What Is The Soul? Church. Living

Transcription

1 What Is The Soul? And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. Living Church

2 What Is The Soul? This series of lessons has been designed for private study or classroom presentation. The purpose of this foreword is to explain certain conventions utilized throughout the program. The overall concept is to begin with the basic concepts necessary for the new convert to understand and progress toward more complex doctrine. The lessons are numbered in order to maintain the proper sequence of study. When Scripture references are encountered in the text, various actions are recommended. When in parenthetical bold (Genesis 1:1) the verse is to be looked up and read right away. Frequently, the next textual statement will comment on that verse. Reading verse and text in proper order will enhance one s understanding of the verse. Direct quotes from Scripture will be bold italicized and contained in quotation marks and, unless otherwise noted, will be from the King James Bible. When the reference is in parenthetical non-bold (Genesis 1:1) it is to provide the Scriptural basis for the statement if confirmation is desired. References in blue Genesis 1:1 will be listed in the lesson section entitled FURTHER STUDY. FURTHER STUDY is the homework section. Its purpose is to encourage Bible study at home. The referenced verses have a short summation to assist the student desiring more knowledge about a subject to find what they are looking for. The DISCUSSION QUESTIONS section is primarily for classroom use. Open discussion with the exchange of ideas produces growth for all involved. Most of the time the answer is contained in the referenced Scripture but sometimes the question is offered for open discussion. Even in private Bible study, analysis of the question and the search for its answer can be rewarding. This work is offered to anyone with a desire to better understand God s Word. It is our hope and prayer that the person studying these lessons will come away with a better understanding of God s will and a closer walk with our Lord, Jesus Christ. With Loving Concern for all those seeking God s Message The Church of God Rocky Mount Rocky Mount, Virginia 16

3 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. In today s modern religious circles the word soul is descriptive of a third component of man in addition to his body and spirit. This soul is supposed to be immortal and will live forever, either in Heaven or Hell, depending on the spiritual condition of the individual at the time of their death. In the Old Testament the word soul is translated from the Hebrew word nephesh. Before referring to Adam the word is used twice in allusion to lower forms of animals, whales and fish (Genesis 1:21), and cattle and creeping things (Genesis 1:24). It is translated creature which indicates a created entity. Adam was created. So were the whales, the fish, all cattle, and all of the creeping things. All were described as nephesh, that is, living creatures. It would have been more accurate to render the Key Verse as and man became a living creature but the Catholic King James had an agenda to promote the idea that man has an immortal soul. According to what you have just learned, if man has an immortal soul, so do the animals. Animals do not live forever and this will be demonstrated later in this lesson. 2

4 What Is The Soul? A close study of the Key Verse forms a picture in one s mind of God standing over the prone body of Adam, not yet living. Bringing His face close to Adam s, God breathes into his nostrils and Adam stirs, shakes his head, blinks, and taking a deep breath, stands up on his feet, gazing about in amazement at the beauty of the Earth around him. Before receiving the breath of life, Adam was dead. No remark is made of any other component in the creation of Adam, only his body from the dust and the spirit of life from God. There is no mention of a third element. The combining of a physical body and the spirit of life results in a living creature, a nephesh. Every creature that has ever lived on this planet had a spirit and that spirit came directly from God, Who formed it within him (Zechariah 12:1). Biblical descriptions of soul and spirit come from Hebrew words analogous to air or breath. The Key Verse says God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life. Job, commenting on the spirit, relates it to breath in his nostrils (Job 27:3). Speaking of the spirit in man, Elihu alleges to inspiration, (Job 32:8) translated from the Hebrew neshamah (5397) meaning wind, breath or in- The Key Verse shows that Adam s spirit came from God, the source of all spirit. 3

5 What Is The Soul? tellect and in other Scripture is rendered soul or spirit (Isaiah 57:16; Job 26:4; Proverbs 20:27). When Nicodemus came to speak to Jesus, during the conversation Jesus explained to him what the spirit is and used the wind as an analogy (John 3:1-8). The spirit that is received from God at conception is the life-force that renders the physical body alive and the combination is a soul, a living creature. Take careful note that the spirit is received at conception! Dead cells cannot divide, so in order for the zygote to grow in the woman s womb, it must be alive. To be alive, it must have a spirit (James 2:26). Examples abound showing that the spirit is the life-force of the body. Jesus said that the spirit quickens (gives life) (John 6:63). He re4 ferred to His words as spirit and they give life. Resurrection is the returning of the spirit to the body (Luke 8:49-55). Death is the departing of the spirit from the body (Luke 23:46). The phrase gave up the ghost" is translated from the Greek word ekpneo (1606) meaning to expire or breathe out. Here is demonstrated the spirit as a lifeforce as well as the analogy of air or breath. Death is the result of the spirit leaving the body. Without the combination of body and spirit the soul that walked about and envisioned dreams and loved and laughed throughout life does not exist anymore. Consciousness is lost (Ecclesiastes 9:5). The memory of them is forgotten does not mean that the living will forget the de-

6 What Is The Soul? ceased. How many of us have lost loved ones and still remember them? Even King David, long dead, is still remembered. No, the phrase means that the memory of the deceased or, more plainly, his consciousness, is gone. Upon leaving the body, the spirit returns to God (Ecclesiastes 12:7). The dust returning to the earth is the body and the spirit returns to its original source. beast goes into the ground and is lost forever. Both man and beast being referred to by the same Hebrew word indicates that each shares a common makeup. It s the final destination of the spirit that is different, but this has no bearing on the immortality of the soul (spirit), either (Matthew 10:28). In this verse it would have been more accurate to render soul, which comes from the Greek psuche, as spirit. This would communicate the thought to today s disciple as Don t fear those who can kill the body but not the spirit but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both spirit and body in hellfire. No matter how much damage man can do to your body, he cannot touch your spirit. It came from God, it returns to God, it belongs to Him and combined with your body it makes you a soul. Recall that the statement was made that animals do not live forever. The spirit that gives life to animals is not immortal, nor is man s spirit. Both creatures are referred to as nephesh but each spirit, upon death, has a different destination (Ecclesiastes 3:21). The spirit of man returns to God and will be restored to a new body at the resurrection whereas the spirit of the 5

7 What Is The Soul? 1. When a person s spirit returns to God, is the person aware of what is going on? Psalm 88:10-12; Ecclesiastes 9:5 2. Do insects have spirits? If they do, are they souls? 3. If you don t think animals can possess a spirit, where did Jesus send Legion? Mark 5:13 FOR FURTHER STUDY: Job 33:4 God s breath gives life Psalm 6:5 There is no remembrance in death Ecclesiastes 8:8 No one can willfully retain the spirit in the day of death Ecclesiastes 9:10 No work, nor wisdom in the grave Isaiah 38:18 No praise from the grave Isaiah 42:5 The source of the spirit Acts 7:59 The spirit after death 1 Peter 3:18 Quickened (life given) by the Spirit Revelation 11:11 Resurrection is the return of the spirit 6

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