The Borrowed Cathedral

In 2019, when fire consumed the roof of Notre-Dame de Paris, the world watched in horror as eight centuries of craftsmanship buckled under the flames. Within hours, over a billion dollars poured in from donors worldwide — not because they owned the cathedral, but because they understood its irreplaceable significance. No one suggested converting the charred nave into a parking garage. No one proposed hanging laundry from the flying buttresses. The building's purpose was written into every stone.

When Paul wrote to the Corinthian church, he was addressing people who lived in a city famous for its "anything goes" philosophy. The Corinthians had a saying: "Everything is permissible for me." Paul didn't disagree entirely — but he reframed everything. Yes, you have freedom. But your body is not a vacant lot you can do whatever you want with. It is a cathedral. And more than that — it belongs to Someone else.

You were bought at a price, Paul says. Not with euros donated after a tragedy, but with the blood of Christ poured out before the foundation of the world was laid. The Holy Spirit has taken up residence in you — in your muscles, your breath, your very skin.

A cathedral isn't honored by what it can survive. It's honored by what it was built for. So it is with us. Every choice we make with our bodies is either worship in the sanctuary or graffiti on the walls. Glorify God, Paul urges, with the one temple that walks and breathes and bears His name.