Do we have a Spirit that is in union with God's Spirit, much like a husband and wife become one flesh? Or did God put His Spirit into us, meaning that our Spirit is God's Spirit?
It does sound right to me that the word spirit in body, soul, and spirit is a noun. With the word Spirit being put in us I see the word being a noun also. With the word Spirit being in us I also think of being quickened and having action within our lives to do God's desires through us and this being a verb. With that word Spirit being in us I think of us having his desire and doing his will and the word spirit being a verb also.
Dear Graftedbranch,Yes, the word spirit or Spirit translated from Strongs number 4151 Pnyoo'-mah is translated as a noun whether used to speak of the spirit in man, or a spirit from the enemy, or the Spirit from God.Kenneth S Wuest in his Word Studies in the Greek New Testament says that it is not the dividing apart Soul and Spirit from one another, rather it is the piercing of or into the Soul and Spirit separately. I've always understood it to mean what you stated though.In either case, the Word is that what pierces soul and spirit or divides soul and spirit and the goal in doing this appears to cause us to labor to enter that rest and boldly enter the throne of grace. Laboring and entering are verbs. Maybe this is partly why I tend to think of spirit being and action word.I appreciate everyones posts on this subject.In Christ,GaryE
_________________Gary Eckenroth
In secular terms we speak of having "spirit" meaning being animated,
Our spirit though the fall is deadened and is atrophied and we live by our soul life.
This is THE vital meaning of spirit. The spirit enlivens the body and the soul. Yes 'spirit' is a noun. The instrinsic characteristic quality of this entity is that it is capable of ministering life to our inanimate dust.
But our soul has it's own life.
Unless we embrace the truth that our inner man is essentially linked to our outer man (and now supposed to dominate the choices of our outer man), we will continue battling with feelings, thoughts, emotions, desires, ambitions - a whole battery of conflicting abstract tugs and pulls - when all that is necessary is for us to accept there can be a total integration of our body, soul and spirit, as we walk (literally, with our physical body) in the Holy Spirit, (therefore not fulfilling the lusts of the flesh - carnality), and thereby obeying (satisfying) the will of our Father in heaven. This is a wholeness in which the tripartite nature of man is not questioned, undermined, countered or resisted... rather, it is completed.
What a very true and wonderful encouraging word... keep it coming!
Our bodies will never be one with our spirit in this life, but always be the seat of the warfare which is waged between the flesh and the spirit.
The reason I chose the three measures of meal, is that it represents man.... and there can be no clearer word from the mouth of Jesus Himself, endorsing the truth of the integration of the life of the Spirit, into the body, inseparably. The human spirit is thus given the abundant life He promised in John 10.