WHAT IS OUR SOUL MASS?OUR SOUL

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1 WHAT IS OUR SOUL MASS?OUR SOUL When I became a pastor, I was grateful for the training I had received in the Bible, the authoritative text for the Christian life. And I appreciated the careful instruction in theology, right thinking about the Christian life. But it wasn t long before I realized that my professors had left me pretty much on my own when it came to matters of the soul, caring for the unique and eternal souls that were entrusted to me. Thomas R. Ashbrook Mansions of the Heart: Exploring the Seven Stages of Spiritual Growth Behold, all souls are mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is mine: the soul who sins shall die. Ezekiel 18:4 ESV For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? Matthew 16:26 ESV Somewhere in the new wineskin is a spiritual element to our being that is, no doubt, broken and wounded. It is the pure, tender, innocent, gentle and unprotected soul. Because of our self-centered nature, we ve not only assaulted but we ve exposed it to unspeakable sights and experiences of corruption through the lusts of our flesh and the self-centered connivings of our human spirit. In that wounded and traumatized state, our soul dramatically influences our thoughts and emotions and ultimately our behaviors. What have we done with and to this unique soul whom God has known before the beginning of time? What is the soul? What does it do? These are age-old questions. FIVE THINGS TO REMEMBER ABOUT THE SOUL OUR SOUL IS 1. Immortal, yet not a being This mysterious spiritual entity is from God and will return to God. (Eph 1:4-6 ) Whether the soul is eternal or immortal is irrelevant. Our soul belongs to God. It came from God and it is His deepest desire that it will return to him. That s all we need to know. Our soul is what makes us human and yet eternal. Our soul contains the essence and goodness of God.

2 2. Pure and innocent The content of the soul is unchanging. The soul is complete. The nature of our soul is the nature of God. Nothing comes from God that is not pure. Nothing can exist with God that is not pure. That is the nature of God. With that reasoning, we can then assume our soul is the repository of the goodness of God reflected in and through love. Our soul needs to be loved (eros) from the flesh. Our soul needs the community love (philos) from the human spirit. Our soul is the container of the love (agape) from the heavenly father. Upon death, Lord God Almighty allows our souls to re-enter into his presence. That is why the soul is separate from the human spirit. The human spirit s nature is selfishness and is the resident origin of sin. Anything that is not pure, not righteous, will be destroyed in the radiating presence of Righteousness. Our souls need a redeemer. If purity is the soul s state of being, then innocent is its status of behavior. The soul is incapable of guile, scheming or conniving. There is no selfishness or selfcenteredness the root of all sin in the soul. The soul is naïve, in the best sense of the word. But what happens when the soul is unprotected and naive? It is vulnerable. Can the soul become corrupted? We can only speculate but seems unlikely. It s safe to assume the soul, as the essence of God, is incorruptible in its nature but capable of being deeply wounded in its spiritual substance. In that wounded state the voice or influence of the soul shrinks, allowing the shrill clanging voice of an undisciplined human spirit to dominate. Perhaps the soul can simply be starved, pierced, beaten and bruised by all things un-godly to the point its voice becomes a faint whisper. 3. Under attack The immortal, pure and innocent soul is also under attack. It is like a child pushed into the street where a battle rages between two gangs. Each side tries to prove its power or to scare the other side by besting itself in its depths of evil doings and depravity. The soul becomes an innocent victim in the crossfire. In the temporal and spiritual worlds our souls experience attacks from the dark spiritual world (Ephesians 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.) as well as self-inflicted wounds from our own human spirit. Because of that battle, our souls become wounded, shrunken, tired, downcast, anguished, grieved, in despair and starved. The soul is defenseless. While possessing the nature of God, the soul does not have the power of God to do spiritual warfare. The soul needs a protector. Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. (1 Peter 2:11) 1 The flesh is the instrument of many sins, yet it is the will of the human spirit that is the gatekeeper. Actions of sin are expressed through the flesh. Attitudes of sin reside in the human spirit. Our mind and our heart are capable of corruption. I Thessalonians 5:23 May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 2:8.[speaking of Lot]...for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard

3 The Enemy s game plan is to prevent God s precious souls from returning to him through the free will choice of the human spirit. He does this through the egging on of temptation for which he will be the first to mock and accuse. The Enemy lies to us about who we are and who we aren t. The battle in the heavens isn t between God and Satan, it is over who we, in our free will, will ultimately chose to serve. To that end, Jesus asks a most provocative question as recorded in Matt. 16: For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? (ESV) While it is God s deepest desire that our soul return to him, eternal punishment is possible. Without the human spirit accepting the saving Grace of Christ, the soul in its unredeemed state cannot return back to the Father. That is the anguished cry of the innocent soul that will never be reunited with its Heavenly Father. The soul can only return in a pure and redeemed state only made possible through the sacrifice of Jesus and the choice of the will of our human spirit. In Luke s Gospel Jesus asks the question from a different angle yet coming to the same end. Then he told them what they could expect for themselves: Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You re not in the driver s seat I am. Don t run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I ll show you how. Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to finding yourself, your true self. What good would it do to get everything you want and lose you, the real you? Luke 9:23-26, The Message). Obviously, the soul needs a protector to get it home to the Father. 4. Needs a protector (keeper) If the immortal, pure, innocent and defenseless soul is under attack, then it needs a protector to be healthy. Yet even more fundamentally the soul needs a protector to assure it s safe return to the Father from whom it was sent. Why can t the soul protect itself, you ask? Think about it. In defense from attack, we must be prepared to do violence. We must be ready to even kill, if protection is to be. What part of God as seen through the bloodstained lens of Christ has aggressive violence attached to it? If the soul were capable of self-defense then it would not be the soul. The soul is innocent and cannot/will not protect itself. Yet the experience of living gives rise to an assault on the soul from within and without. It is relentless. Our souls need a protector. Yet the most disturbing part of the assault is the self-initiated, self-debasing and self-destructive behavior originating from our human spirits. Paul directed us in Ephesians to put on the whole armor of God. To protect what? Our soul, of course. That protects from assaults from the outside. Yet, who is to protect the soul from the inside? It was God s intention that the self-center of our existence, our human spirit, is to be the protector of our soul. However, that can only happen when the Holy Spirit of Christ brings power and the will of our human spirit willingly bows before the Power of the Most High (Luke 1:35 ). Our human spirit, under the command of the Lord of Host s Spirit provides protection so our soul can restore.

