INTRODUCTION (THE PURPOSE OF THIS TEACHING)
In this series of teachings we focus our efforts on understanding of Man, Satan and Temptation.I believe that when we begin in Christianity, we must learn certain things that are fundamental, because these are basic information that we must know first to help us build our relationship with God.
We must understand that we come or go to church because we want to build a good relationship with God. And to build this relationship with God, we must first discover God and know his nature and character. And after you have finished learning about God, the second thing you must learn is to seek to understand man or ourselves. human being how we function spiritually because this are so important to help us better build our relationship with God.
Because you cannot be in good relationship with God if you do not understand better yourself, I mean the human being that we are. And in this series of teachings we will first learn to understand the man that we are and then we will learn to understand satant who is our permanent enemy who tries to destroy our relationship with God. Then we will finish by learning to understand temptation which is one of Satan's great strategies that he regularly uses to combat our relationship with God.
UNDERSTANDING MAN (THE HUMAN BEING):
WHO IS THE MAN ?
THE THREE DIMENSIONS OF MAN
WHO DOES MAN IDENTIFY WITH IN CREATION?
HOW WAS IT CREATED ?
WHY DID GOD CREATE A MAN ?
WHAT IS HAPPENING TO CAUSE MAN TO BE LOST ?
THE THREE TYPES OF MAN IN THE BIBLE
WHO IS THE MAN ?
The word man designates the human being in a general way including the male and the female, but it can also mean the male human being having acquired a certain physical and moral maturity.
NB: Do not confuse Man and human being are synonymous, they designate the same thing.
DEFINITION OF MAN ACCORDING TO THE BIBLE:
According to biblical reasoning and understanding, a human being is a person created in the image of God. Since his creation, God has endowed him with 4 main capacities which are: intellectual, moral, spiritual and biological.
IT IS WRITTEN IN GENESIS 1:26-28
26 And God said, “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over everything that creeps on the earth. 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; He created them male and female. 28 And God blessed them, and God said to them, Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over every living creature that moves on the earth.
FOUR DIVINE ABILITIES THAT GOD HAS PUT IN MAN (HUMAN BEING)
We fundamentally understand that man was created in the image of God, meaning that God created man with certain abilities that God himself possesses. Here are these four main abilities that God has transmitted to human beings: intellectual, moral, spiritual and biological abilities.
1.INTELLECTUAL ABILITIES
intellectual abilities are the abilities that allow man to be creative in society.These creative abilities given to human beings by God give them the intelligence to dominate and rule the world, but also the potential to invent things like planes, cars, building houses, etc.
GENESIS 3:6
The woman saw that the tree was good for food and pleasant to look at, and that it was valuable for opening the mind; she took of its fruit and ate; she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate of it.
GENESIS2:19-20
Now the Lord God had formed from the ground all the wild animals and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever name man gave to each living thing, that was its name. 20 Then the man gave names to all the livestock, to the birds of the air, and to all the wild animals.
2.MORAL ABILITIES:
Moral capacity which allows man to know the difference between good and evil, to live in full conscience, which makes the human being capable of behaving well on earth and also understanding how to live with other human beings and creatures of society.
EPHESIANS 4:23-24
23 to be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and to put on the new man, created according to God in righteousness and holiness produced by the truth.
3.SPIRITUAL ABILITIES:
Spiritual ability is that which allows man to communicate with God and other spiritual creatures.
GENESIS 3:8
Then they heard the voice of the LORD God passing through the garden toward evening, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.
4.BIOLOGICAL ABILITIES:
Biological capacity allows man (human being) Be fruitful, and to multiply on the planet. Thanks to this ability, man is able to give life to others and this allows the human race to perpetuate itself on the planet.
GENESIS 1:28
God blessed them, and God said to them: Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over every living creature that moves on the earth.
GOD CREATED MAN IN THREE DIMENSIONS:
According to the Bible, man is made up of three main parts: body, soul and spirit. The human person, created in the image of God, is both a corporeal and spiritual being. The biblical account expresses this reality with symbolic language, when it states that “God formed man from the clay of the ground; he breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and the man became a living being” (Gen 2:7).
