Freedom in Our Body (Dutch) — Zac Poonen

Freedom in Our Body: Spirit, Soul, and Body

We'll begin with a verse in 1 Thessalonians 5, verse 23. God is a trinity, but he is three persons, separate persons in one God. He made man in his image, and he made man a trinity in another way. Not three separate persons, but three parts.

All of us are three parts. 1 Thessalonians 5, verse 23. It says, the God of peace will sanctify you wholly. May your spirit, soul, and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

It says, the God of peace will sanctify you wholly. May your spirit, soul, and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. If you have studied the Old Testament tabernacle, there were three parts in the Old Testament tabernacle.

The outer court was visible to everyone, and the two parts of the tabernacle were covered. That tabernacle is a picture of man, the dwelling place of God. The outer court is the part of us everybody can see, our body.

The two covered parts were a picture of the soul and spirit, which cannot be seen. But God in the tabernacle did not dwell in the outer court. He did not even dwell in the holy place, he dwelt in the most holy place.

So when you say God dwells in us, he does not dwell in our body, he does not dwell in our soul, he dwells in our spirit. But because the spirit is within us, we can say God dwells within us. But it's very important to understand, he's not dwelling in my body, he's not dwelling in my soul.

And it is my spirit that I have to keep, my heart or spirit that I have to keep clean all the time. I can be weak in my body and weak in my mind, and still God can dwell in me. But I have to keep all this without blame, it says.

In my spirit I have to keep my conscience always without blame. I need the power of the Holy Spirit for that. The Holy Spirit comes to dwell within my spirit. In that Old Testament tabernacle there was a veil which was covered in the Old Testament, covering the most holy place.

But then when Jesus died, that veil was torn, showing that the way into my spirit was opened. Now the Holy Spirit could come and dwell in my spirit. That is the meaning of that rent veil. God is interested in my mind, which is part of my soul, and my body.

Freedom From Guilt in the Body

So today we want to think about how God wants us to be free. Today and now we want to think about how God wants us to experience freedom in our body. Free from guilt. We have to preserve our body without blame.

There is another place in the Bible, in Hebrews chapter 10, where it speaks about our coming into God's presence. Hebrews chapter 10, verse 22. Let us draw near with a sincere faith, a sincere heart and a full assurance of faith.

Having our heart, which is our spirit, sprinkled clean from an evil conscience. And our bodies washed with pure water. What does that mean? It's not talking about having a bath or a shower. Water. You know it says Jesus cleanses the church by the washing of water with the word of God.

Ephesians 5. So that water is a picture of the word of God. So to have my body washed with pure water, is to use my body in line with the teaching of the word of God. So what does the New Testament teach about my body?

The Body as the Temple of the Holy Spirit

I want to show you a few verses. 1 Corinthians, and chapter 6. It says your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. People talk about a church as the house of God. No building is the house of God. If there is a house of God on earth today, it is our body.

See, just like the temple in Jerusalem, that was the house of God in the old covenant. You must recognize that your body is the same as that holy temple that was in Jerusalem in Old Testament times. The pillar of fire, which was a symbol of the Holy Spirit, dwelt on that tabernacle.

And the glory of God dwelt upon that temple. The Holy Spirit now dwells in this temple. You wouldn't think of committing a sin inside a church building. But I say, this is the church building, the temple.

People say, I will not smoke inside a church building. Well, you can't smoke in this body either. This body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. You don't sit inside a church building and watch pornography.

Well, this is the temple of the Holy Spirit. We have to recognize first of all, this body of mine is a temple of the Holy Spirit of God. And it says in Romans chapter 12, What shall we do to show our gratitude to God for all that He has done for us?

We think we shall thank Him with our lips, good. That's good. We give some money for God's work, that's good. That was there even in the Old Covenant. They praised God, they gave money for God's work, that's all Old Covenant.

But in the New Covenant, it is something more than that. Romans 12, verse 1. In view of all the mercies of God, what shall we do? In all the previous 11 chapters, He is talking about the wonderful salvation God has purchased for us.

How shall we respond? Just by singing praise on Sunday morning? Just by putting money in the box? No, much, much more than that. Present your body, a living, holy sacrifice to God. That is your spiritual worship.

