Humanity: Soul and Spirit, Flesh and Bone

We enter a new chapter today on this series on doctrine.  We began the series talking about the Bible: how it is unique, and how it is the basis of our understanding about God and the things of God (and really everything).  Then, we spent a couple of weeks talking about God and what He is like.  Most recently, we have been talking about God’s creation including last week’s topic, the spiritual creatures God made: angels.  Both the audio and transcripts for those messages are posted on the church website.  Just go to clemsoncc.org and look for the “Message Archive” on the left side.  Click there, and you can find whichever message you are interested in.  If you have trouble, let us know, and we will help you get what you need.

This week, we are beginning a three-week chapter about another spiritual creature God made.  We are going to talk about us.  … Humanity … Humankind … Man.

I started thinking about humanity and whence man came.  As is usual, when I wax philosophical, my mind usually wanders not to deep and hidden things but rather to the simple, so I naturally ended up at the familiar nursery rhyme.

“What are little boys made of? Slugs [or snips] and snails and puppy-dog tails; that's what little boys are made of.  What are little girls made of?  Sugar and spice and everything nice; that's what little girls are made of.”


It turns out there is a compilation of verses which was published back in the early 1800’s.  The authors of all but a couple of stanzas are not known, but they were gathered together and given the title “What Folks Are Made Of.”

“Little babies are made of … diapers and crumbs and sucking their thumbs.
Young men are made of … sighs and leers and crocodile tears.  [Sorry young men!]
Young women are made of … rings and jings and other fine things.
Our sailors are made of … pitch and tar, pig-tail and scar.
Our soldiers are made of … pipeclay and drill, the foeman to kill.
Our nurses [nannies] are made of … bushes and thorns and old cow's horns.
Our fathers are made of … pipes and smoke and collars that choke
Our mothers are made of … ribbons and laces and sweet pretty faces.  
Old men are made of … slippers that flop and a bald-headed top.
Old women are made of … reels, and jeels, and old spinning wheels.
All folks are made of fighting a spot and loving a lot.  That's what all folks are made of.”

These things make us laugh, but if I asked you if this list were comprehensive list of what humanity is made of, what would you say? 

No, of course not. 

What if I asked you to tell me about someone in particular, where would you start?

Don’t we tend to think about people either in terms of what they do or what roles they have?  Sometimes we might think about someone according to something they have.  She’s the one that drives a certain kind of car or he has a boat or … whatever we’ve seen or enjoyed using.

What if I asked you to tell me about you … what would you say?  Where do you come from?  What are you like?  What is the most important aspect of your life?

The things we think of are true, no question.  But are they complete?  Is who we are a collection of our activities or responsibilities or job title or what country we were born in?  Isn’t there more to us than that?

Over the next half hour to forty five minutes, we’re going to look a little deeper.  Who are we?  Why are we here? How does that impact our thinking about how we should live?  Let’s pray and ask God to reveal these things to us in a convincing and strengthening way.

God, please help us to see why you made us.  Please help us to see ever more clearly who we are and why we are here.  Show us how these truths should impact how we live.  Lead us into all truth, I pray in Jesus’ Name.  Amen.

So, what are we made of?  Not slugs and snails and puppy dog tails … not sugar and spice and everything nice (sorry, ladies).

How were we made?  Well, you and I were born.  That’s kind of weird.  I mean, animals give birth, too.  So, we’re kind of like them.  We have physical bodies.  But our life is not our body alone.  Frankenstein is a spooky story, but it is just that, a story.  You can’t take the components that make up a living thing, sew them together and zap them with electricity and bring them to life.  Ecclesiastes 11:5 says this … 

As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things.  Ecclesiastes 11:5 

However, there is an alternate translation because the word used for wind can also be translated spirit.  So, the same verse could be written in this way … 

As you do not know how life (or the spirit) enters the body being formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things.  Ecclesiastes 11:5 

And that is true … we don’t really know how it works.  How does a living thing become a living thing?  This is a gulf which science cannot cross.  It has no answer for either question.  It cannot tell how a baby developing in the womb comes to have all the right parts in the right place at the right time.  It also does not know where the life that is in a baby comes from.  It cannot say how matter can go from non-living to being alive.

