Because believers have been redeemed by Christ and indwelt by the Holy Spirit, they are called to pursue holiness in their relationships, their conduct, and the use of their bodies, bringing glory to God in every area of life.
“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and 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 Corinthians 6:19–20, NKJV
Paul continues addressing practical issues within the Corinthian church by confronting two serious problems: lawsuits among believers (1 Corinthians 6:1–11) and sexual immorality (1 Corinthians 6:12–20). Both issues reveal a failure to understand the believers' new identity in Christ.
In the first section, Paul rebukes the Corinthians for taking disputes with fellow Christians before secular courts rather than resolving them within the church. He reminds them of the remarkable future God has prepared for His people.
“Do you not know that the saints will judge the world?... Do you not know that we shall judge angels?”
1 Corinthians 6:2–3, NKJV
If believers will one day participate in Christ's righteous reign, they should certainly be capable of resolving ordinary disagreements among themselves.
Paul laments that the very existence of lawsuits between Christians is already a spiritual defeat.
“Now therefore, it is already an utter failure for you that you go to law against one another. Why do you not rather accept wrong? Why do you not rather let yourselves be cheated?”
1 Corinthians 6:7, NKJV
Rather than insisting upon personal rights at any cost, believers should demonstrate the humility and sacrificial love modeled by Christ. Tragically, Paul says, some within the church were not only seeking legal victory but were themselves guilty of wronging and defrauding fellow believers.
Paul then issues one of the New Testament's clearest warnings regarding unrighteous living. He reminds the Corinthians that those who persist in lives characterized by unrepentant sin will not inherit the kingdom of God.
“Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers... will inherit the kingdom of God.”
1 Corinthians 6:9–10, NKJV
Paul is not teaching salvation by works, nor is he denying the possibility of forgiveness. Rather, he describes the ongoing pattern of life that characterizes those outside of Christ. The hope of the gospel immediately follows:
“And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.”
1 Corinthians 6:11, NKJV
This verse beautifully summarizes the transforming power of salvation. The Corinthians' former identity no longer defines them because they have been cleansed, set apart, and declared righteous through Christ.
In the second half of the chapter, Paul turns specifically to the misuse of Christian liberty and sexual immorality. Some Corinthians apparently argued that because they were free in Christ, bodily actions carried little spiritual significance.
Paul quotes one of their slogans:
“All things are lawful for me...”
1 Corinthians 6:12, NKJV
He immediately qualifies it by explaining that not everything is beneficial, nor should believers become mastered by anything. Christian liberty is always governed by holiness and love.
Paul further explains that the body is not morally insignificant.
“Now the body is not for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.”
1 Corinthians 6:13, NKJV
Because Christ was bodily raised from the dead, believers also anticipate a bodily resurrection (1 Corinthians 6:14). Therefore, what Christians do with their bodies matters eternally.
Using the imagery of union, Paul teaches that believers are members of Christ Himself. Sexual immorality uniquely violates this union because it joins the body, which belongs to Christ, with sin.
“Or do you not know that he who is joined to a harlot is one body with her?”
1 Corinthians 6:16, NKJV
By contrast:
“But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him.”
1 Corinthians 6:17, NKJV
Paul therefore gives the strongest possible command:
“Flee sexual immorality.”
1 Corinthians 6:18, NKJV
Unlike many temptations that may be resisted directly, sexual temptation often requires immediate separation from the source of temptation, following the examples of Joseph in Genesis 39 and Paul's consistent teaching elsewhere.
The chapter concludes with one of Scripture's most profound descriptions of the believer's identity:
“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you...?”
1 Corinthians 6:19, NKJV
Believers do not belong to themselves. Having been purchased by the blood of Christ, every aspect of life—including the body—is to be devoted to God's glory.
Believers are called to pursue reconciliation and wise judgment within the body of Christ rather than damaging the church's witness through unnecessary public disputes (1 Corinthians 6:1–8).
Salvation completely changes a believer's identity. Those who were once enslaved by sin have been washed, sanctified, and justified through Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 6:9–11).
Freedom in Christ is never permission to indulge the flesh. True liberty seeks what is spiritually beneficial and refuses to be mastered by sinful desires (1 Corinthians 6:12).
The human body is not morally neutral. It belongs to Christ, will be resurrected, and should be used for His glory (1 Corinthians 6:13–17).
Every believer is the temple of the Holy Spirit, making holiness both a privilege and a responsibility (1 Corinthians 6:19–20).
Paul reminds believers that salvation is more than forgiveness. In Christ, believers are washed from sin, sanctified for God's purposes, and justified before Him.
The gospel transforms not only the soul but every aspect of life, including the believer's physical conduct and moral choices.
Sexual immorality is especially serious because it violates the believer's union with Christ and disregards the sacred purpose for which God created the body.
The indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit gives every Christian both the power and the responsibility to pursue holy living.
Christ is presented as the Redeemer who purchased His people at the cost of His own blood, the Lord to whom believers are united, and the One through whom they are washed, sanctified, and justified. Because believers belong to Him, every area of life—including the body—is to reflect His holiness and bring Him glory.
“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and 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 Corinthians 6:19–20, NKJV
The gospel transforms every part of life. Because believers have been redeemed by Christ, indwelt by the Holy Spirit, and given a new identity, they are called to resolve conflict with grace, pursue purity with conviction, and glorify God with both body and spirit.