The Tripartite Nature of Humanity: Spirit, Soul, and Body in Biblical Understanding
The Body: Our Earthly Vessel
The body is the physical form that interacts with the material world. From the very beginning, Genesis 2:7 states, "Then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being." This verse clearly establishes the body's origin from the earth, emphasizing its connection to the physical realm.
There is an association between the Spirit of God and the "breath of God" in the bible. When God created Adam and "breathed into his nostrils the breath of life," does it refer to the creation of man as spirit, soul, and body? Or the initial act of God giving man life in the physical form of soul and body?
If we look further at this verse in Hebrew, “... and the man became a living being,” the word “being” refers to the soul. So God breathed in him and he became a living soul which leans towards a bipartite view (soul and body). Paul reinforces this idea in 1 Corinthians 15:45,
“Just as it is written ‘the first man Adam became a living soul,’ and the last Adam was a life-giving spirit.”
Paul differentiates Adam as a "living soul" from Christ, a "life-giving spirit." This emphasizes the distinction between being a “new creation” in Christ in the new covenant, from the old covenant where mankind existed a living soul and body and the Spirit dwelled upon them and not in them.
Possibly, when Adam was created he existed a tripartite being but in the fall the spiritual part of Adam died. Certainly, Paul in Ephesians 2:1-6 is speaking of the spirit of man being made alive in Christ when he writes we were dead in our trespasses and sin walking this earth (which speaks of having a body and a soul) but God made us alive and raised and seated us with Christ in the heavenlies.
Spirit and Soul: Close Connection
There is given in scripture a close connection between spirit and soul but differentiated as written in Hebrews 4:12, “for the word of God is living and effective and sharper than than a two-edged sword also penetrating as far as dividing soul and spirit, bone and marrow. Also able to discern thoughts and intentions of the heart.”
The above states there is a dividing of spirit and soul, which supports the tripartite view. But it also speaks of the close connection between the two, like bone and marrow. This reflects a common understanding within Christianity, while thoughts are part of our soul, we believe we are “renewed of the spirit of our mind” to have the mind of Christ so we can discern God’s will and be obedient to God’s spiritual laws. The Holy Spirit influences our hearts and minds, guiding us into the truth to discern and understand God's will and the intentions of both the heart and mind.
The scriptures tell us something greater resides in us, so even if our heart finds fault in us God is greater than our heart and knows all things, 1 John 3:20. And if our minds can't even imagine above an earthly understanding, God's Spirit is working within us something greater than we think, Ephesians 3:20. Scriptures also tell us the Spirit and the Word are closely connected (Ephesians 6:17). As Jesus stated in John 6:63: "It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life." The renewing of our minds is an important part of the transformative and regenerative power of the word of God and the Holy Spirit abiding in us (Romans 12:2; Ephesians 4:22-23).
There is a close connection between the Spirit and Christ which we see in scriptures when the Spirit is called the Spirit of Christ (Romans 8:9;1 Peter 1:11). I believe the new birth of the Spirit was made possible by Christ in the new covenant. The scriptures also say that Christ dwells in our hearts through faith. Some would say that believing comes first but scriptures tend to lean toward a simultaneous supernatural event of believing and sealing of the Spirit.
Since, it is a supernatural event and I am just human in understanding I dare not say it is fact that I do not fully know of the works of God. Jesus did said the Spirit gives life, and his words are Spirit and truth. The word of God is truth and it is living and is implanted as an imperishable seed, 1 Peter 1:23. Paul writes in Ephesians 1:13-14, that sealing or marking of the Spirit happens when we believe not afterwards.
We are marked or sealed or adopted as His own, Ephesians 1:5, in which adoption is of the Spirit and we have testimony of God of such, Romans 8:15-16, and are given life through the Spirit, John 6:63. The Spirit and the Word are very closely connected so the Spirit and the words of Jesus give eternal life. When we eat his flesh and drink his blood we have life. Such life has to be granted by God's Spirit, no one can come to and believe in Jesus unless the Father grants it.
