In Part 1 of this series about Spirit Soul and Body we looked at what happens to the Spirit at the moment of Salvation. This is a vital principle to understand in order to grasp how a believer can be 100% righteous ALL of the time, in spite of the fact that we don’t always feel righteous. In this article we will look at the Soul.
The Soul
This is the realm of the psyche and includes the mind, will, intellect, personality and emotions. This part does not instantly change when we are born again. Yes we have made a choice for Christ, but this part of us still has the old thought patterns and habits of our BC (before Christ) life. These habits may have been formed out of mere self preservation instincts, or by us yielding our members to the desires of our old sinful nature. Even though we don’t want to sin anymore, we still sometimes make mistakes. This is what Paul talks about in Romans 7:
Rom 7:15 For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. 20 Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. 22 For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. 23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. (NKJV)
Our soul / mind is the part of us that we spend the rest of our life renewing. We must train our mind to agree with what happened in our spirit. How do we do this? By spending time with God, studying the word, praying, fellow-shipping with other believers, etc.
When considering the topic of spirit soul and body, we also need to think of the soul as the part that connects the other two. God’s kingdom / power / provision flows into our bodies through our soul, which means the more the soul is aligned with God’s kingdom, the easier it will be for the kingdom of God to flow into our physical bodies and out into the world.
Renew Your Mind!
Rom 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
This is why we are told to set our minds on the things above (Col 3:2), because the more we think God’s thoughts, the faster our minds will be transformed. Our old sinful thought patterns will starve, and our mind will come into agreement with our born-again spirit. Our soul is also the part of us that is constantly being made holy or being sanctified.
Heb 10:14 For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are (being) sanctified. (NKJV, annotations added)
Remember we read in Part 1 that our Spirit is already sanctified and perfectly holy. In Part 3 of this series about Spirit Soul and Body we will take a look at the Body – stay tuned!