We don't worship God just with our lips. That is in the Psalms, Old Covenant. Hallelujah, praise the Lord. Clap your hands, raise your hands, shout, blow the trumpet. All in the Psalms. You can do it.

But it is still Old Covenant. New Covenant worship. Jesus told the woman in Samaria, The time has now come when you will worship in spirit, in truth. Here it says, you present your body. Lord, I'm going to worship you now.

And I worship you by giving you my body. My eyes. How do I worship God with my eyes? You know, in the Old Testament, when they offered a burnt offering to God upon the altar. That is a picture of worship.

The burnt offering was different from the sin offering. The burnt offering was an expression of gratitude to God. They could not take an ox or a bullock and put it on the altar. They had to cut it into pieces and put it piece by piece by piece on the altar.

We say, what's the point putting it piece by piece when you're going to burn it in any case? To teach us a lesson. When you say, present your body to God. You must cut it piece by piece and give it to God.

When you say, Lord, here's my body, that's easy to say that. Now hang on, let's do it piece by piece. Lord, here are my eyes. Lord, here are my eyes. I've used these eyes to look at so many filthy, sinful things for so many years.

I have spent enough years worshiping you by giving money and singing songs. Now I'm going to worship you by giving you my eyes. This is much more difficult, Lord. Singing was not a sacrifice. I earned so much money that I put a little bit in the box is not a sacrifice.

Here it says worship is when I present my body as a spiritual offering of sacrifice. So, Lord, this is really a sacrifice. Because I like to look at so many things. Now I'm going to worship you. Real spiritual worship.

Then I say, I give you my eyes. Never again for the rest of my life do I want to look at something that you don't want me to look at. I'm talking to you about healing today, but this is where we begin.

Presenting Every Part of the Body to God

A lot of people like to jump to healing. Hang on, we'll get there. If you don't start here, you won't understand it properly. Because a lot of people don't know what it means to present their body to God.

They say, heal my body, heal my body, heal my body. Wait a minute, have you presented it to God first? Tell a surgeon, cut me, cure the cancer, cure the cancer, but don't put me on the table, I'm not going to give my body to you.

And the surgeon says, if you don't surrender your body to me, how will I remove the cancer? You have to allow me to do anything with your body, then I will cut it open and remove the cancer. And I want to tell you, many people will surrender their body to a doctor, who will not surrender their body to God.

And I want to tell you, many people will surrender their body to a doctor, who will not surrender their body to God. And that doctor cannot heal them then, and God is not able to heal them either. So here is where we begin.

Lord, here are my eyes. I like to read all types of stories. Stories that stimulate me in a wrong way. I have done that for years. Lord, now my eyes are yours. I never again want to read a story that stimulates me and turns me away from God.

I don't want to look at anything or read anything that's going to dishonor God. I don't want to read something that Jesus cannot read with me. I don't want to look at a picture or a person whom Jesus cannot look along with me.

Lord, from today onwards, this is how I'm going to worship you. And now Lord, I'm going to give you another part of my body. And that's my tongue. Oh, I have used my tongue exactly as I like. I have said what is written in Psalms.

It says here in the book of Psalms. Psalm 12 and verse 4. The last part. Our lips are our own. Who is Lord over us? Our tongue is ours. Who is Lord over us? Verse 5. Who is Lord over my tongue? That's me.

Lord, it's been like that. But no longer. I'm going to worship you with my tongue. Not by just singing praises on Sunday morning. But by putting it on the altar. And saying from today onwards, I never want to tell a lie.

I never want to say something which you will not want me to say. I never want to express anger with my tongue. If anger comes up in my heart, I'm going to kill it in the power of the Holy Spirit. It will not reach my tongue.

Before it reaches my tongue, it's killed. Lord, here is my tongue. Not only is it not going to do bad things. But Lord, it's going to speak good things to people. My eyes are not only going to stop looking at bad things.

I'm going to use it to read your word. This is spiritual worship. Lord, I've committed so many sins with my hands. Oh, I'm ashamed of the sins I've committed with my hands. The letters I've written and so many other things with my hands.

Dirty things I've done with my hands. Lord, I cut it and put it on your altar. From today, this hand is yours. My legs have taken me to many, many places. Which I should not have gone to. Lord, from today, my legs are yours.