IT IS WRITTEN IN GENESIS 2:7
Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
As we read this scripture, If we ask the Bible how human beings were created? the answer is clearly stated in this scripture. Following the biblical procedure of the creation of man, God first begins by creating the visible part which is the material part that we call the body.
It is written that God used the mud of the ground as raw material to form the material part of man, that is, the human body. But after God created the body, the problem was that the body was like a statue because it could not move or speak. What happens next? The Bible says that God breathed particularly into the nostrils of the body he had formed the breath of life, and the man became a living creature” (Genesis 2:7).
It is clear that by blowing into the nostrils the breath of life, which allowed man to become a living being, he had introduced the spiritual and invisible part of man which is the soul and spirit of the 'man.
1 THESSALONIANS 5:23
May the God of peace himself sanctify you entirely, and may your whole being, spirit, soul and body, be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ!
And now we clearly understand that the human being was created in three dimensions: body, soul and spirit. So to move forward in our teaching we will now focus on learning each part or component of the human being.
UNDERSTANDING THE HUMAN BODY:
WHAT IS THE HUMAN BODY? (DEFINITION)
According to the World Dictionary, the human body is a unique, highly organised complex structure, it is made up of billions of smaller structures of four main types: cells, tissues, organs and systems that work together to perform specific functions necessary to maintain of human life.
THE HUMAN BODY ACCORDING TO THE BIBLE:
The Bible views the body as a material element that we receive at birth. Imperfect, corrupted by sin, it deteriorates over the years. It is the material, visible and palpable part of the human being.
Functionally, it is like the Temple, the house where the spirit and soul of man live. it is like a protective envelope that allows our soul and our spirit to continue living on earth, it is the house where your soul lives, that is why if your body is destroyed you will be declared physically dead because you can't live in this world without your body, you will automatically become an invisible person.
Attention :
The body of man participates in the dignity of the image of God: it is animated by the soul and spirit which is the spiritual part of the human being.
THE IMPORTANCE OF THE HUMAN BODY:
To understand the importance of the body, we must ask ourselves the following question: why did God create the human body? Why did he decide to give us a wonderful body? what is the reason?
The body allows us to be physically visible, to move, to eat and to communicate. This human body is extraordinary, it endows it with 5 human senses which allow it to listen, see, smell, touch and speak also to multiply by giving life to other lives.
FIVE TRUTHS TO KNOW ABOUT THE HUMAN BODY:
The Bible views the body as a material element that we receive at birth. Imperfect, corrupted by sin, it deteriorates over the years. It is the material, visible and palpable part of the human being. Here are the 5 truths to know about the human body.
1. CORRUPTED BY SIN:
It is important to know that our human body is corrupted by sin from birth because of the sin of Adan and Eve which affected the entire human race. Even when we come in Christ or when we are born again, God delivers and saves our soul and regenerates our spirit by giving us a new spirit but the body remains the same, meaning it remains corrupt and mortal despite our salvation in Jesus.
We therefore have a responsibility to fight in our corrupt and mortal bodies not to allow the lust that human flesh produces to reign and have dominion over us. the bible says it clearly, do not obey your lusts. This is the reason why in Christ we must crucifier and sacrifice the flesh which is the body by refusing to obey these whims.
ROMANS 6:12
Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body and do not obey its lusts.
2. HE OPPOSES THE THINGS OF THE SPIRIT:
According to biblical knowledge the first enemy of your life is your body, because corrupted by sin it regularly produces desires contrary to that of the spirit. It is written: For the flesh desires contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit desires contrary to the flesh; they oppose each other, so that you do not do what you would like.
Example: if you want to fast, the body will tell you to do it tomorrow for some reason, if you want to pray, the body will tell you that it is tired, if you want to read the Bible, the body will start to sleep ect...
GALATIANS 5:17
For the flesh desires contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit desires contrary to the flesh; they oppose each other, so that you do not do what you would like.
