.

Therefore, our lives should glorify God.

Prayer

Father in heaven,

Help us to hear the questions Paul asked the Corinthians as questions directed to us. Do we truly understand that sin affects the church? Do we remember that our bodies belong to Christ? Do we recognize that the Holy Spirit desires to dwell within us?

Forgive us for the times we have known the truth but failed to live by it. Give us more than knowledge. Give us transformed hearts and obedient lives.

Help us to take sin seriously without becoming judgmental. Help us to live in unity, practice forgiveness, seek reconciliation, and honor You in our relationships and choices.

Thank You that we have been bought with the precious price of Jesus' sacrifice. May we never forget that we are not our own. Let everything we do—our thoughts, words, bodies, relationships, and actions—bring glory to You.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

More on Lesson 4:  Sin in the Church 

3rd Quarter Sabbath School: 1st and 2nd Corinthians