What is the heart? For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. (Heb. 4:12) Heb. 4:12 tells us that the heart is comprised of both the soul and the spirit of the person. These two are so intertwined together that we are told the Word of God is the only instrument sharp enough to divide between them. The thoughts and intents of our heart flow from two sources. Our spirit gets direction, inspiration and motivation from God, and then our soul responds joining the natural and the spiritual together. The spirit and the soul are two different parts of our being. With the spirit we relate to God and with the soul we relate to the world around us. Where these two intersect we find the heart,’ the center of man’s being. We are a spirit, possess a soul, and live in a body. We are a spirit, soul, and body being. The Word says (Prov. 4:23) that we should keep our heart for out of it flow the issues of life. And also we are told that as a man thinks in his heart, so is he (Prov. 23:7). Both of these scriptures speak of the fact that out of our innermost being (whether through our spirit or through the soul) our thoughts come to us and that we will act upon or be as we think. We can allow our soul (mind, will, emotions and personality) to guide us, or we can allow our spirit to guide us. When our recreated spirit is allowed to reign, we are walking after the Spirit. When our flesh, emotions or unrenewed mind is allowed to reign, we are walking after the flesh. We must choose which aspect of the heart we will follow. There are some scriptures that refer to the heart of man which may emphasize the aspect of the soul more than the spirit or vice-versa, depending upon the context. However, technically the heart is the union of the two and is who we really are. Our soul contacts the natural realm predominantly and our spirit contacts Gods realm. We need the two together, functioning as one, in order to walk in the spirit. In other words, although our born again spirit might know God, our head (the soul including the mind, will, intellect, and emotions) might not know God very well until our mind is renewed and our emotions come under the influence of the Spirit.
Posted on: Wed, 23 Jul 2014 11:00:01 +0000
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