3.IN CHRIST WE MUST CRUCIFY AND SACRIFICE THE BODY:
ROMANS 12:1
I exhort you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable worship.
4.THE BODY IS THE TEMPLE OF GOD
According to the Bible, our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who dwells in us, which you receive from God, and who does not belong to you?
1 CORINTHIANS 6:19
Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?
It is clearly written in the scriptures that our bodies do not belong to us, they belong to God. That's why we need to take care of it, and we need to be aware that we will be judged on how we take care of our bodies.
5. HE WILL BE RESURRECTED IN A NEW FORM IN THE LAST DAY.
In the last day, especially in the day of the last resurrection, God
will give life to our mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in us. But when our body comes back to life, it will be transformed differently from what it was sown or put into the ground.
Example :
it is sown as a natural body, it arises as a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. For this corruptible body must put on incorruptibility, and this mortal body must put on immortality in order to live in eternity with God.
ROMANS 8:11
And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
1CORINTHIANS 15:42 ,44 and 53
So it is with the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown corruptible; he rises incorruptible; (…) it is sown as a natural body, it resurrects as a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.(…) For this corruptible body must put on incorruptibility, and this mortal body must put on immortality.
UNDERSTANDING OUR SOUL
WHAT IS THE SOUL? ( DEFINITION OF SOUL )
Etymologically the word THE SOUL (from the Latin anima, “breath, respiration” is the main vital and spiritual element which animates the body of a living being (human, animal or even plant). Traditionally, the word “soul” generally refers to the living being.
THE SYNONYMS OF THE SOUL IN THE BIBLE
The heart and the inner man
SEVEN TRUTHS TO KNOW ABOUT THE SOUL
Here is the list of seven truths to know yourself
1.BREATHING (RESPIRATORY)
The breath we breathe is the effect of the existence of our soul. The breath we breathe is the effect of the existence of our soul. This is why breathing is the sign that a living being who is alive
2.THE LIVING BEING:
What makes a living being alive is the presence of the soul.
3.THE MAIN VITAL AND SPIRITUAL ELEMENT
The soul is the main vital and spiritual element of the human being, it practically plays the role of animating the body of living beings (humans, animals or even plants).
4.THE EMOTIONAL MAN
in other languages The soul also called the emotional man, because it represents the sensitive, sentimental and emotional part of man or the human being.
5.THE INNER MAN
The soul is the middle part of the human which creates the link between the body and the mind, it is the most important part of the man because it is the real you. This is what the Bible calls the inner man.
6.CENTER OF FEELINGS, EMOTIONS AND WILL
It is the seat and center of all the feelings, emotions and desires you give off every day. It is from your soul that all good or bad desires are born, for example: sleeping, eating, drinking, killing, crying, laughing, loving etc...
NB: The soul is the seat of affections, desires, emotions and of human will.
(Matthew 11.29 and 26.38, John 12.27.) The type of desire that you release every day, bad or good desire, depends on the state of your soul. If your soul is led by the Spirit of God, it will guide you to the right desire. But if your soul is controlled by the devil, he will produce only evil desires in order to arouse God's wrath against you.
7.IMMORTAL PART OF THE HUMAN BEING
The Bible teaches us that each soul is created by God according to His image and likeness; it is not produced by the parents; And that he is immortal in the same way that God is immortal, that he does not perish when separated from the body in physical death, and according to the Bible, he will be united with the body again in the final resurrection deaths.
NB: The soul is the seat of affections, desires, emotions and of human will.
(Matthew 11.29 and 26.38, John 12.27.)
At the time of physical death, the soul is not destroyed by the power of death but continues to live an endless existence in eternity because it is immortal.
The Bible says in 1 Tim 1:17.
Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
HEBREWS 4:12
For the word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating to the point of dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; she judges the feelings and thoughts of the heart.
PSALM 116:7
Yes, my soul, trust in God! For from him comes my hope.
PSALM 42:5
Why do you despair, my soul, and agitated within me?
Hope in God, for I will still praise him; He is my salvation and my God.