If we would ever think that abortion could be considered okay because there could be a time when a baby inside the womb is not a person, this verse should immediately stop us in our tracks.  We don’t know how life or the spirit of a person enters the baby’s body in the womb.  Therefore, we should respect a baby’s life from the moment of conception for the reason that we don’t know and we can’t know how this spirit-giving process works.

I don’t think we appreciate that as much as we should.  I guess I shouldn’t speak for you.  Maybe I should just stop with saying that I don’t think I appreciate that as much as I should.  Our lives are a gift.  God brings us together.  Psalm 139 says we are fearfully and wonderfully made, knit together by God in our mother’s womb.  The verse on your bulletin, Job 32:8, talks about the spirit in us which gives us understanding.  A few verses later in Job, it says … 

The Spirit of God has made me; the breath of the Almighty gives me life.  Job 33:4 

You are specially made.  Each one of you made uniquely by God.  Let that sink in for a second.

And so, just as Adam and Eve were formed by God, so were you.  What model did God use in creating us? 

When God created man, he made him in the likeness of God.  He created them male and female and blessed them. And when they were created, he called them “man.”  Genesis 5:1-2 

Let’s fly over what it means to be made in the likeness of God.  We can’t deep dive in the time we have.  But, I encourage you to dig deep as you hunger and thirst for understanding.  If you have specific questions, ask me or Fred or Carl afterward, or if you prefer anonymity write them on a welcome card and stick that in the box on the information table.

Because of the likeness of God, we are both like God and we represent God.  It is impossible to describe all the ways.  To know how we are like God, we need to know what God is like and that is a pretty big subject.  Genesis 5:3 says that Adam had a son in his own likeness, in his own image, and he named him Seth.  So, we are made in God’s image in the same way a child is an image of their parents.  A child is not the same as his parents, but the likeness in a family is usually quite powerful.  Saying that God made us in His image is a pretty big deal then, and every way that we are like God is a part of us being made in His likeness.  “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father …”  James 1:17

Here is a short list of some aspects we share with God. 

1.  There are moral likenesses.  We have an inner sense of right and wrong unlike the animals.  We are also accountable for God for our actions. 

2.  There are spiritual likenesses.  We have not only a physical body but also an immaterial spirit.  We have a spiritual life that allows us to relate to God.  In connection with this spiritual life we have immortality. 

3.  We have mental likenesses.  We can reason and think logically and learn in a different ways from animals.  Animals do things the same way they’ve done them for thousands of years.  Birds build the same nests, bee hives look the same, but humankind continues to develop skill and greater proficiency in nearly every field of endeavor (technology, agriculture, medicine, etc.)  We have a creative ability.  We have the ability to use complex and abstract language.  We have a different degree and complexity of emotions not found in the animal world.  

4.  We have relational likenesses.  Marriage and family relationships unlike anything among animals.  Our family relationships are beyond what angels experience, in a good way.  Angels do not marry or have kids of their own.  Man has authority over creation now and will be given greater authority after Jesus returns.

5.  We have physical likenesses.  Even though God does not have a physical body because He is Spirit, He has made us in His image in that our bodies have attributes in their makeup which give us abilities that God has.  God sees.  We have eyes so that we can see.  God hears.  We have ears so that we can hear.  God speaks.  We have mouths so that we can speak.  Through taste, touch, and smell we can understand and enjoy God’s creation.  Our bodies once perfected will be part of our eternal existence.  So, our bodies reflect something about God’s own character.  The ability to have children is another reflection of God’s ability to create in His own image.

And so, in these ways and many more, we are more like God than all the rest of creation.  It is amazing to think about it, but when God said, “I want to create something in My image, something more like Me than anything else I’ve made,” He made us.  There is deep dignity and honor in that reality.  Think about all the awesomeness of the stars, planets, and galaxies that Carl showed us a few weeks back.  Think of the beauty of the animal kingdom.  What about mountain peaks and oceans tide, sunrises and sunsets even the heavenly realm and angels themselves?  We are more like our Creator than any of those things.  We are the culmination of all His works.  (Numbered points above and portions of the text are taken from Grudem, Systematic Theology, p. 446-449.)

