Saturday,December 13, 2003
THE TRIAD CALLED MAN. The Lord created man in His own image and likeness. Man was to bear the resemblance, the shape and form of very God Himself. A being to whom the Lord would give life. Gen. 1:26 He created man body and soul, then breathed into him the breath of life making man to be triune. Body, soul and spirit a breathing creature. One who could possess both animal and spiritual life. In breathing the spirit of life into his nostrils, the Lord gave him the kiss of life. Gen. 2:7
THE BODY. The physical, the bodily nature of man. The member in which the soul and the spirit are resident. It is called the temple, the body, when its resident has been born of the spirit. John 2:21 When properly prepared It is to be the residence of the Holy Spirit. Any and all who have the presence of the Holy Spirit are to honor the Lord with a body that is committed to the Lord. 1 Cor. 6:19-20 This body which we now have is not the eternal body. This body must be planted [buried] and resurrected or raptured [transformed] and made to be a spiritual body, an eternal body. 1 Cor. 15:37 It is likewise called a tabernacle. A place of worship dedicated to the Lord. 2 Pet. 1:13-14
THE SOUL. That which activates the body is the blood flowing through it. The life of the flesh is in the blood. Lev. 17:11 How very, very true this is. The body in order to function must have blood. It is the furnace and the air conditioner of the body, heating and cooling it. Blood services every part of the body with food and then removes the waste. It has within its capabilities the element of health and healing. There is seemingly no end to the great variety of duties performed by blood. It is our life source. Isaiah prophesied of Christ saying that He would pour out His SOUL unto death. Isa. 53:12 This helps identify the blood as being the soul life of man. It was the blood of Christ which was shed at Calvary.
THE SPIRIT. While the life of the body depends on the blood, both depend on the spirit [pneuma, breath, air, spirit]. When the Lord breathed into Adam the spirit of life he became a living soul. As the body cannot live without blood, so the soul [blood] cannot live without oxygen. Each is dependent on the other and all three are dependent on each other. It is not always easy to distinguish between soul and spirit but the Word of the Lord shows us where there are differences and what the function of each is to be. Heb. 4:12 Of all the creation of the Lord, man alone has the capability of being raised to a higher level of life. Only man can receive the Spirit of the Lord and have that Holy Spirit produce Spiritual life in him. Jesus breathed on His disciples and said, receive ye the Holy Ghost. John 20:22 This they were to experience both in the new birth and the infilling of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. It is the Spirit of the Lord which brings true Spiritual life into the temple of the Lord.