Forget not all His Benefits, Day 3

by: Carole L. Haines

Day 3: Spirit, Soul and Body 

 Bless the Lord, my soul, 
And all that is within me, bless His holy name. 
2 Bless the Lord, my soul, 
And do not forget any of His benefits. (Psalm 103:1-2) 

“All that is within me…” What exactly does that include? Just how many parts are encompassed in myself as a human being? According to God’s Word, three distinct parts; spirit soul and body.  

May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Thessalonians 5:23) 

I looked up each of these three parts in the Greek using Blue Letter Bible: 

Spirit- Pneuma-the spirit, I.e., the spirit, the power by which the human being feels, thinks and decides. 

Soul-Psyche-The vital source which animates the body and shows itself in breathing. The seat of our feelings, thinking, desires and aversions (heart, soul, etc.) 

Body–Soma- Living body, that which casts the shadow as distinguished from the shadow itself. (Blue Letter Bible) 

Pneumo-Psyche-Soma, yup, that’s us. We are made of 3 distinct characteristics. We feel, think and decide in our spirit as human beings. Our vital source of feelings, thinking, desires are found in our Psyche, our heart and soul. And our bodies are the outer form that encapsulates all that we are. I just love how it says, “The living body, which casts the shadow.” Our time here on earth is short, yet with the capacity of doing great things, or bringing destructive harm. I do not know a single person who lives on this planet. and has not affected it at all. God’s Word reveals this. 

¹¹ My days are like a lengthened shadow, And I wither away like grass. 

¹² But You, Lord, remain forever, And Your name remains to all generations. 
(Psalm 102:11-12) 

And yet God has also placed in our hearts the desire to live forever, to be eternal. 

“He has also set eternity in their heart, without the possibility that mankind will find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end.” 
(Ecclesiastes 3:11b) 

Our bodies may cast only shadows, but with the Lord as the light shining through us, we can glorify His in such a way, that people see our good works and know they are only possible through God Himself. (Matthew 5:16) 

More on Sprit, Soul and Body next time.