The Spirit of Man

The Spirit of Man

Thomas Allen

In “The Soul,” I showed that the Hebrews believed that the soul was mortal and ceased conscious existence when the body died. On the other hand, pagans believed that the soul was immortal. When the body died, the soul was liberated from the body to continue conscious existence elsewhere. In that article, I mention the spirit of man in passing and that like the soul, it ceased to exist when the body died.

In Babylonian Connection Between Ancient and Modern Religions (Phoenix, Arizona:  America's Promise, 1978), Stephen E. Jones gives an excellent explanation of the spirit of man (pages 20-23). A summary of his explanation follows.

Some theologians argue that the spirit of man is that part of human nature that allies with God. Also, some identify the spirit of man as what makes man a rational being. Nearly all believe that the spirit like the soul is immortal and continues to exist beyond the death of the body.

However, the Hebrew understanding of the spirit of man is the breath of God that animates the soul, which gives the body life. Thus, the soul of man contains the life-giving spirit of God. That is, the breath of life is the spirit of life. The Hebrew word for “breath” and “spirit” is the same word.

And Jehovah God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. (Gen. 2:7)

According to Genesis 2:7, God gave man whom he formed from dust life when He breathed the breath or spirit of life into his nostrils.

(For my life is yet whole in me, And the spirit of God is in my nostrils); (Job 27:3)

As stated by Job, a person lives if he continues to breathe. Once he ceases to breathe, his body, soul, and spirit die and cease to have any conscience existence.

According to the Hebrews, man is not a spirit. Man is composed of a body (flesh) and soul (blood). His spirit is merely the air in his lungs. When one breathes, the lungs give life (spirit) to the blood (soul). Then, the blood transfers life-giving air to the body. Thus, the spirit gives life to a person, but it is not the actual person. Like the air that a person breathes, the spirit is something that the person uses, but it is not the person.

At death, the body, soul, and spirit return to the original state where they wait until the resurrection. Upon death, the body returns to dust; the soul returns to Sheol (Hades), i.e., nonexistence; the spirit returns to God from where it came. Consequently, death is a reversal of creation.

At death, the spirit (breath) separates from the soul (blood). “When the breathing stops, the blood loses its life supply, and both flesh and blood begin to corrupt in death. The air (spirit) neither lives nor dies; it simply gives life for a season and then returns from whence it came” (pp. 21-22). 

The Bible describes death as follows:

and the dust returneth to the earth as it was, and the spirit returneth unto God who gave it. (Eccl. 12:7)

Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled; Thou takest away their breath [spirit], they [the people themselves] die, And return to their dust. (Ps. 104:29)

According to Acts, David is not in heaven. (For David ascended not into the heavens: . . . [Acts 2:34]) Therefore, “that the spirit returning to God does not imply that the person goes to heaven” (p. 22).

Likewise, when Jesus said, “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said this, he gave up the ghost” (Luke 23:46), his spirit went to God, but he did not spend three days in heaven with his Father. John 20:17 proves that he did not go to heaven when he died. Jesus said to Mary, “Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended unto the Father.” Furthermore, Peter states that Jesus’ soul went to Hades, oblivion, where it had no conscience existence (Acts 2:31). 

Thus, neither man’s soul nor spirit is immortal. They cease existence when the body dies. Only when God resurrects the body do they return as they returned to Jesus when God raised Jesus from the dead.

Copyright © 2022 by Thomas Coley Allen.

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Comments on Wilkin’s The Ten Most Misunderstood Words in the Bible

Comments on Wilkin’s The Ten Most Misunderstood Words in the Bible

Thomas Allen

With The Ten Most Misunderstood Words in the Bible (2012), Robert N. Wilkin has written an interesting and enlightening book. He discusses and explains in detail faith, everlasting, saved, lost, heaven, hell, repentance, grace, gospel, and judgment. Also, he briefly discusses eleven other often misunderstood words. Below are several questions, observations, and comments about his discussions.

1. One of the attributes of God is that He is omnipresent: He is everywhere simultaneously. Nowhere and no place exists where He is not. Nothing exists where He is not. If there is somewhere or something where He is not, then He is not omnipresent.

Therefore, He has to fill every void, every particular, every wave, every energy, every force, every spirit, and every whatever simultaneously, including the Lake of Fire (what most people mistakenly called Hell) and even Satan himself. Since the inhabitants of the Lake of Fire, the unbelievers, are tormented forever, then beings tainted with a sin nature exist forever. They have everlasting life. How can God, whose holiness is beyond our comprehension, tolerate the everlasting sin nature of unbelievers? Further, how can He tolerate the everlasting existence of Satan and his gang of fallen angels?