This is how we present our bodies, a living sacrifice to God. When we give ourselves like that to the Lord, We read in 1 Corinthians 6. 1 Corinthians and chapter 6. Verse 13. In the middle of that verse, The body is not for immorality, but for the Lord.

I want to ask you, Do you use your body for immorality? Or can you honestly say, My body from head to foot is for the Lord. I said that to the Lord many years ago. I was just like any other rotten sinner in my unconverted days.

I don't look down on anybody. But Jesus saved me. He not only saved my spirit, He saved my soul, my mind. He saved my emotions. And he saved my body. So I said, Lord, this body is for the Lord. And then, The rest of that verse, Says the Lord is for the body.

Wow, what an exchange that is. Do you want the Lord for your body? Well, first of all, your body has got to be for the Lord. And I told you how you got to do that. Your tongue, Your eyes, Your hands, Your legs, Your energy, Your health, Everything in your body, It is for the Lord.

And the Lord says, Oh, then I am for your body. This is the relationship. It's a beautiful verse. I have claimed that many, many times. I want to tell you something which is better than healing. That is health.

Health, Discipline, and Service to the Lord

Health is better than healing. Any doctor will tell you that. Prevention of sickness Is better than curing sickness. Prevention is better than cure. Health is better than healing. So if you can understand, There are certain laws God has made for our body.

If you follow those laws, Your body is blessed. So, my body is for the Lord, Then the Lord is for my body. So if I can say to the Lord, Lord, I never want to take this body To any place where you don't want to go.

And every place where you want to take this body, I am ready to take it. The body is for the Lord. Don't say that too quickly. Think about it. It means you are not going to seek your own convenience With your body anymore.

As I get older, I find the body gets weaker. But I still say the body is for the Lord. However many aches and pains And difficulties I may have in my body, And the Bible says the outer man decays As time goes on, I must not seek my own with my body.

If the Lord wants me to go and serve somebody, I can't say, oh Lord, I'm tired. Or, Lord, I'm hungry. It's time for me to eat lunch. I don't have time to go and counsel that person. I've spent many hours counseling people, Completely forgetting about lunch, dinner, everything.

If you stop counseling somebody, And say, hey, it's time for my lunch now, You are totally unfit to be a servant of the Lord. You are a servant of your body. Your body is not for the Lord, And the Lord is not for your body.

So be careful before you say, my body is for the Lord. It's the most wonderful thing to say, my body is for the Lord. Lord, I will not think of the tiredness of my body. I will not think whether my body is hungry or thirsty.

It is for you. It is a sacrifice.

Do you know what a sacrifice is? A sacrifice is something painful and costly. It's a wonderful thing when you give your body as a sacrifice to the Lord. We read in the book of Ezekiel, Sometimes the hand of the Lord was on Ezekiel, And he didn't want to go somewhere, but the Lord took him and he went.

Because he was submitted. Give yourself to the Lord like that. It's the most wonderful way to live on this earth. And you will have no regret when you get up to heaven. And you will spend your earthly days profitably.

God is a loving father. He is not a dictator or a torturer. He will never ask you to do something, Which he does not give you power to do. I'll tell you my experience. There are many times when I had to go and speak somewhere, I'm thoroughly exhausted.

But I know the Lord wants me to go. There are many places when I have to speak numerous times in a day, And I have often taken this verse. Psalm 71. In the King James Version it reads like this. Psalm 71 verse 16 I will go in the strength of the Lord God.

Is it like that in the Dutch? Not exactly. In the King James Version, I believe that's the right translation. I will go in the strength of the Lord. I've said that many times. I'm tired and exhausted.

Sleepy. Overcome by jet lag. And I have to get up and speak. Psalm 71 verse 16 I will go in the strength of the Lord my God. You can say to the Lord. Lord my body is for you. And I believe you are for my body.

Three Biblical Truths About the Body

The second thing we read in 1 Corinthians 6. If the body is for the Lord, the Lord is for my body. There are three things in 1 Corinthians 6. First is verse 13. My body is for the Lord and so the Lord is for my body.

Verse 15 My body is a member of Christ. Do you not know that your body is a member of Christ? Say Lord I thought only my spirit was a member of Christ. No. My body is a member of Jesus Christ. I say that's wonderful.

