Body And Soul

What constitutes body and soul? What is the body? What is the soul? Is the body first created and then the soul, or the soul first and then the body, or are both created at the same time? If at different times, when then does the soul come into the body?

These and similar questions are asked by young people and adults alike, partly on account of the social conditions of our time, and partly because the human mind cannot be in submission to Him who has created us, the Lord God of heaven and earth. The natural mind will not and cannot understand the things of the Spirit of God. Nevertheless, with the help of the Lord we will try to answer some of these questions, based upon the Word of God.

What is the body? It is clear from Scripture (Genesis 2:7) that the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground. Immediately after the fall the Lord said to Adam, “For dust thou art, and unto dust shaft thou return.” In order to prevent all cavil (hair-splitting), it must be emphasized at this point that although Eve was created out of a rib of Adam, she was also created out of the dust as Adam was. Since Adam’s rib was part of Adam, she was thus of the dust. It is a special grace of the Lord when we may truly believe and acknowledge that we are but dust. Abraham by grace was allowed to say, “I who am but dust and ashes.” Those are precious moments in the life of God’s people when they may truly be nothing in themselves in the sight of God; then the “Lord’s will may be done.”

What is the soul? Hellenbroek states: “An immortal spirit, whereby we live and exercise reason.” In Genesis 2:7 it is stated that after the Lord God had formed man of the dust of the ground, the Lord God breathed into his nostrils, and man became a living soul. We may also see this in Ezekiel 37:8-10: “And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above: but there was no breath in them. Then said He unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord God; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. So I prophesied as He commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived,...”

Therefore based upon Scripture we may say and conclude that the body and the soul are two separate entities, and that together they constitute living man. Furthermore we may scripturally conclude that the creation of man by the Lord God are two separate and distinct acts, in which the body is formed first and then the soul imparted to the body by God. The body is mortal, the soul immortal. We may know that the body is formed out of the dust of the ground. We may also know that the immortal soul is a spirit whereby we live and exercise reason. This knowledge may not satisfy our mind, and we may want to know more about the soul. However, the Lord has said that the hidden things belong to the Lord our God, and the revealed things belong to us and our children.

When does the soul come into the body? Much has been written and spoken about this question. We find many references in Scripture regarding an untimely birth. We also find many references to being formed in the womb, or being chosen from the womb. In Luke 1:44 we read about the babe leaping in the womb of Elisabeth. Thus the soul of John the Baptist in the womb of his mother leaped for joy because Mary, being pregnant with the Lord Jesus, came to visit. I believe it is contrary to use any of these references to attempt to prove when the soul comes into the body. Any attempt of man to fix that time is sinful, as it is an attempt to pry into the mind of God. The Lord God has hidden that fact from us; it is one of those secret things which belong to God. To pry into these matters is a fruit of our fall in Paradise, where man, by the instigation of the devil, wanted to become as God.

Let it suffice us that we have an immortal soul which inhabits a tabernacle of clay. Our question should be, “Is my poor, never-dying soul reconciled with a Triune God?” May it become our plea that the Lord open our eyes as to our state for a never-ending eternity. God created man in His image and after His likeness. In the state of rectitude our soul tabernacled in the temple of the Holy Spirit. In our deep fall in our convenant-head Adam we immediately died spiritually, and our soul came to dwell in the tabernacle of Satan. By nature our soul is in prison, guarded by a strong man armed, but a Stronger than he is able to release that soul from captivity. To perform this, an almighty, free, sovereign act of a Triune God, for all those who are chosen from eternity by the Father, based upon the blood-righteousness merited by the Lord Jesus Christ and applied by God the Holy Spirit, must take place.

When the Holy Spirit begins to teach a soul, it begins to learn in beginning what it means to have a never-dying soul. Then there come soul concerns, but also concerns as how that a soul shall live to the honor and glory of God, the purpose for which it was created. We must not go too far afield from the topic, but that we might be brought to the realization that the day will most certainly come when man has no questions and where God has a thousand questions and man not one answer. That is that notable day, that day of the Lord, the great Day of Judgment, when the Lord Jesus, as King of kings, will come upon the clouds of heaven to judge the quick and the dead. Then that corruption will put on incorruption, and then body and soul will be re-united. Those on the right hand of the King, the Lord’s chosen people, will go into everlasting glory, and those on the left hand, the unconverted, will go into everlasting destruction, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

That the Spirit of the Lord may quicken us to call upon Him while He is near and to seek Him while He may be found is our wish and prayer.

Dr. L. Willekes is a medical doctor serving as elder in the congregation of Sioux Center.

Deze tekst is geautomatiseerd gemaakt en kan nog fouten bevatten. Digibron werkt voortdurend aan correctie. Klik voor het origineel door naar de pdf. Voor opmerkingen, vragen, informatie: contact.

Op Digibron -en alle daarin opgenomen content- is het databankrecht van toepassing. Gebruiksvoorwaarden. Data protection law applies to Digibron and the content of this database. Terms of use.

Printen