This likeness though it has been distorted by sin, it still continues after the Fall.  God made that clear when He told Noah after the flood that the death penalty was necessary.  Genesis 9:6 says “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made man.”  Therefore, our likeness though not the same as in the garden remains.  Killing another person is an attack on the part of creation which most resembles God.  It betrays an attempt or desire to attack God himself.  “Every single human being, no matter how much the image of God is marred by sin or illness or weakness or age or any other disability, still has the status of being in God’s image and therefore must be treated with the dignity and respect that is due to God’s image-bearer.”  --Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology, p. 450

Reading this, I had one of those mindbender moments.  Do you know what I’m talking about?  It’s where you suddenly have a moment of clarity where everything sort of gets turned inside out for minute.  I didn’t start boohooing or anything, but I think I put my head down in my hands because it was swimming.

Jesus tied the sin of anger in severity to the sin of murder in Matthew 5:21-22.  I have often thought of that primarily as an example of the holiness of God.  God is so perfect that my anger is not permissible in heaven.  As a result, I can and will be judged for my anger unless I have Jesus as my Savior.  Thinking about murder as an assault against God and man could be read across to my anger … if I am prone to anger (and I am), it is indicative of a rebellion against God. 

Nothing has changed, certainly not God’s Word.  All sin is rebellion against God and His perfect ways.  Please understand, not all anger is sin.  But the kind of petty annoyance and anger at imposition whether it be a failure on someone’s part to do what they’re supposed to do or the expectation to do something which isn’t our responsibility, this is wrong.  Then, lashing out at someone else when they commit a sin, that, too, is wrong.

If you asked me, “John, are you in rebellion against God?”   I would say, “No” or “No way!” or maybe even, “May it never be!”  But when I look at my track record for anger, I’m suddenly overcome.  I see a tendency to rebel against God every day.  I share this because I think it will help me, and so maybe it can help you, to realize that I cannot put up with my anger.  It should not be tolerated.  I need to be more faithful in confessing it as sin, apologizing and asking forgiveness when I let it erupt, and asking other people to pray for me (James 5:16).  I don’t want to be in rebellion against God in my anger or in any area.  May it never be!

Do you guys remember the song that we sing called “How Deep the Father’s Love for Us”?  The second verse begins with, “Behold the man upon a cross, my sin upon His shoulders; ashamed, I hear my mocking voice call out among the scoffers.  It was my sin that held Him there …”  I think about my mocking voice as something from my past, not something I still do today.  Have you ever thought about your own sin, today’s sin as nailing Jesus to the cross.  It wasn’t the nails that held Him there.  It was my sin.

What I am saying, in essence, is, “Jesus, stay right here while I tell this person how I really feel.  Jesus, I don’t have time to deal with this person in patience and love.  Jesus, I’m going to put a stop to this once and for all.”

Thank goodness, there is forgiveness in Christ.  And it is through Christ, that we can face the challenges of our days and flee from sin.  And through Christ, there is progressive recovering of God’s image in us as believers.  According to Colossians 3:10, we “have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.”  We “are being changed into His likeness from one degree of glory to another.”  (II Corinthians 3:18)  Ultimately, we will be “conformed to the image of His Son.” (Romans 8:29)  We will thankfully and relievedly (even though it’s got the red squiggly line under it, it’s a word … I looked it up … merriam-webster.com) be just like Jesus. 

And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man [Adam], so shall we bear the likeness of the Man from heaven [Jesus].  I Corinthians 15:49

… when He appears, we shall be like Him … I John 3:2 

When Jesus comes back, we will be just like Jesus who Himself is the image of the invisible God. (Colossians 1:15)

Hmmm … I need to shoehorn something important but complex in the message.  Let’s see if I can make it fit.

The title of today’s message begins “Soul and Spirit.”  If we don’t talk about that phrasing, I will have left out a significant part of the doctrine of man.  This is an area where a fair amount of teaching has been made and with it, I’m afraid, confusion can be a common outcome.

What is Scripture talking about when it uses the words “Soul” and “Spirit”?

