The number 3 seems quite
important in the Bible. God is three in one: God the Father, His Son and His
Holy Spirit (See Matthew 28:19 for example). Humans also have three parts: body,
spirit and soul (See 1 Thess 5:23).
We also find that the number three is important in
nature. Water consists of 2 hydrogen atoms and 1 atom of oxygen. Even with one
atom gone, it would no longer be water! The egg also consists of three parts:
The yoke, the egg white, and the shell.
Speaking of eggs, I encountered some super smart birds
while in New Zealand. They don't incubate their eggs, but they hatch anyway.
Impossible you say?
It's true. They are found in Wai-O-Tapu in New
Zealand. Above one of
the thermal collapsed craters, holes can be found
where starlings, shallows and mynahs lay their eggs. Thanks to the heat that
rises up from the hot spring below, the eggs are incubated. No sitting required.
Shopping here I come! Beware earthworms!
There has been much confusion about the three parts of
humanity, the body, the soul, and the spirit. Some believe there are really only
two parts, the body and the spirit, and the two parts come together making up
the third, the soul. They base this belief on Gen 2:7: "The Lord God formed the
man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of
life, and the man became a living being
(or soul in the original text)." (NIV).
The only problem with this two parts making up a third
part explanation is that an important omission is ignored: Yes, the soul and the
body are referred in this text, but nowhere can the Hebrew "ruach" or spirit be
found. Instead it uses the word "nishmat" or breath, which combined to "chayiym"
or life refers to the breath of life from God Himself.
In other words, this text doesn't speak of all three
parts of humanity. It is simply telling us how the body came to life, how it
became a "lanephesh chayaah" or living soul. In order to do so, we needed the
life-force that flows in us from God Himself. This, in itself, is a vitally
important concept! We are really nothing (Unalive,
if there is such a word), without God!
All over God's Word it is clearly indicated that God
is the One who gave us life. "The Spirit of God has made me; the breath of the
Almighty gives me life." (Job 33:4 NIV).
This is why we can truly say of God: "I praise you
because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know
that full well." (Ps 139:14 NIV)
But there is still another, separate part of human
life: our spirit.
It's through our spirit that God communicates with us.
We were spirit-led beings at first, united with the Most Holy One: "But he who
unites himself with the Lord is one with him in spirit." (1 Cor 6:17 NIV) and
this is still a possible state of being. Unfortunately, as we will see later on
in this series, sin has marred this relationship.
Interestingly, the Hebrew word "ruach" as well as the
Greek word "pneuma" are the same, referring both to both man's spirit and to
God's Spirit. It is in our spirit that we are to relate to God's Holy Spirit:
"The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children." (Rom
8:16 NIV)
But then sin invaded our home and soon we found out
that we were not spirit-driven any longer. Our souls ('nephesh" in Hebrew and
"psuche" in Greek") took over. In essence, our soul refers to the processing
mechanism of our whole being, including the mind, emotions, and the will. It is,
so to speak, our computer's "main frame".
Interestingly, all of our issues of addictions and
strongholds can be found in our soul.
Sin has disrupted our whole being. Our communication
with God through our spirit was broken and we began to perceive life through our
distorted souls that emphasized man ("selfishness") a bit too much more than it
emphasized God.
We once were like those birds in Wai-O-Tapu: care-free
and enjoying the gentle heat provided by God Himself. But then that kind of
relationship was broken and communication was interrupted.
The good news is that God has re-established this
connection through His Son Jesus the Christ. Once again, we can enjoy His Holy
Spirit that wants to dwell in us. Once again we can start our road to recovery
and let God's Spirit change us once again into a living soul.
"Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple
and that God's Spirit lives in you?" (1 Cor 3:16 NIV)
Would you like to taste a thermal egg?
Rob Chaffart
The Illustrator: This daily newsletter is dedicated to encouraging
everyone to look towards Jesus as the source of all the solutions to our
problems. It contains a daily inspirational story, a Bible verse and encouraging
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