Lord please take care of this member of yours. Recognize that your body is a member of Jesus Christ. It's not just your heart. It's not just an inward thing. Your body is a member of Christ. And the third one I already mentioned to you.

Verse 19 The body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. There are three wonderful things written about the body in these last few verses in 1 Corinthians 6. And very often I have quoted these verses to myself to encourage myself.

But I have to follow the laws of the body. You know I remember this importance of discipline in the body. 1 Corinthians 9 Paul says Verse 24 Don't you know that those who run in a race everybody runs only one receives a prize.

1 Corinthians 9 24 Run in such a way that you'll win. People who want to win the marathon race in the Olympics 40 kilometers You know how they win it? Usually somebody from Ethiopia or Kenya wins it. But do you know how they win it?

They get up in the morning and run 40 kilometers every day. Do you want to win the Olympics? Yeah you got to do that. You can't lazily sleep and say I'd like to win in the Olympics. And so it says you must run in such a way that you win.

This is what Paul is speaking of in verse 25. People who compete in the games those days it was the Olympic games they exercise self-control. That means they don't feel like getting up in the morning they get up.

They don't eat everything they feel like. Because if you eat everything you feel like you'll be so fat you won't win the marathon. So they discipline themselves to get those days a wreath on their head today a gold medal.

But we are getting an imperishable reward if we discipline ourselves. So he says I also run this race in order to win. And how does he do it? Verse 27 I buffet my body and make this body my slave. The Living Bible paraphrases it beautifully.

I make this body do what it should do and not what it wants to do. My body wants to do many things but I don't allow it. Because my body is not my master. My body is my slave. My body says I want to eat that.

I tell the body no. I'm not saying you can't enjoy an ice cream or anything like that. But you have to be disciplined. And I tell you it's a lack of discipline in many Christians that leads to sickness and ill health.

So Paul says I discipline my body and make it my slave. I don't allow this body to do whatever it wants to. I make this body do what it should do, what God wants it to do. Otherwise I'll go around preaching to so many people and in the final when I reach the finishing line God will say disqualified.

That happens in some Olympic Games. You know in the shorter races they have to keep within their track. Like 400 meters you must stay within your track. You can't go into the other track. And this chap runs and just for a few seconds he accidentally went into another track and he runs and he pressed the tape first.

And he waves his hand thinking he's first. And the referee says disqualified. You see that video there? You crossed the line over there. And he says I will be disqualified. So I'm going to discipline my body.

The Body Must Not Become an Idol

He talks about it in Philippians chapter 3. Philippians 3. Philippians 3. He says there are some people verse 19 verse 18 Many walk I told you and I often tell you weeping they are enemies of the cross of Christ.

Enemy of crucifying the self. And one characteristic is this the God is their stomach. Do you know that there are some believers whose God is their stomach? They worship their stomach. Oh stomach what do you want?

I want this. What do you want now? I want that. Okay. That's idolatry. It says the God is their stomach they are an enemy of the cross of Christ. Their mind is set on earthly things. So there are some things said about the body in the New Testament.

Sickness, Healing, and the Sovereignty of God

What is God's will about sickness and healing? The Bible says that Jesus was tempted in all points as we are. Hebrews 4 .15 He wanted to sympathize with what we go through. It doesn't say He faced all our circumstances.

For example some people have drunken fathers Jesus never had a drunken father. Some people have evil mothers Jesus did not have an evil mother. And many circumstances we face like road rage and the traffic in the roads.

Jesus never had that. But the temptations we face He faced all of them. In different circumstances. But the same temptations. Man has been tempted in the same way from the time of Adam. Adam's circumstances were different ours are different, Jesus was different.

But the temptations are the same. Temptation to be angry to be bitter to be unforgiving to gossip, to backbite to lust to tell lies to hate your enemies same temptations always. And sometimes temptations are more when we are sick.

Many years ago when my children were small I had a headache once. And I was lying in bed with severe pain. And I said Lord, did you ever have a headache when you were on earth? And I wanted to get an answer from the scripture.

And the answer was yes. He was tempted like me. And I said, Lord, why this headache? Because I'm taking you to a higher class of victory over sin. See, when your children irritate you by the grace of God you overcome that irritation.

