The Trinity of Man
By Pastor John Hayhurst
... I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved
blameless... -1 Thessalonians 5:23
According to this scripture Paul perceived man to be a tri-part being:
spirit, soul and body.
As we delve deeper into this study we will learn that not only are there
three different aspects or facets of man which are combined to get what
we commonly refer to as mankind or human beings, but for the most part
we actually think of ourselves in terms contrary to the word of God.
Notice carefully how Paul describes the saints he is praying for.
He states that he prays that the Lord will keep their "whole spirit and
soul and body blameless".
In the eyes of the Lord this is the order of importance, 1.)spirit,
2.)soul, and 3.) body.
We are a spirit, we have a soul and we live in a body.
This is the appropriate description of man.
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness...So God
created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him.
-Genesis 1:26,27
Jesus said that God is a Spirit (John 4:24). If man is created in the
image of God then he must also be a spirit.
When the body of a man deteriorates and dies, the spirit or true man
lives on. The spirit of man doesn't die.
For which cause we faint not; but
though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.
-2 Corinthians4:16
The born again or regenerate spirit spends eternity in the presence of
God, while the unregenerate spirit spends eternity separated from God,
cast into outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of
teeth. -Matthew 8:12
2Co 5:17
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature:
old things are
passed away; behold, all things are become new.
In
this scripture Paul is once again refer to the spirit of
man.
When the Spirit of God quickens or gives life to the spirit of
man the true man is changed. Obviously it is not his body that has
changed and become new. If he was overweight when he received Christ he
will still be overweight. If he was bald he will still be bald so it
wasn't his body that became new.
Likewise it wasn't his soul that became new. The soul is the seat
of our intellect. Our thinking, our emotions and our will are all
functions of the soul. None of these things are changed completely when
we receive Christ.
The aspect or facet of man that is changed when we are born again
is our spirit. The inward man, the 'real us'.
The old sinful spirit is replaced with a spirit of life, God
life. Our spirit actually come into harmony with the Spirit of God, and
no longer are we are own, we have been bought with a price, the blood of
Christ has paid for our redemption and we have become one of His.
Halleluiah!
When we believe on Him for our salvation He Not only cleanses us
from sin, imputing His righteousness to us, but in the process He
actually takes up housekeeping in us, our spirit becomes one with His
and we become sons and daughters of the Most High. Praise God!
