Are you a body with a soul, or a soul with a body?
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Something to chew on
And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Thessalonians 5:23
Scripture tells us that we are body, soul, and spirit; and that the body is composed of flesh, blood, and bone; then it stands to reason that our souls and our spirits are also made of three components. I suspect that those components for the soul is emotion, mind, and violition, the source of the intent of our hearts. The spirit is composed of conscience, intution, and the Holy Spirit in those who have been born again. Scripture purifies our conscience to perceive sin as the Lord does, little by little; and conviction increases as the Lord puts his commandments into our hearts and minds, fulfiling the promise of the New Covenant, which is what makes us able to keep the New Covenant where Israel couldn't keep the Old Covenant. Our intution or the spirit of revelation is what makes us more and more sensitive to the Lord's still small voice in those who devote themselves to prayer.
Gen 2: 23:
And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.
Lev 7: 14:
For it is the life of all flesh; the blood of it is for the life thereof: therefore I said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall eat the blood of no manner of flesh: for the life of all flesh is the blood thereof: whosoever eateth it shall be cut off.
Heb 4: 12:
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Phil 4: 16-17:
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Heb 9: 14:
How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
1 Jn 3: 24:
And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.
I would use words like revelation for intution...
Eph 1: 17:
That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
Gen 2: 23:
And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.
Lev 7: 14:
For it is the life of all flesh; the blood of it is for the life thereof: therefore I said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall eat the blood of no manner of flesh: for the life of all flesh is the blood thereof: whosoever eateth it shall be cut off.
Heb 4: 12:
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Phil 4: 16-17:
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Heb 9: 14:
How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
1 Jn 3: 24:
And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.
I would use words like revelation for intution...
Eph 1: 17:
That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
When the Lord opens up our eyes to a new truth it's nothing but thanksgiving and prayers. . And the Truth of this one , when I put it into effect, brought about...many more new Truths, one being the acceptance that nothing from this natural realm goes into the spiritual one, whether we have followed and are being brought back with Him or are of the dead that will resurrect or one of the alive and remaining who are changed, the only thing is our works.
Bringing a whole new meaning to the importance of being baptized, exceptions noted of course
Rev 14:13 And I heard a voice out of heaven saying , Write Blessed are the dead in the Lord dying from now on. Yes says the Spirit so that they will rest from the labors of them; for the works of them follow with them
Hello The Parson. Interesting moniker. I had to go look it up. Just testing the waters here. Which statement would you agree with?
Those who pierced Him, died long ago, unsaved, still spiritually dead, and in their sins their flesh and blood bodies going back to dust...
they remain in the flesh and blood body as it decays aware of everything
they remain in the flesh and blood body aware of nothing
they have left the flesh and blood body and are bodyless and aware of everything
they have left the flesh and blood body and are bodyless and aware of nothing
they have left their flesh and blood body and are in their spiritual body and aware of everything
they have left their flesh and blood body and are in their spiritual body and aware of nothing
or is there another state of being as one of the dead?
that right there tells you your personhood is in your nonphysical component, not your physical body.
Do you mean “If the spirit of God is in them then why aren’t they changed?”
I mean why aren't they partakers of the divine nature having the Spirit of God in them? When someone gets saved, don't they become indwelt with the Holy Spirit? Isn't this what makes someone a partaker of the divine nature described in 2 Peter 1:4?
Aw come on now. The flesh fights against the soul. That's well known...
Romans 7:18-23 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
Galatians 5:16-17 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. (Spirit capitalized is the Holy Spirit)
1 Peter 2:11 Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul.
Romans 8:5-7 For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. (again, Spirit capitalized is the Holy Spirit)
1 Thessalonians 5:23-24~ May the God of peace Himself sanctify you wholly; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He Who calls you is faithful, and He will do it.
How about what the scriptures say about it?
Being Absent from the Body as a Christian
2 Corinthians 5:8 We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord."
This verse reflects the Apostle Paul's assurance that we die, believers in Christ are immediately in the presence of the Lord. For Christians, death is not an end but a transition from the temporary physical body to eternal life with God. That their soul will be united with Christ in a place free from suffering and filled with Gods love and peace. Don't you Love that Peace part of it?
The Lost Open Their Eyes in Torments
Luke 16:22-24 And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.
Unlike believers, those who die without salvation face eternal separation from God, experiencing agony and regret. This reinforces the reality of eternal consequences and the importance of repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Do you see the contrast between these two destinations? It's really dark and profound. For Christians, death is a sweet transition to eternal life with God, free from pain and suffering. For the lost, it stepping right into eternal torment, a state of separation from God.
I chose it years ago because of the titles connection to the old Anabaptist preacher/pastor... My old website is parsonscorner.org...
Perhaps you should take on defining "destroyed" and its meaning in the language and culture in which it was written not with the Western modern lens.
The term you're likely referring to is annihilationism. It’s a belief that says that souls who aren't saved won't suffer eternal torment in hell and consequentially the lake of fire, but will ultimately be destroyed or simply cease to exist entirely.
They often cite scriptures like Matthew 10:28 ("fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell") and Romans 6:23 ("the wages of sin is death") to support their position.
I defiantly don't believe that. I can't for the sake of what the scriptures say.
- Matthew 25:46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.
- Mark 9:43-48 And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire: Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
- Revelation 14:10-11 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.
- Revelation 20:10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
- Luke 16:23-24 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.
- Daniel 12:2 And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
- Ecclesiastes 3:11 He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end.
In the beginning, we see the Father breathe the spirit into the clay. The clay became a living soul. So, the spirit of God made man a living being, with God’s spirit in him he could be called “..Adam, the son of God“ because he possessed the attribute of his Father; His spirit. From his own point of view, Adam was a spirit clothed in flesh. That is why he could be naked and not ashamed: what was actually important was covered by flesh.
When Adam sinned, he first reasoned for the benefit of his flesh, not his spirit. The fruit was good food, pleasing to look at, and could make him wise. This is the same trap John warned about (the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life). When the needs of the soul are elevated about the spirit, a condition called darkness overtakes the man. Why darkness? Because the default setting of every man is “light”, not neutrality, because of the spirit of God in them. It’s the same reason all men begin their lives in a condition called “lost”: their lives originated with God but they are not reconciled (brought back to their original position) to Him unless they receive the Son. “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself…”
Later, and to reconcile man to God, we see the Son breathe on His disciples with the instruction to receive the Holy Spirit. This was important because man was not a lump of clay but a living being in a world controlled by the evil one. God’s nature (spirit) creates life, the Holy Spirit redeems life from darkness. It’s effectively a different administration of the same Spirit. Just like the Spirit may create animals and the Spirit may create the heavenlies (as we saw in Genesis). So, empowerment against the schemes of the enemy is necessary because these schemes have created tradition for thousands of years founded on darkness: preserving the soul and the flesh above all else.
In summary: all men have the spirit of God in them. We only partake of His divine nature by coming out of darkness and receiving the One sent to redeem us from the world. Only by Him do we receive the Holy Spirit and move out of our state of condemnation and darkness.
Annihilated. No longer existing.
We cannot read “forever” and insert perpetuity. It often means “until the end of the age” or “to completeness”.
When God is all in all there is no more darkness, demons, or evil.