Talk about Christian spirituality can sometimes reveal a tendency to think in terms of some kind of religiosity that does not involve the body. For some, the phrase “inner life” would appear to suggest that spirituality occurs somewhere inside an individual, that it only has to do with a person’s “spirit,” which supposedly is the “real” person.
Such an understanding of spirituality misses the mark. For true Christian spirituality always involves the body. Human existence always involves the body. And any attempt to separate body and spirit simply removes the very means by which our spirituality comes into being. It is precisely in and with our body that we serve the Lord, which is what spirituality is all about. As Dallas Willard puts it: “The surrender of myself to [Christ] is inseparable from the giving up of my body to him … It is with our bodies we receive new life that comes as we enter his Kingdom.”
The New Testament testifies to the significance of the body as integral to Christian spirituality. A key passage would be Romans 12.1: “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship” (NIV).
This really is not at all foreign to the gospel and the salvation it brings. “If salvation is to affect our lives, it can do so only by affecting our bodies. If we are to participate in the reign of God, it can only be by our actions … To withhold our bodies from religion is to exclude religion from our lives. Our life is a bodily life” (Dallas Willard).
“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit … Therefore honor God with your bodies” (1 Corinthians 6:19–20 NIV). “Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God … use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God” (Romans 6.12–13 NLT).
Our bodies are the instruments for service so there is no way that we can serve God “in spirit” only. When we speak the gospel, we use our bodies; when we lend a helping hand, we use our bodies; when we do mission work, we use our bodies; when we embrace a person, we use our bodies. And when we come together to worship, we use our bodies. It really does not mean much to say, “I will be with you in spirit” if you are not physically present.
And when Christ returns, we still shall all have bodies in eternity … but glorious bodies (Philippians 3.20-21)!
—Keith Y. Jainga