1 The Nature Of Man In The Image Of God Series

Genesis 1:26-27

Then God said, “Let Us make mankind in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the livestock and over all the earth, and over every crawling thing that crawls on the earth.” 27 So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

The nature of the triune God is represented in three distinct persons in the Godhead:

Father (Spirit)

Son (Incarnated with Body,Soul,Spirit)

Holy Spirit (Spirit)

Man has a nature that is in the image of the second person of the trinity.

The nature of man(body, soul, spirit) can be understood better by the faculties of communication that are bestowed on each.

Nature Faculties Communicates with:

Body sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell environment

Soul intellect(mind), will, emotions other men

Spirit faith, hope, love God

The body is that part of man that communicates with its environment thru the faculties of sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell.

The soul is that part of man that communicates with other men thru the faculties of intellect, will and emotions.

The spirit is that part of man that communicates with God thru the faculties of faith, hope and love.

See “The Nature of Man” addendum below for examples of all three via their communication faculties.

Influence on fallen man vs redeemed man

Every aspect of fallen man has sinful imperatives: the body, soul, and spirit.

The disease of the fall of man is SIN.

The symptoms of the disease are manifested in the body, soul, and spirit: Hindrances

The antidote to cure/destroy each of the symptoms is the fruit of the Spirit: Aids

Until each aspect of man's nature is conformed to the image of Christ, we are not yet “mature” in this age. Further, the body will never be mature(perfect) in this age until the resurrection! So that leaves the soul and the spirit of man to be “perfect(matured)” into the image of Christ in this age to the extent His grace empowers us. However even the body plays a role in our earthly perfecting by its influence on the soul and the spirit.

In this series we will look at the specific symptoms of the disease of sin in the body,soul,and spirit. Then we will look at the antidote (the aid) of the fruit of the Spirit in destroying/curing the symptoms in the body,soul, and spirit.

End Study #1

Addendum: The Nature(s) of Man

Man is composed of three aspects in the image of God: body, soul, and spirit.

It is easy enough to recognize and define what constitutes the body but it becomes more difficult to distinguish and recognize the soul and spirit of man.

The Hebrew and Greek terms for soul and spirit offer some insights:

Soul: lebab –the inner man understanding, thinking, passions, emotions

Spirit : nephesh –the breath of life, the living being

However rather than trying to define and understand the three-part nature of man directly, there is another way of understanding these.

Think of the three aspects of man by virtue of how each communicates.

BODY

The body is that part of man that communicates with his environment through the faculties of sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste.

SOUL

The soul is that part of man which communicates to men through the faculties of intellect, will, and emotions.

SPIRIT

The spirit is that part of man that communicates with God through the faculties of faith, hope, and love.

Let’s consider each of these.

BODY FACULTIES

Without the five senses of the body there would be no interaction with the outside world at all.

The environment would be unable to communicate with my body through touch, taste, hearing, seeing, or smell. My body would have no experience of any physical world. It would be analogous to the movie where a disembodied brain sits in a jar unable to perceive anything. Conversely my body would also be unable to communicate with the environment. In effect, the physical world would not be aware of my physical body without those sensory interactions: I wouldn’t be touching it, or seeing it, or hearing it, or smelling it, or tasting it.

SOUL FACULTIES

Every communication we share with another person is in essence, an impartation of our intellect, will or emotions. Let’s examine each faculty.

>Intellect (knowledge and understanding)

“2+2 is equal to four.”

“It is raining outside so I would get wet if I go out now.”

Every communication that uses the faculty of intellect contains knowledge (facts) and/or understanding that resides in a person.

>Will (decision)

The will of man is communicated through directives that are to be obeyed.

“Go over to the table and bring me the glass of water.”