BOUGHT WITH A PRICE

Remember, Paul is writing to the church in Corinth, which is in a hyper-sexualized culture. Paul starts making very radical statements, like "You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body" (1 Corinthians 6:19b-20).

And in this section, Paul gives an unpopular opinion. It was unpopular then, and it is unpopular today, but it is God's truth. Sexuality is a big deal, and how we use our bodies can have big consequences.

1 Corinthians 6:18 (NLT)
Run from sexual sin! No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body.

A logical question would be: "But didn't Paul say just a few verses earlier that we can be cleansed from our past? Doesn't Jesus forgive all our sins?"

We don't always like to live with a paradox, but two things can be true at the same time.
1. Sexual sin can negatively impact your life more than any other sin and can have severe consequences (TRUTH)
2. No matter what you have done or how far you have run, God wants you back (GRACE)

In this chapter, Paul clearly communicates God's GRACE & God's TRUTH.

What is so amazing about God is that even in your sins and your mistakes, He "bought you with a high price."
- You are undeserving, but God pays a high price for you
- Even when you go back to what he saved you from, God still loves you
- In your mess, in your sin, in your promise not to go back to the sin and return again to it, in your brokenness and shame – IN ALL OF THAT AND MORE – God says, “I paid for you. I want you. I’m pursuing you. I love you!”

God’s love relentlessly pursues you, and his love never runs out, no matter what you have done.