THE SOUL, WHAT IS IT?

 THE SOUL, WHAT IS IT ,DO WE HAVE SOULS AS HUMANS?

The soul, what is it?

                     

 ECCLESIASTIC 12 :7

"For then the dust will return to the dust (earth),and the spirit will return to God who gave it"

      The soul could be seen as the immortal aspect of aspect of human beings. It is also seen as the non - physical elements of human beings . job declared 

in job 19:25-27 

" But as for me ,I know my redeemer lives, and he will stand upon the earth at last,

And after my body has decayed ,yet in my body I will see God.

I will see him for myself, yes ,I will see him with my own eyes,I am overwhelmed at the thought.

 

            God created Adam as a whole living being,body and soul but when death entered the world as a result of sin, one of the part of humanity ,the body returns to the dust at the death and another part returns to God.

WHAT IS GENESIS 2:7 SAYING?

" Then the lord God formed man from the the dust of the ground ,He breath the breathe of life into the mans nostrils and the man became a living soul"

The soul was later called the spirit or even the mind, heart. Some passages suggest that these words can be used interchangeably but other  passage seems to make a distinction between soul and spirit, mind and heart ,soul and heart .proverb 4:23 says ::- 

" Guard your heart above all else,for it determines the cause of your life"

 WHAT DEFINES THE SOUL?

1,   BASIC CONCEPT OF THE SOUL

       Humans were created as whole                   people ::-Genesis 2:7

       The soul referee in the context of                 death ::- Revelation 6:9

2,    SOUL OFTEN SYNONYMOUS WITH::-

       The Heart ::- psalm 84:2

       The spirit ::-  Ecclesiastes 12 :7

       The life ::-  psalms 26:9

       One whole being

3,    SOUL SOMETIMES APPEAR DISTINCT         FROM::-

      Hearts ::- Deuteronomy 4 :29

     Spirit ::- Hebrew 4 :12

WHAT DOES THE SOUL DO?

1,    They experiences human emotion , it         expresses it through two ways::- 

       .Positive emotions

       .Negative emotion

Examples of the positive emotions are as follows::-

                Peace

                Joy

                Refreshment

                Courage

                Support

                Prayers

               Ministration

Examples of the negetive emotions are as follows ::-

                 Grief

                 Sorrow

                 Bitterness

                 Depression

                 Anguish etc

2,    The Soul Also Has Spiritual Desires ::- 

     (a) It thirst,  yearns ,and seek God                     (psalms 42:1-2)

" As the deer pants for the streams of water,so my soul longs for you ,O God.

It thirst for God, the living God."

When can I go to stand before him?

     Faith begins with holy desires towards God and communion with him.the psalmist declared that the longing he has for God is like that of a deer ,that wanders out in the wilderness and when the water contents in his system has reduced,it pants for water like nothing else.

That is how we as believers ,are suppose to pants for the things of God and for God himself.

(b). It finds rest, wait ,and turn to God (psalms 62 1, 5)

" I wait quietly before God, for my victory comes from him,

Let all that i am(soul) quietly waits before God ,for my hope is in him"

The psalmist express his trust in God, some psalmist center exclusively on this theme,while others contain a section Of two expressing confidence is God .the psalmist find such trust appropriate because he experienced God refuge,fortress ,rock ,shield ,shepherd ,light ,and salvation. If we experience God in this manner , we too will want a to say " I quietly waits before God,for my hope is in him" praise God , hallelujah

(c). It takes refuge in God ( psalms 57:1)

(d). It loves God (Deuteronomy 6: 5)

(e). It serves and obeys God (Joshua 22 :5         , 2 kings 25:3)

(f).  It boast ,praise and cries out to God (psalms 34 :2)

( psalms 103 :1-2)

( Rev 6:9-10)

The book Revelation says::-

" when the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw under the alter the souls of all who have been martyred for the word of God and for being faithful in their testimony.

They shouted to the Lord and said "O sovereign lord,holy and true ,how long before you judge the people who belong to this world and avenge our blood for what they have done to us"

Here we saw that the living part of the martyrs (the soul) who were killed for the Gospel was seen by john in heaven. the soul is the undying part of a human being. it will live either in hell or in heaven forever.

WHAT DOES GOD DO FOR THE SOUL?

1,  He redeems the soul

Psalms 49:15

" But as for me,God will redeem my life (the soul).

He will snatch me from the power of the grave "

The psalmist affirms that  God will snatch his soul from the power of grave, which is death.

2,  He delivers the soul

Psalms 56 :13

" For he(God ) rescues me from death; you have kept my feet from slipping.

So now I can walk in your presence, OGod ,in your life giving light"

God is the one that rescues us from death,death of hell because of the sins I inherited, and curse of the law.

He is the one that is always protecting us from the snares of the devil and his demonic cohorts.

Praise the lord,because of Jesus we have life and we can praise. Amen

3,   He saves our soul

1 peter 1 :9

" The reward for trusting him will be the salvation of our souls."

When we have faith in God our maker and all he has done for us, then believe Jesus as our personal lord and Saviour, then abundant life is our portion.Amen

4 ,  He gives hope as an anchor for our            soul

       Hebrew 4 :12

" For the word of God is alive and powerful,it is sharper than the sharpest two edged sword,cutting between soul and spirit, between joints and marrow.it expresses our innermost thought and desires"