THE SPIRIT AND THE SOUL

"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" (Heb 4:12).

Devotion 3 of 15

DEFINING THE TERMS

The extensive nature of salvation is found in Paul's prayer for the Thessalonians. He did not limit himself to the external part of them--the body. Neither, indeed, did he concern himself only with the emotional and rational makeup of believers--the soul. Here are his words. "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" (1 Thess 5:23, NASB). The sequence in which these parts are mentioned is important. A heavenly priority is seen in their order. First spirit, then soul, then body. While the body is at the most exterior part of our persons, our spirit is the most internal part of us. There is where the light must shine the brightest! There is where the most effective growth is to found.

In this aspect of our study, we will focus on the terms "spirit" and "soul." They are not synonymous words, i.e., terms meaning the same thing. While the ultimate definition of these words cannot be found in the area of linguistics, some small amount of profit may be realized by viewing them in that manner. This language is stated in a technical manner.

Etymology of the words

SOUL: (Hebrew) ruwach, roo'-akh; wind; by resemblance breath, i.e. a sensible (or even violent) exhalation; figuratively life, anger, unsubstantiality; by extension a region of the sky; by resemblance spirit, but only of a rational being (includes its expression and functions):--air, anger, blast, breath, cool, courage, mind, quarter, side, spiritual), tempest, vain, ([whirl-]) wind (-y) (Strong).
(Greek) pneuma, pnyoo'-mah; a current of air, i.e. breath (blast) or a breeze; by analogy. or figure. a spirit, i.e. (human) the rational soul, (by implication) vital principle, mental disposition, etc., or (superhuman) an angel, demon, or (divine) God, Christ's spirit, the Holy Spirit:--ghost, life, spiritual), mind (Strong).

SPIRIT: (Hebrew) nephesh, neh'-fesh; a breathing creature, i.e. animal or (abstract) vitality; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative. sense (bodily or mental):--any, appetite, beast, body, breath, creature, dead (-ly), desire, X [dis-] contented, X fish, ghost, + greedy, he, heart (-y), (hath, X jeopardy of) life (X in jeopardy), lust, man, me, mind, mortality, one, own, person, pleasure, (her-, him-, my-, thy-) self, them (your) -selves, + slay, soul, + tablet, they, thing, (X she) will, X would have it (Strong).
(Greek) psuche, psoo-khay';breath, i.e. (by implication.) spirit, abstract. or concrete (the animal sentient principle only; thus distinguished on the one hand from that which is the rational and immortal soul; and on the other from what is mere vitality, even of plants (Strong).

It should at once be obvious that these words cannot be discerned lexically. As with all key words of Scripture, the Spirit expounds them through doctrine, or teaching. That will be my approach to the subject.

Speaking technically, our "soul" is more related to the brute creation. Some have referred to it as "animal life." This is not meant to demean man, but to show he has a part that is inferior, and that he must manage. Care must be taken not to give superior importance to this part of our being.

The general use of "soul"

This word ("soul") is also used to identify the unseen part of man, as distinguished from the part that is seen; i.e., "And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matt 10:28). "For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Mark 8:36-37).

Often it is used in a general sense to denote individuals; i.e., "Eight souls were saved by water" (1 Pet 3:20), "all the souls that came with Jacob into Egypt" (Gen 46:26), etc. In this study, we will focus on the way the word is used in 1 Thessalonians 5:23 and Hebrews 4:12.

The higher part

The "spirit" is the more Divine aspect of our nature--the part in the image of God. This is the part of us capable of apprehending the Lord, comprehending His truth, and aspiring to holiness. Here is where communion with God is experienced. Our spirit is related to God and the holy angels, being of a higher order. It is related to God by origin, and to the angels in perceptive and expressive capabilities. This is the segment of our nature that enjoys fellowship with the Son (1 Cor 1:9), and is brought into concourse with an "innumerable company of angels" (Heb 12:22). God, in this sense, is the "Father of spirits" (Heb 12:9). That is the part of us that bears the Divine image.

Man's "spirit" is more related to "understanding" than feeling, and to perception than emotion. In the spiritually primitive times of Job, Elihu correctly observed, "But there is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding" (Job 32:8). Referring to the same distinction, Paul wrote, "For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him?" (1 Cor 2:11). In this part of man, we find the divine image.

PRAYER POINT: Father, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I ask for wisdom and strength to give my greatest attention to the most significant part of my person.

-- TOMORROW: THE MINISTRY OF THE WORD --