PSALM 143:3,4
The enemy pursues my soul, He tramples my life; He makes me dwell in darkness, Like those who are long dead.
MATTHEW 26:38
Then he said to them: My soul is sad even to death; stay here and
watch with me.
EZEKIEL 18:4
Behold, all souls are mine; the soul of the son as well as the soul of the father, both are mine; the soul that sins is the one that will die.
THE CHARACTERISTICS OF A LIVING SOUL
She is nutritious, She is sensitive, She moves, She sees, She speaks and She smells. She has the capacity to experience pleasure and pain; She is intelligent.
HOW OUR SOUL SPEAKS TO US?
How does our soul communicate its thoughts and feelings to us? We must understand that it is in this inner space that the answers to all our questions emerge. Our soul communicates with us in the form of thoughts and feelings. For her, it is the best way to express herself in the face of a danger or a question.
Your soul can communicate with you, the soul can be in contact with the spiritual and brings us messages in the form of visions and dreams, makes us feel the presence of God when he is all around us.
THE MISSION OF THE SOUL:
The mission of each soul is often considered the ultimate goal of our existence on earth. This is the most important work we are meant to do on earth before returning to eternity. It is based on our values, our passions, our natural talents and our vocation.
HOW TO KNOW IF YOU HAVE A GOOD SOUL?
Signs to easily recognize it:
1. By the type of thoughts and desires you produce each day.
2. Those around you envy you even if you are not financially rich.
3. You have the ability to accept yourself, including your little flaws
4. You feel a sense of inner peace and joy within you.
HOW TO SEE THE SOULS OF THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE WITH YOU?
The simplest way to see the soul of people is to understand their human qualities. These qualities include wisdom, compassion towards others, patience and selflessness, etc. Good human qualities are generally the foundation of a good soul.
CAN OUR SOUL LEAVE THE BODY?
The soul of man can leave the body for many physical or spiritual reasons, but it must return within a short time. If not reintegrated into the body as soon as possible, the person may experience physical death.
HERE ARE SOME EXPERIENCES THAT CAN PUSH YOUR SOUL OUT OF THE BODY:
Out-of-body experiences of the soul can occur during head trauma, near-death experiences, when taking psychotropic or other medications, and often also during sleeping time and physical death.For Christians, this is also done involuntarily by divine will during moments of ecstasy in prayer. And for Satanists intentionally through evil invocations (astral travel) and this is categorically forbidden by God in his word.
WHERE DOES THE SOUL GO AFTER DEATH?
Once the soul has left the body through death, it can no longer return to live in your body, unless there is a miracle of resurrection. Well according to the Bible, it will be found either in Hades (the place of torment) or either in the sanctuary of Abraham (the place of rest) to await the last judgment, This waiting period is called the transition period.
This transition period often depends on the life each person has led underground. Once the judgment is pronounced by God, the soul can go to heaven or hell, but sometimes for some reason it can be sent to another evil world to serve as an exclave for the demon and other evil people . , until she truly finds peace or death.
NB: Hades (the place of torment) which also refers to the kingdom of darkness against which Christians must fight (Ephesians 6:12). it is also called The Depths of Satan which refers to “the hell of the dead”, a word taken from the Hebrew “Sheol” and the Greek “Hades”. It is a place of temporary suffering for all wicked men.
LUC 16:22-31
The poor man died, and the angels carried him to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died, and was buried. 23In hell he lifted up his eyes; and while he was in torments, he saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 24He cried out, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I suffer cruelly in this flame. 25Abraham answered, My child, remember that in your life you received your good things, and in his life Lazarus had evils; now he is here comforted, and you are suffering. 26Moreover, between us and you there is a great gulf, so that those who would pass from here to you, or from there to us, cannot do so. 27The rich man said, I pray thee therefore, father Abraham, to send Lazarus to my father's house; 28for I have five brothers. This is so that he may testify these things to them, so that they also do not come to this place of torment. 29Abraham answered, They have Moses and the prophets; let them listen to them. 30And he said, No, father Abraham, but if any of the dead come to them, they will repent. 31And Abraham said to him, If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not be persuaded, even if one from the dead should rise again.