2. Wilkin is an adherent of the free grace doctrine of salvation. Thus, he claims that everlasting life is obtained by believing in Jesus for it. Then, he claims that unbelievers are tormented forever in the Lake of Fire. To be tormented forever requires unbelievers to have everlasting life so that they can endure everlasting torment. Consequently, based on Wilkin’s description of believers and unbelievers, all humans have everlasting life once they are conceived. This means that humans must be innately immortal. Though the physical body dies, the conscience essence lives forever.

If belief in Jesus and a lack of belief in Jesus determine where believers and unbelievers spend their everlasting lives — the New Earth or the Lake of Fire — then believing in Jesus does not guarantee everlasting life. Humans already have that. Therefore, believers do not obtain everlasting life by believing in Jesus. Being innately immortal, they already have everlasting life. Belief and the lack of belief merely determine their ultimate destination, where they will spend their everlasting life. (If a believer obtains everlasting life by believing in Jesus, does an unbeliever obtain everlasting life by not believing in Jesus?)

Some of the doctrines that Wilkin condemns, such as annihilation, overcome the problem of humans being innately immortal, having everlasting life. Contrary to Wilkin’s doctrine, they really do have Jesus giving everlasting life to people who believe in him for it.

3. I have always been told that the New Earth (what most people mistakenly called Heaven) is a place of everlasting happiness, joy, bliss, contentment, serenity,  peacefulness, etc. It is a place without sorrow, sadness, suffering, etc. How can one live forever in peaceful bliss, etc. knowing that one’s spouse, children, siblings, parents, and other relatives and close friends are tormented forever? Such a person would naturally feel sadness, sorrow, etc. Moreover, how can a truly compassionate empathic believer find peaceful bliss void of sorrow in the New Earth while knowing unbelievers are tormented forever in the Lake of Fire?

(According to Wilkin, Heaven or more correctly Paradise is not the permanent residence for believers; the New Earth is. Before Jesus’ ascension, Paradise is that part of Hades or Sheol where believers stay temporarily, and after Jesus’ ascension,  Paradise is that part of the third heaven where believers stay until their judgment. Furthermore, Hell is not the permanent residence for unbelievers; the Lake of Fire is. Hell is that part of Hades or Sheol where unbelievers stay temporarily until their judgment.)

4. Wilkin argues that repentance refers to temporal life and never to avoiding eternal condemnation in the Lake of Fire. Further, he claims that repentance leads to a longer and better physical life.

This conclusion seems questionable. If people who abuse recreational chemicals and pharmaceutical drugs are omitted, the “good” seem to live no longer than  unrepentant “bad” persons. On the contrary, the opposite often seems true. The old saying that “the good die young” came into being because people noticed that many good people die young while really evil people, including Satanists and Luciferians, live into their late 70s and 80s and even 90s.

This rule that repentance leads to a longer and better life seems to have as many exceptions as the “‘i’ before ‘e’ except after ‘c’ or when sounding like ‘a’, as in neighbor or weigh” rule. This rule has more words that are exceptions than words that comply with it. Perhaps, someday someone will do a study to find out if repentance results in a statistically significantly longer life and a more healthy, prosperous, and joyful life.

5. Wilkin notes that in the world to come, the police, jailers, lawyers, thieves, and other occupations related to the criminal justice system cease to exist because they are not needed in a sinless world. He also notes that some believers will be rulers. The legitimate function of government is to protect life, liberty, and property from trespasses from others, and, much beyond this, the government morphs into a state, which is a form of idolatry. (For example, public works not paid for by user fees, public education, and public welfare are the actions of a state.) Since no real government will be needed, what is the function of these rulers? Is it to feed their egos by giving them people to boss?

Moreover, being God the Son, Jesus is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent. Therefore, why does he need anyone to assist him in ruling? If Jesus does not need any assistant rulers, what is the purpose of making some rulers, other than feeding their egos so that they can boast “I made the cut and you didn’t?”

6. Since the streets of the New Jerusalem are paved in gold, women will not be able to wear high heels when they cross a street. Moreover, transportation will be difficult, unless some kind of antigravity form of transportation is used. Because of its malleability, Gold is too soft for pavement.

Copyright © 2021 by Thomas Coley Allen.

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