Let's consider the possibility that we attribute more than we should to our brains. For example, we know that we see with our eyes. The brain processes the images. It stores the memories of what we see and so when we see a familiar face we recognize it. But it has those images because of the eyes.

We also have spiritual eyesight, the eyes of our understanding. When we are enlightened by the Spirit and we confess with our mouth and believe in our hearts (our innermost understanding) we are saved.

So, I'm exploring here the possibility that our physical hearts are more directly linked to our emotional, spiritual eyes than we might think. Through the Holy Spirit, our spirits and souls see the blessings of God that are new every morning and our spirits through the brain bring back spiritual memories of God's past blessings. If our hearts beat in unison with the spirit of God we will rejoice in our hearts, inwardly in the spirit and it will manifest in us physically. We will smile in our hearts.

Derek Prince in this video I mentioned above equates the soul with the carnal nature more or less.

Adventists teach that the soul is the entire being. Prince however has a stronger case scripturally. What he doesn't articulate as well as he might is the fact that in the plan of redemption, God will transform the soul, remaking it in the image of God. In submitting to the will and righteousness of God we allow Him to put to death the carnel element, liberating our souls from the bondage of sin. If we walk in the spirit we are saints, holy men and women. The spirit is willing Christ said. It is our souls that have to sanctified and this is the work of a lifetime but we can in the sight of God be perfect at every stage of growth, transformed from glory to glory.

A stronger case, really?

Genesis 2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

In the creation, did God create a being with a carnal nature? NO.

In the Desire of Ages there's an interesting quote by Sister White that sheds light on that part of our nature called the soul:



Does that part in italics surprise you? It did me. I was taken aback at first but then delighted. The expulsion of sin is the act of the soul! The power and therefore the glory goes to God, but the soul is empowered to obey the dictates of the will in fulilling the will of God. We hear a lot today about the empowerment of women, minorities etc. This is true empowerment. It is the gospel of true liberation!

APL, you should watch the video and then let me know what your thoughts on his use of scripture. He is basing his position on more than one text, much more.

At the 3:15 point and shortly thereafter this guy says he can't explain the difference from the spirit and the soul. He says he can only lead us to the fringe and we have to go in from there on our own. What a bizarre situation this guy works from.

What is it you actually see as edifying in the guy Charity?

Thanks for sharing this video. I haven't listened to the full hour; just half of it...and I'm impressed with this guy. He can do a study by looking at scriptures with their Hebrew and Greek source. I plan to restart this video but with paper and a pencil this time to take notes.

Up to now I agree with Charity...he does have a stronger case scriptually.


I agree Adam was not created with a soul with a carnal nature. His (& Eve) soul became carnal after Eve relied on the info of what her body conveyed to her. I tried to explain this in an earlier post.

Check out this lesson ...
ONE INDIVISIBLE WHOLE. "And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being" (Gen. 2:7, NKJV).

Scripture gives us a simple equation for understanding the nature of humans:
Body (dust of the ground; the earth's elements)
plus Breath of life ("spirit" of life from God) equals
A living person (a soul)....

SPIRIT (Judg. 15:19; Eccles. 12:7; Luke 10:21).

In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word ruach occurs 377 times and is translated "wind ... .. breath," or "spirit" (Gen. 8: 1), "life principle" (Gen. 6:17; 7:22), "courage" (Josh. 2:11), "vitality" or "strength" (Judg. 15:19), "disposition" (Isa. 54:6), and "moral character" (Ezek. 11:19).

The "spirit" or "breath" of a person is identical with the "spirit" or "breath" of animals (Eccles. 3:19). This "spirit" or "breath" of a person returns to God at the time of death, and the body returns to the dust where it came from (Job 34:14; Eccles. 12:7). It is also translated "Spirit of God" (Isa. 63:10). In the New Testament the Greek word pneuma is similarly translated as "spirit" or "to breathe." It is also translated as ,"mood," "attitude," or "state of feeling" (Rom. 8:15; 1 Cor. 4:21; 2 Tim. 1:7; 1 John 4:6). Like ruach, it is sometimes translated "Spirit of God" (1 Cor. 2:11, 14; Eph. 4:30; Heb. 2:4; 1 Pet. 1:12; 2 Pet. 1:21).