HOW TO TAKE CARE OF YOUR SOUL?
Taking care of one's soul involves cultivating the life of prayer and speech every day of one's life, respecting one's conscience, regularly spending time in the presence of God through meditation on the word of God and prayer, express love to others and practice God's Word daily.
HOW TO HAVE PEACE OF SOUL?
To have inner peace, it is essential to calm our mind.
For this, the ideal is to have an intimate relationship with God, who helps us to face everyday life better, with a more relaxed mind. You should therefore make it a habit to dedicate part of the day to God for meditation and prayer.
MATTHEW 11:29
Take my yoke upon you and become my disciples, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your soul.
MATTHEW 10:28
Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; Rather, fear him who is able to destroy soul and body in hell.
MATTHEW 22:37-38
Jesus answered him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great, the first commandment.
3.SPIRIT:
The spirit is the presence of God in every human being, whether pagan or Christian, believer or non-believer, we all have the human spirit that represents God himself in every person who lives on earth.
God, in creating man, placed himself in man from the beginning of creation. His presence was made evident by the spirit he put within us to ultimately guide us to him.
The spirt (mind) is like a kind of supervisor or superintendent responsible for ensuring the proper functioning of our soul. The mind is like the policeman reminding the soul how it should behave in accordance with God's law.
The mind is like a lamp that illuminates your soul so that it does not get lost in its destiny. This is why when your mind stops working, it will be easy to get lost. Because nothing, it will be there to warn you if danger presents itself in front of you.
If the soul is the seat of feelings and emotions, the mind and the seat of intelligence and thought, this is where human consciousness resides.
The mind is cognitive, capable of being aware of God and communicating with God.
(Job 32:8, Psalm 31:6, Proverbs 16:2 1Corinthians 2.11)
HEBREWS 4:12
For the word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating to the point of dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; she judges the feelings and thoughts of the heart.
NB: The voice of the human mind is called conscience. What is consciousness? usually, conscience is a calm inner voice that tells you that this act is right or wrong. Biblically, it is the voice of God that guides you in your daily life.
WHERE IS THE HUMAN SPIRIT LOCATED IN THE BODY?
The human spirit (mind) resides in our brain, it is the center of our thoughts, reflections, decisions and human consciousness.
THE PURPOSE OF THE HUMAN SPIRIT:
The human Spirit represents the presence of God within you. It is your individual connection with the divine. Its role in human functioning is to serve as a link between man and his creator, so that man does not lose himself far from his God.
THE THREE MAIN PARTS OF THE HUMAN SPIRIT:
The 3 components of the human spirit are: Thought, Imagination and Memory.
NB: The mind is the part of the human being that opposes bodily desire or the evil desire that the soul produces.
GENESIS 3:6-11
6 The woman saw that the tree was good for food and pleasant to the sight, and that it was valuable for opening the mind; she took of its fruit and ate; she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate of it. 7 The eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked, and having sewn together fig leaves, they made themselves girdles. 8 Then they heard the voice of the LORD God passing through the garden toward evening, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the LORD God called to the man and said to him, Where are you? 10 He answered, I heard your voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself. 11 And the LORD God said, Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I forbade you to eat from?
HUMAN IDENTITY:
WHO DOES MAN IDENTIFY WITH IN CREATION?
Human identity lies in the fact that man is in the image of God. This is one of the indisputable convictions of all Bible readers.
WHAT DOES THE IMAGE OF GOD MEAN?
The image of God means that humans were created in the likeness of God. They are the copy of God or a kind of photocopy of God in the midst of creation. Thus, man and the visible image of the invisible God.
This means that on the day of creation, God had transmitted his divine genetics to the man he had created to give him divine and supernatural abilities so that he would act like him on earth. Man is therefore like a little god in the middle of creation.
Being created in the image of God is also a way in which God intends to give man his divine authority over creation in order to govern other creatures. Man automatically becomes the administrator or manager of creation.
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