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. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.
—1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 (NIV)
Just as God is three‑in-one—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—so am I. I am spirit, soul (mind), and body. The body is physical. My soul is what some might call my personality. It is my mind where my attitudes are determined. My body and soul are tied together. For example, what I believe is how I feel. If I believe something terrible, I have fear. That fear affects my physical health. Who I believe I am, is who I see when I look in the mirror. Either I believe who He says I am in my born-again spirit or I believe what I feel in my mind. I either have His peace or my fear.
“That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit” (John 3:6, NJKV). The soul and body make up the flesh. My spirit is separate from my soul and body. In my born-again spirit is where the Holy Spirit lives and speaks. My spirit is also the conduit for the power of God. “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also" (James 2:26, NKJV). The life-giving part of me is the spirit. The soul (mind) is where I “flesh out” what my spirit has received. When I was born- again, I became new by His Spirit. But without His spirit impacting and renewing my mind, that newness of life makes little difference. I remain unchanged. So without the spirit making a difference whatever work I do for Him has no life.
“It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63, NKJV). You cannot feel spiritual truth. The only way to understand spiritual truth is through the revelation of the Holy Spirit. If you want to understand what Jesus has given you in your born-again spirit, you must go to God's Word. You can't go by feelings. “For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was” (James 1:23, 24, NKJV). The Word of God is like a mirror you look into to see who you are in Jesus. The Word reveals who you are in your born-again spirit. And when your mind has been renewed by the Word, you believe who Jesus reveals you to be. In the mirror of the Word, you see who you are in Him.
I have never looked directly at my face. I have always looked at my reflection and believed what my mirror told me. The Word of God is a perfect reflection of what spiritual truth is. The Word gives me a perfect representation of my spiritual self, and it is the only way to see who God says I am. I want to be renewed in my mind by my born-again spirit instead of believing what my natural mind says. I want the Holy Spirit to determine my emotions and what I think.
If I choose to draw nearer to God in my born-again spirit, He is closer to me. My soul draws near to who He says I am, and I believe the truth of His Word in my mind—in my soul. I am changed and renewed by His Spirit. Then what has been born by His Spirit within my spirit, changes my mind—my attitudes—my perception—what I believe becomes who He says I am. The Lord, who called me by His Spirit, is faithful to do the work in me. I am sanctified spirit, mind, and body by His power.
I see my reflection for who He says I am. I am new in Him! The old person I was is gone. I am kept blameless by the gift of His life for mine. I want to be renewed continually by the grace that gave me His new life.
“So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image” (2 Corinthians 3:18, NLT). The veil has been removed. Whose reflection do you see?
© 2020 Lynn Lacher
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