How Your Health Affects Your Holiness
Why the Condition of Your Body Matters to the Condition of Your Spirit
A Holy Call, A Human Body
We often speak of holiness as a heart posture—a matter of spiritual devotion, obedience, and purity. And that’s absolutely true. But God didn’t create us as floating spirits—He made us flesh and blood. From the beginning, He formed Adam’s body before breathing His Spirit into him (Genesis 2:7). That means something: your body is not a side note—it’s part of the story.
In today’s culture, it’s common to separate our physical health from our spiritual lives, treating exercise, sleep, nutrition, and even sexual health as personal preferences or lifestyle choices. But what if the way you treat your body is affecting your ability to walk in holiness?
"Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own."
— 1 Corinthians 6:19
1. Your Body Is a Temple—Act Like It
Paul’s words to the Corinthians weren’t just about avoiding sexual sin. They were about a reverent recognition of the body’s role in our worship. Your body is not a machine for pleasure or performance; it is a dwelling place of God.
If you knew Jesus was physically living in your house, how would you treat it?
Would you clean it?
Would you throw trash in every room?
Would you ignore leaks and mold?
When we neglect our health—overeating, under-resting, avoiding exercise, indulging in porn, or letting our bodies fall into cycles of disorder—we aren’t just “being lazy,” we’re neglecting the sacred.
2. Physical Health Affects Spiritual Focus
"Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles."
— Hebrews 12:1
Not everything that hinders is sin—some of it is poor discipline.
When you’re constantly tired, bloated, sluggish, or distracted by physical cravings, it’s harder to:
Wake up and seek the Lord
Focus on Scripture and prayer
Serve others with energy and joy
Say no to temptation when your willpower is already depleted
Being physically undisciplined weakens your resistance to sin and lowers your threshold for obedience. When your body is out of order, your spirit often follows.
3. Laziness and Gluttony: Hidden but Destructive Sins
We often ignore sins that don’t seem public or scandalous. But the Bible doesn’t.
“The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.”
— Proverbs 13:4
“Put a knife to your throat if you are given to appetite.”
— Proverbs 23:2
It’s not about having six-pack abs. It’s about bringing your flesh into submission.
Holiness is about saying no to the desires that want to rule over you—and some of the strongest are food, comfort, laziness, and sexual gratification. If you always let your body lead, you will not live holy.
4. Stewardship: Health Is a Resource for the Kingdom
God gave you one body. One.
You don’t get a new one until eternity. And what you do with this one impacts your ministry, your marriage, your mindset, and your mission.
If you’re too tired to serve…
Too sick from years of bad decisions…
Too distracted by cravings and indulgence…
Too addicted to food, caffeine, porn, or dopamine…
You will live your life in survival mode, not spiritual war mode.
“So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
— 1 Corinthians 10:31
5. Fasting: Training the Flesh to Bow to the Spirit
Fasting isn’t just spiritual. It’s discipline training. Jesus fasted. Paul fasted. The early church fasted. Why?
Because when you tell your body "no," your spirit learns how to say "yes."
Fasting helps you:
Resist temptation
Build mental resilience
Focus on prayer and Scripture
Remember that you are not ruled by cravings
“But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.”
— 1 Corinthians 9:27
Holiness starts in the soul, but it is lived out through the body.
Questions to Reflect On
What areas of my health am I neglecting that may be weakening my spiritual life?
Have I allowed comfort or cravings to rule over my pursuit of God?
Do I treat my body as a sacred space where the Holy Spirit dwells?
Where is God calling me to exercise discipline—physically, mentally, emotionally?
Worship With Your Whole Self
Holiness is not just about what you don’t do—it’s about what you give to God. Romans 12:1 calls us to present our bodies as “a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.”
That means your body is part of the altar.
What you eat, how you sleep, how you train, what you consume—it’s all part of your worship.
Take care of your body not for vanity, but for victory.
Not for pride, but for purpose.
Because your health affects your holiness.
