Jesus increased in stature and so should you!
“And Jesus increased… in stature…” (Luke 2:52b) “As he is, so are we in this world.” (1 John 4:17b)
Stature (Physically – Body)
Yesterday I pointed out that according to Luke 2:52, as Jesus grew from a child into an adult, He increased in four distinct areas of His life: 1. Wisdom (mentally), 2. stature (physically), 3. favor with God (Spiritually), and 4. favor with man (socially).
Jesus was a perfect example of living a perfect balanced life. And, we should increase in all four of these areas as well.
Yesterday I discussed the first area (wisdom), today will be the second one, “stature” which is the physical area, or simply put, your body.
We each have a body and we should take care of it for important reasons.
· It is the temple of the Holy Spirit
“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own.” (1 Cor. 6:19)
· Honor God with your bodies
“You were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” (1 Cor. 6:20)
· A healthy body enables you to do what God has created you to do
A healthy body helps you serve God and others better, so take care of it! Use common sense. Get plenty of exercise and eat healthy foods that include fruit and vegetables, avoid junk food, watch your weight, and get enough sleep at night. These are all things that you can control, and will help you be healthy and physically usable so you will be able to do whatever God has prepared for you to do.
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Eph. 2:10).