God created us spiritual beings. We have a soul, which is basically mind emotion and will. Also, it is where the desire for gain, need for approval and the full range of what makes us human resides. It's called the "Natural man" in the Bible.
When Adam was created, his spirit was "good" but empty and neutral towards God. Adam was neither good nor evil. We understand that Adam's sin brought spiritual death into man and we are all born separated from God.
To be born again means to be made spiritually alive again. There is much to say about this, but I want to focus on one aspect. We are trained from birth to depend on what the world calls truth and according to our feelings. Some are ruled by emotion, others by logic and most by a combination of both. The spirit still exists when we are born. However, everything we experience and are taught is intended to build up the soul. This gives rise to terrible consequences. In the 60's, the world told us, "If it feels good, do it". Countless lives have been destroyed by that idiocy. Reliance on logic and reason has led to all kinds of evil. The god of this world blinds the eyes of those who are perishing and their minds are darkened.
Believers come to Christ with many attitudes and habits that have been moulded into us from birth. We come with the habit of depending on thought and feeling. God wants us to live by faith, and faith is far higher than thought and feeling. It is confidence and trust in God and His Word, to the point where His Word is our absolute authority.
After being born again, need to be delivered from the influence and control of the natural life in the soul. This is not something we can do ourselves. Our spirit man has been entangled with the soul to the point where the spirit is suppressed. So God provides the remedy. We find this in Hebrews 4:12,
"For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it pierces even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It judges the thoughts and intentions of the heart."
Note that it is the Living Word of God that has the power to divide soul and spirit. Many Christians make the mistake of using logic and reason to form opinions as to what the Bible says. This leads to much confusion and misunderstanding. The Bible is a spiritual book for spiritual people. (1 Corinthians 2:13)
For example, many believers are not at all certain that God loves them. I personally struggled with this for a few years. I hated myself, which is not at all healthy. I imagined this to be humility. So that wrong attitude coloured my Christian life. As I began to accept God's Word, so my attitude began to change. I began to see that God loved me in spite of who I was. I realised that when I thought too much about myself, I became depressed. However, when I saw myself in Christ, my inner being lit up, so to speak. I began to see that the old "me" was dead and buried. I began to see myself in Christ.
We need to come to the place where our spirit man is so strong that nothing can move us. We stand on the truth of God's Word and reject anything contrary. Our soul must become the servant of our spirit and not the ruler. It's not enough to have God's word only in our minds. It has to be the Living Word, written on our hearts.
Ask God for the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Jesus (Ephesians 1:17). God is only too willing to grant us that. And don't be too clever. We are nowhere near as good as we think we are. Let Jesus teach us. We will never regret it.
When Adam was created, his spirit was "good" but empty and neutral towards God. Adam was neither good nor evil. We understand that Adam's sin brought spiritual death into man and we are all born separated from God.
To be born again means to be made spiritually alive again. There is much to say about this, but I want to focus on one aspect. We are trained from birth to depend on what the world calls truth and according to our feelings. Some are ruled by emotion, others by logic and most by a combination of both. The spirit still exists when we are born. However, everything we experience and are taught is intended to build up the soul. This gives rise to terrible consequences. In the 60's, the world told us, "If it feels good, do it". Countless lives have been destroyed by that idiocy. Reliance on logic and reason has led to all kinds of evil. The god of this world blinds the eyes of those who are perishing and their minds are darkened.
Believers come to Christ with many attitudes and habits that have been moulded into us from birth. We come with the habit of depending on thought and feeling. God wants us to live by faith, and faith is far higher than thought and feeling. It is confidence and trust in God and His Word, to the point where His Word is our absolute authority.
After being born again, need to be delivered from the influence and control of the natural life in the soul. This is not something we can do ourselves. Our spirit man has been entangled with the soul to the point where the spirit is suppressed. So God provides the remedy. We find this in Hebrews 4:12,
"For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it pierces even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It judges the thoughts and intentions of the heart."
Note that it is the Living Word of God that has the power to divide soul and spirit. Many Christians make the mistake of using logic and reason to form opinions as to what the Bible says. This leads to much confusion and misunderstanding. The Bible is a spiritual book for spiritual people. (1 Corinthians 2:13)
For example, many believers are not at all certain that God loves them. I personally struggled with this for a few years. I hated myself, which is not at all healthy. I imagined this to be humility. So that wrong attitude coloured my Christian life. As I began to accept God's Word, so my attitude began to change. I began to see that God loved me in spite of who I was. I realised that when I thought too much about myself, I became depressed. However, when I saw myself in Christ, my inner being lit up, so to speak. I began to see that the old "me" was dead and buried. I began to see myself in Christ.
We need to come to the place where our spirit man is so strong that nothing can move us. We stand on the truth of God's Word and reject anything contrary. Our soul must become the servant of our spirit and not the ruler. It's not enough to have God's word only in our minds. It has to be the Living Word, written on our hearts.
Ask God for the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Jesus (Ephesians 1:17). God is only too willing to grant us that. And don't be too clever. We are nowhere near as good as we think we are. Let Jesus teach us. We will never regret it.
