Why do we need salvation, Pt 4: Body, soul, and spirit
Genesis 2:15-17 15The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
Genesis 3:8 8Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day,….
Romans 5:12-15 12Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned— 13To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law. 14Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam…
2Timothy 3:2, 5 2People will be lovers of themselves,… 5having a form of godliness but denying its power.
Galatians 2:20 20I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Ephesians 1:4 4For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.
Romans 6:3-6 3Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. 5For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin—
Colossians 3:3-4 3For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
Ephesians 2:4-6 4But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—
Body, soul, and spirit
In Genesis 1:26 we read that God created man in His own image. But since God does not have a body because He is Spirit, ‘made in His own image’ cannot refer to having a body. Being made in the image of God refers to un-physical things like personality, conscience, and understanding of right and wrong. In Genesis 2:7 we read how God created man.
26Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness,… (Genesis 1:26)
7Then 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. (Genesis 2:7)
There are two other verses which talk about the nature of humans…
23May 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)
12For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)
So we can see that humans have bodies because they are made from the dust of the ground and we see also that they have a soul and a spirit. Each of theses parts also has sub-parts, components, of which they are made. The body, with which we are the most familiar, has its five senses with which we interact with the world—hearing, taste, sight, smell, and touch. The soul also has its ‘senses’ with which we express our internal selves, our joie de vivre, our love of life. These are our mind, emotions, and will. Equally our spirit has its parts through which we communicate with God. These are communion, conscience, and worship.
In the Garden
We don’t know how much time passed between the creation of Adam and Eve and their eating of the fruit of the Tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil—it might have been hundreds of years. God had given Adam, and his helpmate Eve, dominion over all of the earth, which means their bodies and wills were fully functional They were innocent, and certainly they pro-created.
It seems also that God was in the habit of walking in the Garden in the cool of the evening as it was on one of those walks that Adam’s sin was revealed. Before that sin, God and Adam had intimate relationship. Psalm 104:1-2 says that God ‘clothed Himself with light as with a garment’ and since Adam was made in God’s image, it is reasonable to assume that Adam was clothed with that same light. Although the Holy Spirit did not yet reside in the human heart (this happens after the salvation experience), He was facilitating the communion of Adam and Eve with God. It is as if Adam was enveloped with the Holy Spirit, from the outside in instead of inside out. Adam was in full harmony with God and because of this fully encompassing relationship with God, Adam’s heart and mind were enlightened by the things of God.
Whereas we, now, have to strive to draw close to God, to resist the things of the world, and to develop Godly habits, Adam and Eve had none of those struggles. They were fully interactive, fully invested, and fully communicative.
At the Fall
But then Satan, previously known as Lucifer, entered the scene in the form of the serpent. He deceived Eve, who misled Adam, and they both ate of the forbidden Tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil. Then something catastrophic happened. Something died. In the Genesis 2 verse above God said “you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.” But Adam didn’t die, in fact he lived 930 years. What died then?
Before the sin, Adam communicated directly, maybe instantaneously, with God through the Holy Spirit. But God can have no contact or association with sin. Adam’s sin then caused a gap, a separation, to exist between himself and God. That connection of light through the Holy Spirit stopped. His creation in the image and likeness of God immediately became stained and deformed by sin.
Up to this point humans were spiritual beings who happened to live inside fleshly bodies. But with the death of spiritual connection to God, human being became carnal, that is, living through their bodies only. Their personal human spirit died because it had lost the nourishing presence of the Holy Spirit. A person might ask, “Does this mean all people from Adam to personal salvation have had a dead spirit?” Yes. “ What about all the vibrancy, and liveliness of people?” Actually, the soul, through emotions, does a very effective imitation of the human spirit. We see people active, having joy, eagerness, and excitement. They seem spirited and engaging, but it is all based on fleshly interactions. Where once we were in communion with God through our spiritual connection, now we manifest Satan’s rebelliousness and sinful nature. Once the bond with God was secure and steady, now our interaction with others is fleshly, dependent on others’ approvals, and insecure. The normal state of humans has become operating out of emotions instead of through the spirit. We have as it says in 2 Timothy a form of Godliness without the power.
Before the Fall life was driven first by spirit, then soul, then body. Afterwards, it was reversed: the body became master, soul steward, and spirit servant.1 It is because the body is the driving force now that sin is such an issue. Before sin was unnatural as the spirit led. But now we are inherently corrupt inside and temptation from the outside finds easy access.
At the Cross
For all the time since Adam that easy access has caused a myriad of problems. Wars have begun because of greed, and covetousness. Marriages have failed because of wanton desire. Careers have been cut short because of the desire for power. Although at that moment of sin, man turned away from God, at salvation, God brings him back. All along God knew Adam would fall, and God had a plan, all along, to lead him back. Through the centuries, promises were made and fulfilled, covenants reached, and the sacrificial system established to teach humans about the futility of turning to God through works.