Okay, you're past that class. Now, I'm going to give you a headache and your children irritate you you're not going to get irritated. That's a higher level. It's more difficult to overcome irritation when you've got a severe headache.

And I realized the headache was a higher class. I said, praise the Lord. God's teaching me to overcome. So where did I learn that Jesus had a headache? Now, you've already heard me say some shocking things in this conference.

But all from scripture. We must be willing to change our mind according to scripture. You all know this verse. Matthew chapter 8. It says here in Matthew chapter 8 when Jesus healed all who were ill in verse 16 Why?

So that verse 17 what Isaiah spoke might be fulfilled he himself took our infirmities and carried away our sick diseases. Now, people who don't read the scriptures carefully they say that happened on the cross.

That on the cross he took our infirmities and carried away our diseases. But that doesn't say that anywhere in the bible. It says here when he healed these sick people at that time there were maybe 500 sick people there all were healed and the Holy Spirit says at that time this verse was fulfilled.

He took away our infirmities and carried away our diseases. He took it all into his body. That is all misquoting scripture. You know when it says earlier on in Matthew 1 he was born in Bethlehem so that the scripture might be fulfilled.

Or Matthew 2 he came out of Egypt so that it might be fulfilled I'll call my son out of Egypt. Everywhere when a scripture is quoted it is fulfilled there. He was born in Bethlehem so the scripture must be fulfilled.

He came out of Egypt so the scripture might be fulfilled. It's not happening at a later time it's happening right there. The last verse of Matthew 2 he lived in Nazareth so that it can be fulfilled. He was called a Nazarene.

The last verse of chapter 2 he lived in Nazareth so that it can be fulfilled. Here is another verse that is fulfilled right there. He healed all who were sick so that the scripture might be fulfilled that he took away our infirmities and carried away our diseases.

It's got nothing to do with Calvary's cross. There he took our sins but not our diseases. He took them away when he took it away from these people. He didn't take it and put it on himself. It doesn't say that.

He took it and threw it away. Whenever you see a verse quoted in the New Testament if you are a careful Bible student you will go back to the Old Testament and see what does it say there. When you study the scriptures like this like I have done for 50 years you understand the truth accurately.

If you are too lazy to go back and check with the Old Testament you will not get the bread of God's word. God told Adam by the sweat of your brow you will earn your bread. If you are not willing to work hard you won't earn your bread.

And if you are not willing to study hard in the scriptures and sweat you are not going to get the bread of life from here either. So I see this verse he took away our diseases he carried our sicknesses he bore our sicknesses.

I go back to Isaiah chapter 53 this verse is quoted from Isaiah 53 verse 4 and it says there Surely our griefs he bore and sorrows he carried for which he bore our sicknesses and in the margin it says the actual Hebrew word is sickness.

It says sickness. Oh the Dutch are really good. It says sickness. I don't know why they didn't put sickness in the English translation they are afraid. They put it in the margin and say actually it is sickness but we decided to put griefs.

Some of these translators are not really honest. So our sickness he bore now the same word used for sickness in verse 4 is also used in verse 3 is also used in verse 3 I don't know if the Dutch people are bold enough to write that there.

He was despised and forsaken of men a man of sorrows acquainted with sickness Is it? Oh wonderful. I take my hats off to the Dutch translators. What does it mean when it says Jesus was acquainted with sickness?

In simple words it means he was sick. He was acquainted with pain. He knew sickness. You say how can that be? How can Jesus be sick? He was sinless. Who said that sickness is the result of sin? You know why sickness has come to the earth?

Because of the curse on the earth. If there was no curse on the earth there would be no sickness. Let me ask you something. You know why your body is sick? It's not because you sinned. It's not because of demons.

Sometimes it is. We read that the devil put sickness on Job. It's true. Sometimes that happens. But one thing we read in Job it was with God's permission. Satan cannot put sickness on a child of God without God's permission.

So if Jesus had a body which was made of the same dust that Adam's body was made of and there was a curse on that earth Jesus got sick. I'll prove it to you another way. One of the results of this curse because our body is made from this dust of the earth in Genesis 3 the Lord told him in Genesis 3 verse 17 he didn't curse Adam but he said in verse 17 middle curse it is the ground and you are made from this ground and so the thorns and thistles will grow up and hurt you.

