The Nature of Man
Man is unique among all created things. He has a personal spirit which requires him to live in two realms, the natural and spiritual. The natural world is what he sees and the spiritual world is what he senses with his spirit. To be fully human according to God's design for man, we must be healthy and functioning in both worlds. This concept is very well explained in the book by Harold Eberle, "Spiritual Realities, Vol.1."
My purpose in this article is to show that thought and emotion are the only parts of us that exist in both worlds, natural and spiritual. Wholeness in this part of our being will always require healing in both the natural and spiritual aspects of thought and emotion. One cannot come to complete emotional wholeness if treatment is directed at only the natural or spiritual aspect of man. God wants to bring us to freedom in both realms.
From my observation, there are three parts to man: body, soul and spirit.
Emotionally Free
Have your own Christian guide to emotional health!
Have your own Christian guide to emotional health!
The body is our physical nature, the part of us that relates to the natural or "seen" world. As a result of the Fall of man, it is temporary, imperfect and subject to malfunction, degeneration and disease. It is the temporary container which our spirit briefly inhabits while on earth.
Our spirit is the eternal part of man. This is the true inner, unseen self which God places in us at conception. It is the part of us that relates to the unseen spirit world which includes both God and Satan.
Our soul, in my observation, is our personality which includes our mind, will and emotions. It is the part of us that relates to other humans. It is shaped by all of our accumulated life experiences. I like to think of it as being attached to a huge bag or drag net into which all our life events go. These experiences both good and bad, shape our personalities and determine how we relate to others.
Before salvation, we are outside God's kingdom and in the domain of Satan. There he molds us into his image by wounding us in as many ways as possible. These accumulated wounds leave deep scars in our personalities which cause lifelong emotional bondage. The longer we live in Satan's kingdom, the greater will be our accumulated wounds and personality damage.
When we become Christians, our spirit immediately transfers ownership to God as we enter His kingdom. From this point on, we begin to have a relationship with God as He fills our spirit with His own. The Holy Spirit then begins the process of transforming us into God's image. When we enter God's kingdom our body doesn't usually change much. I do know of some who have been miraculously healed of a chronic illness at the moment of salvation but most people notice no physical change. If we wore glasses before salvation, we usually wear them afterwards. Once in the Kingdom however, we are given the privilege of praying for divine healing. The body is still subject to the consequences of the Fall, which means it is still subject to disease and malfunction. The eventual transformation of our physical bodies will take place in Heaven. Until then, we have to cope with somewhat unreliable physical containers for our eternal spirits.
Next month we will look at the problem we have with our personalities.
This article is excerpted from "Emotionally Free" by Dr. Grant Mullen
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