But then, at just the right time, God brought a solution. Jesus, the Messiah, the Christ, God in an earth-suit, came to restore God’s people to Him. Jesus wasn’t dragged to the Cross, His life wasn’t taken from Him, He willingly sacrificed Himself. After all, as God the Son, Jesus could have wiped out His tormentors with a puff of His breath. He could have caused the nails to back out of the Cross and His wounds to heal themselves.
But He gave up His life for us. As Hebrews 12:1-2 says, “For the joy set before him, he endured the cross, scorning its shame….”. That joy was the bringing of us back into the family of God!
At salvation
That sacrifice at the Cross manifests in the heart of every person who accepts Jesus as his or her personal Savior. On the Cross, Jesus took upon His shoulders every sin ever committed, or ever to be committed, of every person who accepts Him as Lord. Then, three days later, when Jesus resurrected from the grave, those sins were left there.
There are many implications inherent in that resurrection. When someone accepts Christ as Savior, it is not just a decision of the mind or even an emotional response of the heart—it is a spiritual transformation of the deepest kind. That reversal of spirit, soul, and body is reversed back…now, through Christ the original design created by God is re-invigorated. Our spirit is re-animated; the parts of our spirit—communion, conscience, and worship—are unseared. We are now awake to God; we can hear His voice, feel His affirmations, encouragements, and chastisements. What happens to our spirit is not surface-level—it is a reorientation of identity, destiny, and life itself.
The Galatians verse captures one of the deepest realities of salvation: our old self is nailed to the cross with Jesus. Spiritually speaking, when we accept Christ, God counts us as having died with Him. The sinful “I” that once controlled our choices is no longer the ruling authority. This is not to say that our personalities disappear or that we lose individuality. Rather, it is our spiritual standing before God that changes. Before salvation, we were marked by rebellion, alienation, and death. But once we receive Christ, the Spirit applies His death and resurrection to us personally. Our spirit becomes the dwelling place of Christ Himself.
This union with Christ means that our identity is forever altered. We don’t simply try harder to live a good life. Instead, we live by the faith of the Son of God, who gave Himself for us. The Spirit within us testifies that our life is no longer our own, but God’s. In this sense, our spirit is joined with His Spirit—alive in a way it never was before.
The Ephesians verse reminds us that our new life in Christ is not random. Spiritually, when we come to Him, we step into a reality that God purposed before the foundation of the world. Our spirit becomes aligned with His eternal choice. We are no longer defined by the guilt and shame of sin, but by holiness and blamelessness that Christ imparts.
What happens to our spirit here is a radical repositioning. From being outside God’s family, we are brought in. From being guilty, we are declared righteous. Our spirit is stamped with divine purpose—set apart for Him. This holiness isn’t something we generate; it is something given to us by virtue of being “in Christ.” In practical terms, this means that when doubts arise—when we feel unworthy or distant from God—we can return to this truth. Our spirit has already been chosen, already been made holy in His sight. We are, spiritually, His treasured possession.
What about me?
So, what happens to our spirit when we accept Christ as Savior?
We are crucified with Christ, so our old self no longer rules.
We are chosen and made holy, set apart for God’s eternal purposes.
We are buried and raised with Christ, reborn to live a new life.
We are hidden with Christ, secure and destined for glory.
We are seated with Christ, participating in His heavenly reign.
Each of these passages paints a part of the picture, but together they show a breathtaking transformation. Our spirit doesn’t just get “improved.” It is united with Christ, given His life, and drawn into His destiny. That’s why Paul can say with such confidence, “If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Cor 5:17). For the believer, this is not theory—it’s reality. And it is this spiritual reality that empowers us to live differently in the world, to fight sin, to endure trials, and to look forward to glory. Accepting Christ as Savior doesn’t just change our future—it changes our spirit right now.
All of this can be confusing, but the bottom line is this: We are set free. Your response is probably something like, “Well, I don’t feel any different!” That is exactly right—you don’t. Have you ever decided to stop a particular sin habit, but found you kept doing it? Well the very person who wrote these verses had the exact same problem…
15I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do…. 19For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. (Romans 7:15, 19)
What we know about ourselves resides in our soul—in our mind, emotions, and will. Our relationship with God and Son resides in our spirit. It is our spirit which shapes our identity with Christ. Our spirit has been healed and so we have eternity with Christ. But until that day we must trust Him. He’s got our back!
1Weckeman, A.W. (date unknown). Perfecting the saints, Adam before and after the Fall. Retrieved from: https://www.perfectingthesaints.com/Adam Before and After the Fall - Perfecting of the Saints