The Exchanged Life - Part IV
Read - I Thes. 5:23; Heb 4:12 (show #4)
Why is it important for us to understand?
1. The soul has been corrupted by our surroundings
2. The spirit has been insulated/isolated/set apart for the perfection of God.
3. We are the only created being (of God’s) that has these three parts;
we are unlike animals or vegetables
4. God created us to have fellowship with Him; we are made in His image we are the highest in His created order of beings
How does this three part being function?
1. Each portion affects one another. The soul affects the body and the spirit, etc., etc. We sense pain in/on the body and it will affect our ability to make decisions.
A stressed/troubled soul can easily cause ulcers, or heart ailments. Likewise, if you choose to sin against God your spirit and your body will suffer the consequences.
2. God had intended for our spirit to be one with Him, thereby sustaining the soul and perfecting the whole man.
"Thou will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee."
3. God has often referred to man as a temple of His Holy Spirit. Likewise, (in His temple of worship), He has an outer court, the inner court, and the Holy of Holies. This was where God dwelt.
4. Spirit we have God consciousness, in the soul we have self consciousness, and the body is dealing with our enviroment.
The soul deals with mind emotion and will. The mind deals more than our
thinking process, or logic/reasoning. We have emotions that control and remember our feelings. The will area is all most people have to operate with in making choices, good or bad. The will deals with our desires, thus, "my will verse God’s will..."
The will deals with the "thinker" and the "feeler". I may feel one way about something but think about doing something else. Example: we know better to do something wrong, but we can’t help but want what we know is wrong.
Read Romans 7:15 thru 25
Here is the struggle in the will. We become torn between the mind and the emotions. Our mind is "stayed on thee/Christ", but our emotions are being tempted by what we feel we want.
I know that some of people’s problems can be of a physical ailment. There can be other outside contributing factors to people’s problems.
Man is a SPIRIT, who has a SOUL, and lives in a BODY.
Pre-Salvation Person
The SPIRIT is dark and without God.
Read Ephesians 2:1 thru 3
Our basic problem at birth is we were born separated (without life) from God. "Dead in our trespasses and sins..."
Read Isaiah 59:2
Many of us were raised believing we were saved by what we believe. That is, did we believe the right doctrine. We were asked, "What do you believe?"
We need good healthy doctrine, but it isn’t doctrine that assures you of everlasting life.
Read Ephesians 1:7 and Romans 5:10