Neither in the Old Testament nor the New Testament does ruach or pneuma refer to an intelligent entity capable of existence apart from the body. (See SDA Bible Dictionary, p. 1040.)

SOUL (Ps. 23:3; Matt. 26:38; Heb. 4:12).

In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word nephesh occurs 755 times and is translated in various ways depending on the context. It is most frequently translated "life" (Gen. 9:4, 5; 1 Sam. 19:5; Job 2:4, 6; Ps. 31:13) and "person" (Gen. 14:21; Num. 5:6; Deut. 14:22). It is also translated "dead body" (Num. 9:6) and "appetite" (Eccles. 6:7). In numerous places it is translated as personal pronouns (Gen. 12:13; Lev. 11:43, 44; Ps. 3:2; Jer. 37:9). In the New Testament, the Greek word psuche is similar to the Hebrew word nephesh and is translated "life" or "lives" over forty times

"A living soul" (Gen. 2:7). "When the lifeless form of man was infused with this divine 'breath,' neshamah, of life, man became a living ,soul,' nephesh. The word nephesh has a variety of meanings [see above]. . . . [None of these meanings] applies to the spirit, ruach, indicating clearly the great difference between the two terms. It is obvious from [these meanings] that the translation "soul" given by the KJV to the nephesh of ch. 2:7 is not appropriate, if the commonly used expression "immortal soul" be implied. Although popular, this concept is completely foreign to the Bible. This passage may rightly be translated: 'Man became a living being' (RSV). When 'soul' is considered synonymous with 'being,' we gain the Scriptural meaning of nephesh in this text."—SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 1, p. 223.

The fact that the words nephesh and psuche are translated "soul," plus so many other different ways, shows they cannot refer to a specific conscious entity capable of surviving after death. The idea that the "soul" can exist apart from the body is wholly foreign to the Bible. Such a concept originated in the ancient pagan religious and philosophical systems of Egypt and Greece then made its way into Christian theology. In Scripture, the word soul generally means the whole person as when Adam started living or when Jesus said that His "soul," or His whole person, was sorrowful.

BODY (Jer. 17:5; 1 Cor. 15:50-52; Gal. 5:16-26).

In the Old Testament, the word flesh is translated from the Hebrew basar and in the New Testament from the Greek sarx. Basar and sarx describe: (1) the body or physical parts of humans and animals (Gen. 9:4; 29:14; Luke 24:39; 1 Cor. 15:39); (2) living things in general (Gen. 6:13; 1 Pet. 1:24); (3) material things contrasted with spiritual things (Jer. 17:5; Zech. 2:13; Matt. 16:17; Mark 14:38; Luke 24:39); (4) the carnal nature of humankind, which is contrary to spiritual things or the Holy Spirit (Rom. 7:18; 8:3; Gal. 5:16-21); (5) an obedient spirit, "a heart of flesh" (Ezek. 11:19; 36:26); men and women's mortal nature (1 Cor. 15:50-52). (See SDA Bible Dictionary, p. 354.)

Both the Old and New Testaments view humans holistically, not as independent parts labeled spirit, soul, and body. As the three Persons of the Godhead function as One, so our spirit, soul, and body function as one. The thinking part of humans-the mind-is usually translated from the Hebrew leb and from the Greek nous, but also from numerous other words such as ruach and pneuma. So Paul's prayer that the God of peace would sanctify our spirit, soul, and body (1 Thess. 5:23) is a prayer for God to sanctify the entire person....

Rev. 16:3 KJV  And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea. 

What is "every living soul died in the sea" referring to?

I'd say that text supports the idea that soul especially refers to the physical nature and physical life in contrast to the spirit of man who is a moral being with a spiritual nature. What do you think? Isn't it implying that sea creatures such as whales, dolphins and fish have a soulish physical life from God but not the spiritual nature that man has. God I think could have made soulish animals with equal or greater intelligence than we have but creatures without a spirit or conscience. He doesn't seem to do that because the creatures he invests with the greatest talents he delights to also give a spiritual nature so that they are capable of loving obedience and true intimacy springing from free will. So would it be true to say that for the human will and the soulish physical desires and emotions to become sanctified all of these must be governed by the spiritual nature?