A Study Of The Soul, Part #3 of 6

"So God created man in his own image, in the image of God, created he him; male and female created he them." (Genesis 1:27)  

"And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living soul." (Genesis 2:7)  

There are two phrases we should focus on after reading the above verses, "the image of God" and "the breath of life" that caused the man to become a living soul. There are other questions and fields of knowledge presented here but they are often overlooked in favor of a narrative that fits a particular denominational belief.   What is the image of a metaphysical God? What is Heaven and where is it.  Is there a natural world and a spiritual world?  Being able to answer these type of questions will assist you in understanding the Word of God.   Focusing on the knowledge of God is important is more appropriate than become embroiled in useless debates as to the color of a metaphysical being.  

In a discussion concerning the soul, it is often assumed that man's spirit and soul is the same entity.  The scripture does not provide the necessary support for this thesis.  As we, stated earlier humankind is distinct from all the rest of God's creation, including the animals, in that he made humankind in the image of God.  Now God is a tripartite, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  The scripture also supports the thesis that man is three parts -- body, soul, and spirit.  Thus the image of God does not reference or imply the shape or color of God. 

The Apostle Paul writes, "And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." (1^st Thessalonians 5:23)

The man is made up of physical material, the body, which can be seen and touched.  However, he is also made up of immaterial aspects, which are intangible -- this includes the soul, spirit, intellect, will, emotions, conscience, and so forth. These immaterial characteristics exist beyond the physical lifespan of the human body and are therefore eternal.  The duality of the creative works of God provided a separate place for the spiritual and the natural.  

The belief in the immaterial or intangible is not as complicated as our learned associates would imply.   It is fashionable to state that I do not believe in ghost or the spirit world.  I used the word ghost because it has the connotation of being superstitious and superstition is something our vast knowledge teaches us to discard.  The word ghost is merely an English translation of the Greek meaning spirit. Thus in the scripture, in one instance we speak of the Holy Ghost and in another, it is the Holy Spirit.   If we are to believe in God then we must believe in ghost.  There is the Holy Ghost and there is the unholy ghost (demon).

The spiritual essence of God is all around us.  Air, we breathe it, we manipulate it, we sell it and sometimes we suffer from the lack of it.  We cannot touch it, we cannot see it, create it or destroy it, yet we believe in it.  Where does it go once it has been used?  Electricity is another form of energy that we would be lost without, yet where does it reside in its natural form.  Can we see it?  We can manipulate it, we can store it, and carefully we can direct it, but we cannot create it or destroy it.  These  things simply exist in their own place. God has created a place for the Sun, the moon, the spirit, the soul and the body.  

These immaterial aspects -- the spirit, soul, heart, conscience, mind, and emotions -- make up our whole personality. The Bible makes it clear that the soul and spirit are the primary immaterial aspects of humanity, while the body is the physical container that holds or keep them earthbound. Before proceeding further let's take a closer look at the three elements that man consists off.

The Body (Greek, "soma")

This is the entire material or physical structure of a human being.  This physical part of man was created as a lifeless container.  The body is a place for the soul and spirit to reside in a natural environment.   The Apostle Paul, writing to the Romans again connects the body, the mind (soul) and the spirit.

"I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God."(Romans 12:1-2) 

"For you are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." (1^st Corinthians 6:20)

The Soul (Greek, "psyche")

"And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living soul." (Genesis 2:7)

Genesis 2:7 states that Man was created as a "living soul." The soul consists of the mind (which includes the conscience), the will and the emotions. The soul and the spirit are mysteriously tied together and makeup what the Scriptures call the "heart."

The writer of Proverbs declares, "Keep your heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life." (Proverbs 4:23)  We see here that the "heart" is central to our emotions and will.

"But the natural man receives not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." (1^st Corinthians 2:14)  A natural (psuchikos -- soulish) man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them because they are spiritually appraised

"And Paul, earnestly beholding the council, said, Men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day." (Acts 23:1)

 

The Spirit (Greek " Pneuma")

In Numbers 16:22, Moses and Aaron, "…fell upon their faces and said, 'O God, God of the spirits of all flesh, when one man sins, will you be angry with the entire congregation?'" This verse names God as the God of the spirits that are possessed by all humanity. Notice also that it mentions the flesh (body) of all mankind, connecting it with the spirit.

"For the word of God is living, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." (Hebrews 4:12)

 

We see in this passage of Scripture that the soul and spirit can be divided -- and that it is the Word of God that pierces our heart to bring the division of soul and spirit, something that only God can do.

As human beings, we live eternally as a spirit, we have a soul, and we dwell temporally in a body.