Soul Talk
My husband works in the College of Engineering and Science at a fairly well-known university. His colleagues and friends are scientists, some of them are top in their fields of expertise. On occasion, I have the privilege of joining my husband with his friends for an after work get-together, and sometimes they come out to our house for an evening. Friday was one such occasion. I joined my husband for dinner after work, and about 5 of these scientists and professors joined us.
Eventually, as it usually does, the topic turned from idle chitchat to science. "Hey," one of the scientists said to me, "Did you know that the soul weighs exactly 27 grams? They've done some experiments, and it seems no matter how big or small or what age a person is, they lose 27 grams at the moment of death. This proves that we have a soul."
"I find that absolutely fascinating," I said. A big grin spread across her face. "I thought you would" she said. You see, like nearly all of the professors and scientists my husband knows, she is an atheist. She knows I am Christian. "I'm going to think about that one." I told her. I have been thinking about it, a lot in fact.
When we look at the Gospels and the accounts of Jesus' life and teaching, we find that He spent a lot of time talking about a person's true heart. In the sermon on the mount, Jesus taught that if you are angry at person, you commit murder; and if a man lusts after a woman, he has committed adultery in his heart. It's not just the actions that matter, but the motivation or heart attitude that's behind the action. Jesus also taught that the law could be summed up in two things: love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and your neighbor as yourself. Again, this teaches that love is behind all true good works.
So what does that have to do with the soul? Romans 8:16 says, "The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God," This indicates that we are more than just our minds and our bodies, we are spirit. Ephesians 2:4,5a says "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ".
We have a spirit (or soul), a part of our being that was dead and has been made alive in Christ. That is the part of us which communicates with God. Those who do not know Christ cannot communicate with God, nor can they truly perform good works, because their spirit is dead. It is from the awakened spirit, through the power of the Holy Spirit that we do good works. This is why Jesus told us that it is a matter of what is in the heart, not just the actions.
So then the fact that we have a spirit which leaves our body at death is very important. For one thing, it proves that a part of us leaves the body when we die. There is life after death, and it is our spirit that leaves the body. For another thing, if we do not have a spirit, then a mental assent to truth is all that is needed to believe, and only those intelligent enough to understand can truly become God's children. But if it is a matter of the spirit, a spirit made alive by Christ, then even the person whose brain is not functioning well or the person whose body has given out can become a child of God and love Him with all their heart.
Eventually, as it usually does, the topic turned from idle chitchat to science. "Hey," one of the scientists said to me, "Did you know that the soul weighs exactly 27 grams? They've done some experiments, and it seems no matter how big or small or what age a person is, they lose 27 grams at the moment of death. This proves that we have a soul."
"I find that absolutely fascinating," I said. A big grin spread across her face. "I thought you would" she said. You see, like nearly all of the professors and scientists my husband knows, she is an atheist. She knows I am Christian. "I'm going to think about that one." I told her. I have been thinking about it, a lot in fact.
When we look at the Gospels and the accounts of Jesus' life and teaching, we find that He spent a lot of time talking about a person's true heart. In the sermon on the mount, Jesus taught that if you are angry at person, you commit murder; and if a man lusts after a woman, he has committed adultery in his heart. It's not just the actions that matter, but the motivation or heart attitude that's behind the action. Jesus also taught that the law could be summed up in two things: love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and your neighbor as yourself. Again, this teaches that love is behind all true good works.
So what does that have to do with the soul? Romans 8:16 says, "The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God," This indicates that we are more than just our minds and our bodies, we are spirit. Ephesians 2:4,5a says "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ".
We have a spirit (or soul), a part of our being that was dead and has been made alive in Christ. That is the part of us which communicates with God. Those who do not know Christ cannot communicate with God, nor can they truly perform good works, because their spirit is dead. It is from the awakened spirit, through the power of the Holy Spirit that we do good works. This is why Jesus told us that it is a matter of what is in the heart, not just the actions.
So then the fact that we have a spirit which leaves our body at death is very important. For one thing, it proves that a part of us leaves the body when we die. There is life after death, and it is our spirit that leaves the body. For another thing, if we do not have a spirit, then a mental assent to truth is all that is needed to believe, and only those intelligent enough to understand can truly become God's children. But if it is a matter of the spirit, a spirit made alive by Christ, then even the person whose brain is not functioning well or the person whose body has given out can become a child of God and love Him with all their heart.
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