Being a new creation comes through new birth of the Spirit. Transformation to be like Christ after our new birth is like a plant maturing, the inner man is new and that inward grows up to bear fruit outwardly. This concept of growth in which we mature and bear fruit of righteousness and holiness is throughout the scriptures. Paul also likens it as putting off the old and putting on the new man. This transformation is associated with our souls, specifically our minds being conformed to that of Christ’s (1 Corinthians 2:16 - 2 Corinthians 3:1-2).
To have the mind of Christ speaks to our maturity in Christ, no longer children, but grow up into maturity. We are taught, or should be taught in the church these things, to be conformed to his death in baptism, to put away the old man and put on the new spiritual man created in the image of God, according to righteousness and holiness of truth (Ephesians 4:22-24).
Regeneration describes the Holy Spirit's work of giving spiritual life and a divine nature to individuals. This divine act results in a "born a new" of the Spirit experience which is a "new creation" in Christ. This is how Jesus tells us we must enter the kingdom of God and receive eternal life. Then there is renewal of the mind or salvation of the soul. Regeneration is understood as a sovereign act of God, unattainable through human effort.
Perhaps this is what we find missing when we realize in the deep parts of our being we feel empty inside, as we were made to have communion with God. And possibly this is what the Old Testament hints toward in Ecclesiastes 3:11, that God has put eternity in our souls. What God proposed in Christ he had hidden in him before he created the world.
Scriptures in the New testament lean toward man as spirit, soul, and body. John states this is one reason Jesus came, so that we have the right to become children of God, not of human birth but from God (John 1: 12-13). This is important in understanding our identity and what we have received as spiritual blessings in Christ, adoption through the Spirit or new creation. If we distinguish each part we see our salvation in three parts.
Salvation of Spirit
As mentioned Paul writes in Ephesians 2:1-6 that the spirit of man is made alive and raised and seated with Christ in the heavenlies. This is not some future event but happens when you believe, “you also in Him hearing the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation in Him also believing, sealed of the promised Holy Spirit that who exists the guarantor of our inheritance to the extent redemption of his possession, to the praise of his glory” (Ephesians 1:13-14).
The new covenant began when Jesus died to establish it, that is why it is called a new covenant in his blood, and how the writer of Hebrews explains how it took a death to establish it. Jesus was born under the Law to redeem those under the Law and also as promised to Abraham before the Law, salvation would be through faith, Jesus being the author and perfecter, and according to grace so it comes to all peoples of all nations, not just to those born of earthly lineage a Jew.
This was what was promised to Abraham before circumcision and the Law, that through his seed, Christ, he would be the father of many nations. And as prophesied the sons of Abraham would exist of the faith of him, Galatians 3:28-29 and Romans 4:9-14. And have received the promised Holy Spirit who seals them for an eternal inheritance, Hebrews 9:15 and Ephesians 1:14. Their circumcision is of the heart by the Spirit, Romans 2:29, and now enter into the promised eternal covenant, and sealed for eternal redemption, Hebrews 9:12.
Although the Abrahamic covenant is viewed as eternal, Jesus established a "New Covenant" where all the promises of God are yes and amen and this covenant is described as everlasting. Even the promise of land will be fulfilled in Christ, as described in Revelations 21, when the first earth and heavens will pass away and there will be a new heaven, earth, and new Jerusalem, quite different from that today. In the church the “promised land” has always referred to our heavenly and not one of this old corrupt earth that is in the throngs of death.
This new covenant, realized through Jesus Christ, stresses a transformed heart and spirit, with the Spirit of God residing in his people and they are given a new heart and a renewed mind so his spiritual laws are inscribed on believers' hearts and minds, Hebrews 8:9 and 2 Corinthians 3:3, and Ezekiel 11:19. The regenerative powers of the Spirit helps us to fulfill God’s righteous requirements in that we now have power to accept them as good unlike the carnal man and mind (see The New Living Way).
Salvation of Body
It is through the body that we experience the world through our senses, perform actions, and manifest our will. The Bible acknowledges the body's susceptibility to decay, sickness, and death, a consequence of the fall, and how we await the completion of our salvation; the redemption of our body (Romans 5:12; Romans 8:23-25).