Some would say that man has three parts: body, soul, and spirit.  Others argue that soul and spirit are really the same thing, so we have a spiritual/soul part and a physical body part.  And, I’ve even seen teachings that say that different parts of your spiritual “self” can go to heaven and other parts get left behind which is even more confusing.

Let’s start at the beginning.  Whatever man is, he starts as a unified physical-spiritual being.  God created man and breathed life (or spirit) into him.  We’ve already looked at the Ecclesiastes passage which talks about God placing the spirit into a child in the womb.  Whatever makes us alive is unified both in body and spirit.  And, in eternity, Scripture is clear that we will have perfected, resurrected physical bodies, too.  So we will be a unified being forever.  And so both our physical and spiritual aspects are important.  While we are on this earth, the sanctifying process, growth in maturity, takes place in both the physical and spiritual aspects of ourselves.  I Corinthians 7:34 says, “be devoted to the Lord in both body and spirit.”

Yet, it is also true that our corrupted fleshly bodies will die if Jesus doesn’t come back first.  There is a period of time where the spiritual part of us can exist without the bodily part.  Jesus talked to the thief on the cross who would be with Him that day in paradise.  (Luke 23:43) Also, Revelation talks about the souls of those who had been slain for the Word of God crying out to God.  (Revelation 6:9-10) Paul uses language of departing the body. (II Corinthians 5:8, Philippians 1:23-24) So there is some sense in which there can be separation.  But, we will ultimately be “raised imperishable” with new bodies.  (I Corinthians 15:42)  Body and spirit together, just as we see Jesus our forerunner had a resurrected body, so will we.  Hard as it may be to understand, there it is.  C.S. Lewis said it this way, our body and soul are an “organic unity,” or in other words, a fundamental unity.  As they are created together by God, they continue together united.

So back to the soul and spirit discussion … I think the first time I remember hearing about the potential of having both a spirit and a soul, it was based on Hebrews 4:12 which says “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

There are other Scriptures which lend some chance to infer this kind of three-way view.  I Thessalonians 5:23 says, “May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

On the other hand, Scripture routinely uses the expression soul interchangeably with the expression spirit.  (John 12:27 vs 13:21, Hebrews 12:23 vs Revelation 6:9) For example, at death Scripture says that either the soul departs or the spirit departs, but never soul and spirit together. (Isaiah 53:12, Luke 12:20 vs Ecclesiastes 12:7, Luke 23:46) We are described as body and soul or body and spirit. (Matthew 10:28 vs I Corinthians 5:5)  Soul and spirit are both described as capable of sin.  Sometimes this three-way view of body, soul, and spirit gets presented such that the spirit is “more like God, more holy.”  Psalm 78:8 talks of the rebellious people of Israel as ones “whose spirit was not faithful to God.”  Psalm 51:10 asks God to “renew a right spirit” in us.  Scripture also does not separate out differences between soul and spirit.  The soul is described as doing all the things the spirit does and vice versa.  We can’t get a clear delineation that there is a functional difference between soul and spirit.

So, what about Hebrews 4:12 and I Thessalonians 5:23?  It appears that the author in each case may be using synonyms for emphasis.  Other places in Scripture make divisions for the purpose of emphasis, like “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. (Matthew 22:37)  It is not feasible to take each list like this and start dividing ourselves up.  In the end, you might end up with five or six parts.  Whatever we call the spiritual part of ourselves, we want God to keep making us perfect until Jesus comes.

And so, the three-way body, soul, spirit view is not unfounded.  There are some arguments for it, but there is not conclusive evidence.  The simpler spiritual/physical view may be better for us because it helps us to stay focused.  We need to realize and maintain the understanding that growth must include all aspects of our lives whether spiritual or physical. “Let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.” (II Corinthians 7:1)

And so here we are … wonderful … complex … bestowed with honor and dignity from God Himself … filled with a living spirit which is eternal … made in the image and likeness of God.  And so, armed with this information, I’m struck with a powerful question.  Why am I here?

Why did God create us?

God doesn’t need us.  He doesn’t need anything in all of creation.  There was perfect love and community in the Trinity before any other beings, spiritual or otherwise, were created.  We were not created to fulfill a relationship need of God.

