Reflections On The Spirit And Soul
Thoughts By R. L. DeWitt, 1/02; rev.9/09
"God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them" - Gen.1:27; "The Lord formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul" - Gen.2:7.
Endeavoring to gain some understanding of man as a triune being---"spirit and soul and body" (1 Thess.5:23), one must first consider the creation. We see that God formed a body to encase or encapsulate the spirit and soul to be visible, and function in this physical world; and we see that God "created man in His own image". One would suppose that the "image of God" speaks of the spirit and soul of man, rather than body, for the Father is not in a body ---only the Son of God.
Man which, like the angelic beings, is an eternal spirit with God-consciousness; and he is created with abilities, thoughts, and gifts or talents ---cognition (mind). As a soul man has been given self-awareness, will, desires, and passions --the emotions (heart). One might be grieved in his soul over a matter and that is passion; and he might be troubled or confused in spirit, which are thoughts. These two attributes are distinct, but not separate. Both will together go into eternity (supernaturally - the spiritual world) ---either to heaven or hell. In heaven we will have a new "glorious body" suited for that scene (Phil.3:21). God speaks of soul and spirit separately at times, and it seems that He wants us to understand that one will experience heaven or hell in both the aspects of the soul and the spirit.
Man was created in God's image as having some attributes and some capacity like God in lesser degrees. Angels were not thus made. Man is now born in sin as the result of the fall at Eden, but when reconciled to God by the new spiritual birth, he becomes a "child of God" forever ---inferior, but akin.
In the epistle to the Hebrew believers ---chapter four and verse twelve and thirteen, we note that the Word of God is living and able to divide the soul and spirit of man. This shows the distinction between thinking about God and trusting God, it appears, and the Lord as the living Word discerns and deals with man in both of these aspects.
The living Word divides man in all his aspects, even the joints and marrow (bones and flesh). God is also seen separating man from the body ---the temporal and earthly from the spiritual and eternal.
In contrast with man, it appears animals exist without a spirit or soul, but an energy of life. Certainly it is not said that they became a "living soul" as with man. Some have described animals as having a lower form of a soul than man, and not with a spirit; however, God does not say that. We can see He made animals with instincts and qualities of biological drives or energy as hunger, sleep, fear, pleasure, memories, etc .---and quite different than the concept of spirit and soul. God only speaks of animals as dying (see Eccl.3:21), so we might do better to leave it there.
One would not want to speculate afar, but these few thoughts seem quite reasonable. Much more might be said at another time.