However, it also affirms the body's sacredness as a temple of the Holy Spirit for believers (1 Corinthians 6:19-20), destined for resurrection and glorification (1 Corinthians 15:42-44). By the principle of the Spirit of life we escape eternal condemnation, and are freed from the law of sin and death in the body (Romans 7:14-25 - Romans 8:1-4). We taste a little of immortality and of our freedom as we are being transformed from glory to glory . The consummation or fullness of our salvation as children of God is not yet fully realized or known.
While temporary, this body of an earthly tent will be taken down and we will be clothed in a new body, it is not to be despised but rather stewarded for God's glory, in regards to transformation or renewal of the mind. We are to examine what is done in our body, to evaluate our actions, motivations, and treatment of our physical bodies in light of biblical teachings about stewardship, accountability, sanctification, and the body's role, as a temple of the Holy Spirit.
In the teachings of Baptism (see Baptism: The Commitment to Follow Jesus) the truth of who we are in Christ is realized, that we are united with him in death, crucified with Christ, so that the body in which sin dwells is rendered useless. And the scriptures tell us that our new birth doesn’t automatically bring obedience, we are children of God because we are adopted of the Spirit, Romans 8:14, and been cleansed by the blood of Jesus, 1 John 1:7, so we have testimony of Spirit and blood, 1 John 5:6-8. And we have testimony of water which Peter describes as a type of our salvation, not like the washing dirt from the body but of a good conscience toward God, 1 Peter 3:21, which implies sanctification of the body.
These scriptures and others confirm that when we are born a new of the Spirit we do not automatically become obedient. There is a growth process from child, to young person, to an adult described clearly in 1 John 2: 12-14. So we see a tripartite nature of the believer; child, young person, and adult. The gifts given to the saints for the work of ministry is to bring the church, the children of God, to the fullness of God into mature adulthood, the measure being the stature of Jesus’s image (Ephesians 4: 7-14).
This is what God proposed in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, why he chose us before he created the world and predestined us for adoption in which he is working out all for our good, according to that he purposed, so to be conformed to the image of his Son (Romans 8:26-30). This begins with the salvation or new birth of the spirit of man, made possible by the works of Christ, with understanding we await salvation, the redemption of the body.
Salvation of The Soul: The Goal of Faith
We have in some measure discussed the spirit and body, now we come to the soul. The soul (Hebrew: nephesh, Greek: psyche) is often described as the seat of life, personality, emotions, intellect, and will. When God breathed the "breath of life" into the dust-formed man of Adam, he "became a living soul" (Genesis 2:7). This suggests that the soul is the animating principle, that which makes a human being a conscious, individual entity.
Again we reiterate the closeness but clear division of soul and spirit, stated in Hebrews 4:12, “... dividing soul and spirit… Also able to discern thoughts and intentions of the heart.”
Biblical scripture emphasizes the heart's pivotal role in human actions and the life of a believer. Jesus' teachings, as recorded in Matthew 15:18-19, identify the heart as the origin of both good and evil, stating that defilement stems from the evil thoughts originating within it, such as murder, adultery, and theft. The word of God through the Spirit is “able to discern thoughts and intentions of the heart.”
The Apostle Paul further underscores the heart's significance in Romans 10:10, portraying it as the locus of faith essential for justification and the initial point of salvation through belief. And in 1 Corinthians 2:11-12
Paul states how the spirit is essential in knowing God and his promises, and the gifts he has freely given to us in Christ, which he mentions in Ephesians 1.
Peter reiterates this when writing God has given us through His power (or Spirit) everything we need for life and godliness through the knowledge of Jesus (the word), in whom we have been freely given precious promises so that through them we may escape the corruption that is in the world (2 Peter 3:3-4).
The dividing of the soul and spirit separates the intentions and thoughts of the heart from that of the mind. It also states the closely connected but separate transformative work of the Spirit and Word of God. Paul's prayer in Ephesians 3:16-17 reveals a new inner being of the spirit and a new heart enabling Christ to reside there through faith being rooted in love, as faith is energized through actions of love, all three to serve as a source of spiritual power for believers.and growth. Again, this understanding reinforces the spiritual side of the tripartite nature of the believer.
The prophet Ezekiel spoke of how God would dwell among his people and give them a new heart and spirit in Ezekiel 36:26-27, "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them". This is the basis of how we are released from the Law to live in the The New Living Way; in which the law of the Spirit of life doesn’t release us from God’s righteous requirements but provides a way for us to fulfill them.