A quick side note:  The Trinity or personhood of God (God the Father, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and the Holy Spirit) is an interesting and necessary characteristic of God.  You may encounter a person who says, how can God be three-in-one?  In fact, the answer can be a question itself.  How can God not be three-in-one?  I John 4:8 and 16 both say, “God is love.”  If God is love, but had no one to love, he would “need” created beings to fulfill who He is.  If He “needed” us, then He wouldn’t really be big-G God.  As triune, three in one, community can exist within God, and He can express and receive love.  We also know that God cannot change.  (James 1:17 among many others)  The Trinity explains how God can be consistent.  He does not change and He is love.

So if God is all sufficient in Himself, AND He does not need us, then we can conclude that our lives have no significance, right?  What?!  That can’t be right.

It is true that we were not created to meet a relational need of God Himself.  However, this is not grounds to consider our lives insignificant.  Why then did God create us? 

Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth—everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.  Isaiah 43:6-7

In him we were also chosen … in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory.  Ephesians 1:11-12

… whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.  I Corinthians 10:31 

We were created to glorify God.

What then should be our purpose in life?

Fulfill the reason God created us.  Which is … to glorify God.

What does that mean?  How do we glorify God? 

Well, all people will ultimately bring God glory.  “… at the name of Jesus every knee should bow … and every tongue confess  that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:9-11

Do you guys remember the song “Come Now Is the Time to Worship”? We don’t sing it quite as much any more, but it’s a song I feel like I’ve sung a jillion times.  The second verse ends with the words “still the greatest treasure remains for those who gladly choose You now.”  That’s us.  We have the blessed chance to choose Him.  And though everyone will give glory to God on the last day, we can fulfill the reason that God created us, right now, today.

Here’s a list of some of the ways that Scripture says we can bring glory to God:

--exalt His Name (Psalm 34:3)

--enjoy Him (Psalm 63:3)

--thank Him (Psalm 69:30, II Corinthians 4:15)

--sing to Him (Psalm 66:2, Psalm 86:12, Psalm 138:5, I Chronicles 16:10)

--tell others about the good things He has done for you (Daniel 4:37, I Chronicles 16:24,28)

--declare the truth about Him (I Chronicles 29:11, Psalm 29:1-2, Psalm 96:3,7,8)

--do good (Matthew 5:16, John 17:4, Romans 15:17)

--deny ourselves / don’t seek our own interests first (Matthew 16:24, Philippians 2:3-11)

--allow His works to be done among us / come out of bondage / let God set us free (Israelites coming out of Egypt, II Corinthians 1:20, II Corinthians 3:18, Romans 12:1-2)

--confess our sins / tell the truth (Joshua 7:19, John 9:24)

--fear and respect Him (I Samuel 6:5, Isaiah 59:19)

--bring Him offerings and gifts (I Chronicles 16:29)

--let Him be our glory / our prize / our strength (Psalm 3:3)

--be holy / pure / clean and walk in the glory and honor God has given us / walk in, be filled with the Spirit (Psalm 8:5, John 5:44, Romans 2:29, Ephesians 1:14, Philippians 1:9-11, Hebrews 2:7)

--be an example / a light (Isaiah 60:1-2)

--endure hardship / sickness / suffering (John 11:4, Romans 4:20)

--bear much fruit (John 15:8)

--help to fill the whole earth with His glory (Matthew 28:18-20, Psalm 72:19, Isaiah 42:12, Isaiah 66:19)

--seek His glory in everything we do / put God first always (John 7:18, I Corinthians 10:31)

--love Him / obey His commands (Matthew 22:37, Mark 12:30, John 14:15) 

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord.  Colossians 3:23 

In light of all that God has done for us, the life-giving spirit He placed in us, the bodies that He has given us, our salvation in Christ, let us glorify God just like He created us to do.  Let’s pray and ask Him for His help and direction.

Father God, strengthen us and guide us into all truth by Your Holy Spirit.  Enable us to fulfill the purpose for which You have created us.  Help us to glorify You in everything we do.  Thank You for the gift of life.  Multiply that life through us we pray.  We exalt Your Name and lift You up.  Praise God.  Amen.