4 5. Renewed and restored through confession and repentance of sin With the in-dwelling presence of the Holy Spirit upon salvation, the human creature becomes energized. The Holy Spirit s work focuses on disciplining the human spirit to become its subordinated cooperative agent. This means to protect the soul and exercise the executive function of thought and behavior. All the soul needs is to be protected so it may become healthy and vibrant again. Imagine the human spirit as the trumpeter in an ancient army signaling to the troops the battle plans of the commanding officer. It is through the confession and repentance of sin that our wineskin becomes cleansed of all unrighteousness. As we focus on the soul qualities and exercise our spiritual disciplines, our soul renews and strengthens to withstand the assaults from without and within. The Soul is Like a Golden Retriever. If the human spirit is like a self-focused, self-satisfying cat, what could be the personification example of the soul? It could only be a golden retriever dog. The golden retriever is gentle and lives to serve its master. You could abuse a goldie (but who would want to!) and it would still be there for you, never questioning the motives of its master. The golden retriever is calm, intelligent and with an exceptional eagerness to please. That gentle nature makes it a great service dog for the blind and deaf as well as in search and rescue. Interesting analogies to the soul. While the soul is far more complex than an analogy, the example serves, perhaps, as a good frame of reference. What is the Essence of the Soul? What is the soul like? scripture tells how the soul can feel, but what is it like? 1 Corinthians, chapter 13 is the perfect description. This is the love chapter of Paul s letters. While we often quote this chapter as the description of love, we often miss the fact that it is describing the residence of love as well. How? Paul is speaking about the agape kind of love that has its origins in the Father, expressed through his Son and made alive in us through the Holy Spirit. If the soul is eternal it comes from God and will return to him. We know from 1 John 4:8 that God is love. Here s the simple logic. If love is God s nature and the soul possesses the essence and nature of God, then the very nature and substance of the soul is the full essence of the love of and from God. That being the case, listen to Paul s description, If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have (God s) love (in my soul), I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love (in my soul), I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love (in my soul), I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. Corinthians 13:1-8 (parenthetical words added)

5 The Immaterial Wineskin Soul Default Operating System Primary Spiritual Relationship Reason for being Dominant Motivation Knowing God Time orientation (frame of reference) Is (I Am), to glorify the Father. Relates to God, the Father (Lord, God Almighty ruling over all) God-awareness (Glorify God) Covenant center Contentment In the will of God Faith/Trust Present & Future Desiring for reunification Default Operating System of the Soul Glorify the Father Mary, on hearing she would birth the son of the God Most High declared, My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, Ever wonder, what is the purpose of our soul? It is to bring glory to God. It is our soul who teaches the human spirit to worship, to bow down, to die to itself. Yet without a Savior whose Spirit inhabits the spiritual dwelling of the anthropinos this human creation of God the voice of the soul is muted. The heart-cry of the soul is to proclaim, Abba, Father. Abba, Father, he said, everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will. ; The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, Abba, Father. Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, Abba, Father. (Mark 14:36; Romans 8:15, Galatians 4:6) Primary Spiritual Relationship of the Soul the Father The soul belongs to the Father. God knew our souls before the earth was formed. The soul is from the Father and shall return. While the persons of the Son and the Holy Spirit play inseparable roles in the soul as well, the soul is precious beyond description to the Father. Reason for being of the Soul God awareness The soul s exclusive role is bring the love of the Father to the earth. Because the soul is eternal, pure and innocent, it is an exact representation of the essence and character of the Father. Dominant Motivation Contentment The flesh and spirit of man is restless, worried, hurried, frightened, hungry, possessive, seeking control of the world he touches and seeking gratification to compensate for the restless striving of survival and control. On the other hand, the soul of man seeks contentment, being at peace in whatever circumstance it finds itself. That contentment is grounded in an unconditional trust flowing out of an unconditional love. The soul desires to be at peace and to rest in that Place of Shalom. Knowing God Faith/Trust The soul demands no proof of the Father s goodness, the

6 Son s love or the Spirit s power. The soul, being of the essence of God himself knows God by unconditionally trusting in his goodness, love and power. That trust is built on the faith of the unknowing. The soul knows God because it is of him and from him. Like a longmarried couple, the soul knows God without explanation. Perhaps this is why the soul is so quiet. Until it comes under the dominion of the Holy Spirit, the human spirit easily talks over the gentle voice of the soul. Time orientation (frame of reference) of the Soul Timeless and the Future The soul s sense of time is timeless. The soul lives in the interface between the past and the future yet looking to a day and a time when it will be reunited with the Father. The soul does not age since it is eternal. The soul harbors no memories of the past other than the eternal memory of being with the Father before time began. The soul harbors no plans for the future other than anticipating the reunion with the loving Father once again.