Who are you really

Who You Are?

Just Who Do You Think You Are?

If I asked you to describe for me who you think you are and how I would know you if we met at a cafe, what would you say? I’m betting it might sound like this:

-Well, I’m 6’0’ tall, brown hair, wearing a black jacket.
--So we meet and sit down, so I can hear the rest over a cup of coffee.

-Then, you begin to tell me what kind of work you do, where you went to college, and what some of your skills and hobbies are.

So far I know some of the physical characteristics and your knowledge base. If I am allowed to go any further I might find out something about what you think about politics and religion; perhaps even some more personal issues such as Gay marriage, a woman president, and the death sentence.

The bible says that God made you in His image (Gen 1:27). He also tells us we are a three part being in the fifth chapter of I Thessalonians. You would have just touched on two of the three parts and left out the one most vital to your future.

I Thess5: 23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I have found that most people, who do know about the fact that there are three parts, when asked, will nearly always say body, soul and spirit in that order. Without thinking, the first one that comes to their mind is the body. Is it not true that it is through the body (the flesh) that Satan can most easily deceive us? Our five senses are hard to control when we smell fresh homemade bread, when we taste cashews or chocolate, when we touch the “untouchable”, when we see a gorgeous person of the opposite sex, and when that person seduces us with words. Think of all the addictions and personal downfalls that are related to our flesh. Our actions and behavior can only be accomplished by our bodies.

The soul includes such areas as the mind, will, emotions, thinking and feelings. This is the next area in which the enemy will harass or torment you. Here is where deception gets its foothold. The devil will lie or deceive you by getting you to question yourself, causing you to second-guess what you believe is the right thing to do. II Timothy 2:25 says that we often “oppose ourselves” and verse 26 speaks to “recovering ourselves” out of the snare of the devil. He is able to get you to not only to think wrong things, he is even able to get you to do the right things for the “wrong reasons” (wrong motives).

Think for a minute, of all the negative feelings and emotions that you might have from time to time. The list can be very long: sadness, rejection, fear, hopelessness, anger, insecurity and unforgiveness are just a few. Let me ask you a serious question. Would you say that these and all others on “the list” are from Heaven or Hell? Have I made a valid point?

Now remember, when a thought first comes to you it is not yet a sin. It becomes a sin when you act on it…or even dwell on it as is the case in “lust.”

The soul is also the “Psyche.” The world’s programs and response to problems in this area are, as we know, Psychology and Psychiatry. The Greek word is “Psuche.” Psuche is the only word translated "soul" in the New Testament; The seat of the desires, feelings, passions, appetites, and emotions (Dake's Study Notes).

It is most often said to be the mind, will and emotions. But in my research it appears to be “the natural mind”, “the will as it applies to the flesh”, and is the part of us that “feels”.

Finally, we come to the less understood part of man—the spirit. Genesis 5:1 says that God created man in His likeness, and we know God is a spirit. So the truth is that man is a spirit, who has a soul, and lives in a body. Is it not also interesting that man is then, also a triune-being (three part)? The Hebrew word for spirit is “Ruach.” The root meaning of ruach is “invisible force” and as this force has so many manifestations, several renderings of it are necessary to better harmonize the various ideas. It is the invisible life that came from God and goes back to God (God's Plan for Man).
The Greek word for “spirit” in the New Testament is “pneuma” and corresponds to ruach above. It occurs in the Greek text about 385 times.
In general we can say that the spirit of man is that which “knows.” Dake’s book, “God’s Plan for Man” says it this way: The spirit of man is the intellect, will, mind, conscience, and other faculties that make him a free moral agent and a rational being.
While it appears that there is a mind and will aspect to both the soul and the spirit, spirit form of these two seems to be at a higher level—that of “knowing”: Having the mind of Christ, Knowing God’s will for man. I believe that this is what we refer to as “Revelation Knowledge”. This speaks to revelation through the Holy Spirit.
The soul and the spirit are so very closely related yet unique:

For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart (Hebrews 4:12).

- The soul and spirit make the inner man “which is not corruptible”.
The body then, is the earth suit that houses the Spirit and soul.
Why do we distinguish man as a spirit rather than a physical person? Well, I’m glad you asked. At physical death the physical body dies and is buried, never more to exist. But the spirit and soul never die and go to Heaven or Hell for eternity. So the “real you” will never die!