Let me ask you something. If Jesus walked barefoot somewhere do you think a thorn would have pierced his foot or not? Do you want to pray and fast and think about that? I don't need to pray and fast. His body was like mine.

There was no sin in it. But if a thorn pierced his foot it would pierce him. Not because of sin. But because he humbled himself and came to an earth which is under the curse. Okay, another thing. Another part of the curse verse 19 is by the sweat of your face you will earn your bread.

Nazareth can be pretty hot in the summer. And when Jesus was working and working as a carpenter for eight hours Do you think he perspired or not? What do you think? Do you think Jesus could work in the heat without perspiring?

I know the answer. He perspired. Why should a man without sin perspire? There was no sin in his spirit. But his body was just like the body of any other human being. If other human beings perspired he perspired.

Okay, another question. Did Jesus ever get tired? Did he ever feel sleepy? Do you know you're not going to sleep in heaven? You need to sleep only now on this earth. I don't believe Adam needed to sleep when he was in a sinless body.

What I'm trying to say is Jesus identified himself so much with us that he experienced tiredness hunger and he was sleepy and let me say it reverently he had to go to the toilet. Jesus. Don't think that he was so holy that he didn't do all these things.

If he was not like us then he didn't experience any of these things. I'm humbled when I think almighty God came down to this earth and had to go to the toilet like me. Lord, how much you humbled yourself for me.

You perspired. You perspired. You became sick to see how I feel when I'm sick. Thank you, Lord Jesus. I never knew you loved me so much that you want to identify with everything I'm going through. Not every single sickness that man has but to some degree so that he can identify with pain.

When Adam did not sin he did not feel pain. When they drove the nails into the hands of Jesus did he feel the pain or not? Do you believe in a real Jesus who was a man like us? He was acquainted with sickness.

Old Testament Examples of Unhealed Servants

God may allow you and me also to taste it to give us greater compassion for other people who are sick. And in his mercy he heals also. You know in the Old Testament there was a promise saying, I am the Lord, your healer.

But do you know that everybody in the Old Testament was not healed? One of the greatest prophets in the Old Testament who did more miracles than anybody else was Elisha. You know how he died? 2 Kings chapter 13 verse 14.

Remember this is the great man of faith who healed so many people raised the dead. Do you know Elijah raised one dead person? And Elisha said give me a double portion of your anointing. Elisha raised two dead people.

One was a dead boy. You know who the other one was? Anybody? After he died they buried his bones in a grave. And some Moabites or some people threw a dead man into that grave. The dead man touched the bones of Elisha.

It's here in 2 Kings 13 verse 21. And he stood up. There was more anointing in the dead bones of Elisha than in a lot of people today. His bones could raise a dead man. But how did he himself die? 2 Kings 13 verse 14.

Elisha became sick with the illness which he would die. Oh Elisha, why can't you say the Lord is my healer, I claim healing. He was not a blind Pentecostal to just claim verses like that. He knew God.

He was in touch with God. And he knew when to claim a promise and when not to claim. His bones could raise a dead man. But he himself became sick and he was not healed. He didn't just blindly claim a verse saying the Lord is my healer, I'm healed.

The Lord is my healer. I want to say this, my brothers and sisters. Our God is sovereign. He controls everything. All circumstances, all people. All the germs that float around this world. And he says in Romans 8, 28 He makes everything work together for my good.

That he makes everything work together for my good. And what is that good? We saw that the other day in the next verse. He has predestined me to become like Jesus Christ. Many of you know Romans 8, 28.

You must never think of that verse without verse 29. So many misquote that verse. So many misquote that verse. Oh, I want to marry that girl. She married somebody else. But Romans 8, 28 God will give me a prettier girl now.

No, he may give you an uglier girl. But a more spiritual one. I lost that job. God will give me one with a better salary. No. Romans 8, 28. He will give you one with a lower salary. So that you don't love money so much.

He is interested in making you like Jesus. Not giving you pretty girls to marry and plenty of money in your job. So, God makes everything work for my good to make me like Jesus. And if some sickness will help me to become like Jesus I say, thank you Lord.