WEEK 12
TOPIC: The Nature of Man (Part 8) – The Human Body.
TEXT: 1 Cor. 6:19-20.
In previous lessons, we looked at the human spirit and the soul. Now we shall look at the third thing about a man; his physical body. The human body is the house of the man who is a spirit. The body is not the man, but his domicile. This house in itself is a living thing. It is the body that is in contact with the material world. The spirit is eternal while the body is in the zone of time. The body came from the ground and it must remain connected to the ground. That’s why we eat food that is grown from the ground. The human body is the ticket man has to function in this earth. Man can live independently of his body, but without his physical body, he cannot function in the earth. That’s why Jesus had to come in a physical body to consummate salvation. However, there is a threshold the body can get to as far as degeneration is concerned and it cannot continue to house the spirit again and the spirit has to depart. That’s why sickness must not be tolerated in our bodies because it can degrade the body to the point that it cannot carry the spirit again and the spirit who is the real man will have to leave howbeit unwillingly. Many human spirits have been evicted from their bodies unwillingly because their bodies could not carry them again. Take care of your body; you need it to fulfill destiny.
The Body and Its Senses
The body has five senses with which it expresses itself on earth. Note: There is a difference between 5 senses and 5 sense organs. The sense organs are not the senses; they are the vehicle for the senses to express themselves. The five senses are:
- Sense of sight (located in the eye)
- Sense of taste (located in the tongue)
- Sense of smell (located in the nose)
- Sense of hearing (located in the ear)
- Sense of feeling (located in the body)
The senses are invisible but their organs are visible. The sense of sight for example is what helps you see. If this sight is removed, even though the eye which is its organ of expression is open, the man will not see. He is blind.
You have seen blind men with their eyes open, yet they don’t see because their sense of sight is tampered with already. You don’t see with your eyes, you see with your sight. Many times, Jesus in healing the blind will say ‘receive your sight’ not ‘receive your eyes’ because they most likely have eyes, but their sense of sight is gone. The same is true of the other senses. If a man loses his senses his sense of hearing, the ears will still be there but will not hear sound. So the senses express themselves through their organs. Everything the body knows, it receives through the senses. They are the teachers of the body. This body and its senses make up the outward man.
The Relationship between the Body and The Spirit
The body houses the spirit. The spirit is the life in the body. The body doesn’t really have to be sick or have anything wrong with it to die. All it takes is for the spirit to depart the body and the body becomes lifeless. The body is to be the vehicle for the expression of the human spirit in this earth. But the body can become a prison house for the spirit if the flesh is in control of the man. The soul is the interface between the body and the spirit. If the soul is healthy, the spirit will take pre-eminence over the body. But if the soul is sick, the body will rule over the spirit. When the body rules over the spirit, the man is in a bad condition in life’s journey because Satan will defeat him. That’s why many folks experience something in the night pressing them. Something in them knows what to do; call the name of Jesus and react against that thing, but their lips aren’t moving. Why? Because their spirit is imprisoned in the control of the body. As a Christian, your body is your house, your vehicle of expression. Don’t let that body lord it over you but let it obey you.
Take good care of your body because your spirit needs to continue to function in this earth. But don’t let the desires of your body rule over your spirit.
Note: The voice of the human spirit is the conscience.
The voice of the human body is feelings.
These voices are what the human soul congregates and crystallizes to form the character of your personality.
The saving of the Soul (James 1:21-22)
To conclude this subject, we need to look at the saving of the soul. This is different from the recreation of the spirit. The soul which houses the mind, will and emotions needs to be saved. This soul salvation is the process by which the mind, will and emotions are reprogrammed by the word of God to line up with the righteousness of God in the human thinking, feelings and decisions become altered to line up with the principles of the word in any issue of life. This is when you become a spiritual man. The carnal man is a believer with an unsaved soul (unrenewed mind) while the spiritual man is a believer with a renewed mind through the word over time.
The principal device to save your soul is the word of God. Meditate in it, do it and soon your human soul will be saved.
The summary of the matured Christian is a recreated spirit, a saved soul and a body in subjection to the spirit.
Points to Note
- The human body is not the real person, it is the house where he (the spirit) lives.
- The human body functions through its five senses.
- Man can exist without a body, but cannot function in the earth without it.
- The saving of the soul is what brings a believer into spiritual maturity.
Prayers/Declarations
Father in the Name of Jesus, I declare that my body is sanctifies and brought under subjection to my spirit. The word of God and the Holy Ghost preserves my body in health so it can assist me to carry out God’s purpose in the earth.
Questions for Meditation
- Since man is a spirit, and can exist without a body, why does he need a physical body then?
- The senses are different from the sense organs. Explain?
- The recreation of the spirit is different from the salvation of the soul. Discuss?