Body, Soul, and Spirit

Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Thessalonians 5:23

We are made of three parts according to this verse.  Through a study I did, GraceWalk Experience, I began to understand this truth more fully.  Steve McVey explained it like this: draw a large circle, inside the circle draw a smaller circle and then inside that one draw an even smaller circle.  You’ll have three circles one inside the other.  Label the largest circle BODY, the circle inside that one SOUL and the smallest circle in the middle SPIRIT.

The body is your flesh.  This is the place you experience pleasure, pain and temptation.  It’s here you want what you want.  The soul is your will, thoughts, and emotions.  Your spirit is your place of spirituality, the place you either connect with God, if you choose, or the place you don’t connect with God.

If you are a believer your dead spirit has been replaced by the Spirit of God which is alive and thriving in you whether you are aware of it or not.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.  2 Corinthians 5:17

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us,even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ ~ by grace you have been saved… Ephesians 2:4-5

And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you.  And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. Ezekiel 36:26

Your new spirit gives you new identity in Christ Jesus.  You were changed on the inside and if you surrender to the Spirit and let Him work in you then the outside also changes (body and soul).  You are brand spankin’ new!

When we allow the Spirit to live in and through us He will permeate the body and soul.  Imagine a water faucet being turned on full blast in your heart and as it continues to pour out your entire being is filled from head to toe.  You are consumed by this water, covered, drenched in it.  That’s what the Spirit does in you when you let Him.  This is the meaning of sanctified completely. (1 Thessalonians 5:23)  We can live and look like Christ when the Spirit overtakes our entire being, and flows freely throughout.  It’s about asking and then letting Jesus live in and through us each day.  Sometimes it’s asking and letting Him take over each minute.  That’s when the light of Jesus is shining through your body, soul and spirit and you are changed by your willingness to turn on the water and let it flow.  That’s what we really want anyway, right?

Thank you, Father, for changing me, making me new, completing me, and giving me everything I need to live a godly life!

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence…. 2 Peter 1:3

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