20101021.1925
We often hear body, soul and spirit. How do they differ from one another?
Update:Genesis 3:23 - "Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken."
Ecclesiastes 12:7 - "Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was."
Ecclesiastes 3:20 – “All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.”
Genesis 1:20 – “And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.”
Genesis 1:24 – “And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.”
How much soil did God use? If I am not mistaken, the Holy Spirit said that it is one and a quarter liters only.
The dirt of the skin is a manifestation that the physical body is soil. Even though not exposed, why is it that dirt of the skin is produced in some areas of the body, like the groin? Where did it come from?
Update 3:And on this day also, God made man in their image, after their likeness, to “have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth” (Genesis 1:26).
Job 33:4 – “The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life.”
Man therefore consists of the physical body and the spirit from God. There is a part of God in man, and that is the spirit. We call this as conscience. God joined the physical body and the spirit, that is why Jesus said in Mark 10:9: “What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder” or let not man separate. God forbids murder or the killing of our fellow human being. Exodus 20:13 states: “Thou shalt not kill.”
Luke 23:46 states: “And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.”
Update 5:But what is good in one religion may be evil in another. If the commandment is from the true God, what is good is good and what is evil is evil. If the commandment is not from the true God, i.e., a false god, then the commandment of this false god is not necessarily the truth. It may be good in a particular religion but it is evil as per commandment from the true God. Hence, a person has to search for the true God.
The ghost that we sometimes see is the soul of a departed person. On the 43rd day after a person’s death, he has to enter a gate. If he fails to enter the gate, then it will be closed and he will not know how to enter through it. He will just wander outside. Those that we see as whitish images are examples of these wandering souls. They will remain there until Judgment Day when everybody will receive his sentence whether his soul will go to Heaven or to Hell to live there forever. Why forever? Because God lives forever, so will the soul lives forever.
Update 7:With love, your brother in Jesus,
Aristeo Canlas Fernando, Peace Crusader and Echo of the Holy Spirit
Motto: pro aris et focis (for the sake of, or defense of, religion and home)
http://aristean.org/ and http://peacecrusader.wordpress.com/
"The Internet is mightier than the sword."
Answers & Comments
Verified answer
The human body is more than just flesh, bones and blood. Genesis 2:7 says: “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” or “living being”. Humans and animals alike have the breath of life. Genesis 1:30 informs us that the beasts of the earth, the birds of the air, have life or the breath of life. The expression, ‘living being’ in both the Authorised Version and the New International Version is translated as ‘living creature’ in Genesis 1:20, 24. However, humans are unique because only humans can claim to have been made by the Spirit of God. Job 33:4 says “The spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty has given me life”. The NIV is virtually identical. Job also said this: “But there is a spirit in man; and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding”. The NIV renders it as “it is the spirit in a man, the breath of the Almighty, that gives him understanding”. God’s spirit and God’s breath are the same. The soul and the spirit are the immaterial aspects of humans.
The spirit is the element within humans that enables us to have an intimate relationship with our creator, in whose image we are made. Spirit is what connects us with God, who is spirit: “God is a Spirit; and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24). King Solomon asked “Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth?” (Ecclesiastes 3:21) He concluded: “Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.” (Ecclesiastes 12:7). Before Jesus died he cried out and said, “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit; and having said thus, he gave up the ghost” (or, breathed his last – NIV) Luke 23:46. Stephen, as he was being stoned to death, prayed: “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” (Acts 7:59). The spirit returns to God.
Soul refers to both the immaterial and the material aspects of humanity. Whereas human beings have a spirit, human beings are souls. Soul means life. When Rachel died after giving birth to Benjamin, it was said (in Genesis 35:18) “as her soul was departing (for she died)” or, “as she breathed her last (for she was dying)” (NIV). Soul can refer to the whole person, whether alive or in the afterlife. Revelation 6:9-11 says that the souls of those who were slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held were under the altar, and they cried out with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?” They speak, and they receive an answer! They were given white robes and instructed to rest yet for a little season. The Christian belief is that the souls of deceased saints are waiting to be clothed with their heavenly body. This will happen on the day Christ returns to earth, with those saints, and dead bodies will rise from the grave, being clothed with bodies made fit for heaven as they rise to meet Jesus in the air. It is noteworthy that although some Christians think it is more correct to say the spirit, rather than the soul, when speaking of the period between physical death and the Day of Judgement, both the AV and the NIV clearly say it is souls under the altar, not spirits.
The soul and the spirit are connected, but separable: “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit…” (Hebrews 4:12) The soul is the essence of humanity – it is who we are. The spirit is that aspect of humanity that connects with God.
Genesis 2:5
...God formed Man out of dirt from the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life. The Man came alive—a living soul!
1 Corinthians 2:11
For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him?
In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.
You do not have a soul - you are a soul.
The soul consists of body (flesh), breath of life and spirit.
When you die the breath ceases, the spirit returns to God, the flesh returns to dust and the soul ceases to exist until your resurrection.
Ecclesiastes 12:7
...and the dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.
The soul is the whole living person including spirit from God that lifts humanity above the animals.
Ezekiel 18:4
For every living soul belongs to me, the father as well as the son—both alike belong to me. The soul who sins is the one who will die.
"Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. "
I Thessalonians 5:23 NASB
This constitutes the entirety of man. The highest and noblest element is the spirit. God is spirit. Spirit is the seat of sentience - self awareness and the capability of communing with God. The soul is the mediating organ between the spirit and the body.
Because of sin, the spirit is dead - cut off from communion with the uncreated Life of God. Life is restored through the new birth, having been obtained through the redemption that is in Christ; who became sin on behalf of man, thus removing sin as a barrier between God and man.
The spirit is saved by simple faith, resulting in spiritual rebirth. The soul then is saved through a process of renewal and conformity to the word of God, which enables the inner man to distinguish between soul and spirit, as it is written:
"For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart."
Hebrews 4:12 NASB
Last of all, the body is saved in the resurrection of the righteous........
"For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ;
who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself. "
Philippians 3:20-21NASB
Body clearly exists.
Soul does not exist, unless it is a metaphor for one's personality.
Spirit, used in a particular context, can be taken to mean "joviality" or "Happiness", i.e. "Timmy showed a lot of spirit today".
Body is real,the soul and spirit are not
Body - the part we can see, feel
Soul - supposed to be our mind, thoughts
Spirit - breath, life