There are thoughts and intentions of the heart, which were expressed in early times as deep feelings in the center of our man's being. It is said the soul is where our thoughts, feelings, desires, and choices reside. It is the part of us that experiences joy, sorrow, love, and anger. Passages like Psalm 42:1-2, "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God," demonstrate the soul's capacity for longing and spiritual yearning. The soul is also the part of us that makes moral decisions and is accountable to God.
In 1 Peter 1:9, Peter describes the salvation of the soul as the "end" or "goal" of faith. This makes sense when we view mankind as a tripartite being composed of spirit, soul, and body, whereas as we have seen in scripture we await our salvation, the redemption of the body and that we have been made alive and raised spiritually seated with Christ in the heavenlies.
This is not merely an inconsequential theological debate; rather, it significantly aids our comprehension and proper handling of scripture. For example, there are biblical passages exhorting us to pursue holiness. How can we reconcile these calls to action with other scriptures that state we are already holy?
Billy Graham explained it this way “Are Christians a truly holy people, or are we trying to become a holy people?… As an oak sapling grows, it doesn’t get “oakier.” Oak is oak. It simply matures into what it is, a full-grown oak tree.”
In Matthew 7:17-18 Jesus uses the analogy of a tree and its fruit to explain the connection between a person's inner being and their outward behavior. The central point is that a healthy tree will inherently grow good fruit, whereas a bad tree will produce no fruit or bad fruit. This principle allows for the discernment of one from the other.
What makes the tree good is not of our doing it is a gift of God, it is a change of our nature whereby we become born of the Spirit, fruits of a new creation in Christ. Paul reiterates this in Ephesians 4:24 "and to put on the new man, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." Our identity rests in being a new spiritual being, in that our spirit is made alive in the heavenlies already.
Because we exist spiritually we are indebted to walk according to the Spirit. Since we live in this body of death, and in this corrupt world, there are opposing forces of the flesh and evil that work against us. So the goal of faith is the salvation of the soul, the renewing of the spirit of the mind (see Christ Our Sanctification: The Mind of Christ)
The Spirit: Our Connection to the Divine
The spirit (Hebrew: ruach, Greek: pneuma) is arguably the most profound and distinct component, serving as the part of humanity designed for communion with God. While the soul and body gives us physical life and personality, the spirit enables us to perceive and interact with the divine.
The Bible indicates that it is through our spirit that we are able to receive revelation from God, worship Him in truth, and be indwelt by the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 2:11 states, "For who knows a person's thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God."
This verse highlights the spirit's unique capacity to understand spiritual truths. Furthermore, Romans 8:16 declares, "The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children," emphasizing the direct communication between God's Spirit and our human spirit. It is the spirit that is "dead" in sin (Ephesians 2:1) and "made alive" in Christ (Ephesians 2:5), allowing for spiritual regeneration and a restored relationship with our Creator.
Distinction of Spirit and Soul
While distinct, the spirit, soul, and body are intricately interwoven and profoundly influence one another. The body is the vehicle for the soul and spirit in the physical world. The soul, with its emotions and intellect, can be influenced by both the physical sensations of the body and the spiritual promptings of the spirit.
The spirit, in turn, can guide and sanctify the soul, leading to righteous thoughts and actions, and empowering the body to be an instrument of God's will.
The most explicit biblical passage supporting this tripartite distinction is 1 Thessalonians 5:23: "May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." This verse clearly enumerates all three components, praying for their complete sanctification, suggesting they are separate yet integrated aspects of the human person. Hebrews 4:12 also alludes to this distinction, "division of soul and spirit" implying a discernment so profound it can separate even these closely intertwined elements.
Conclusion
The biblical understanding of humanity as spirit, soul, and body offers a rich and comprehensive view of our being. The body connects us to the physical world, the soul defines our individual personality and experiences, and the spirit enables our vital connection with the divine. Recognizing these distinctions is crucial for a holistic understanding of salvation, sanctification, and spiritual growth.
It underscores the importance of ministering to every aspect of a person's being—physical, emotional, and spiritual—as we strive to live lives fully devoted to God, awaiting the ultimate redemption and salvation of our entire being at the return of Christ.