Chapter 9 -WHAT HAPPENS TO OUR DEAD LOVED ONES?

WHAT IS THE "SPIRIT" IN HUMANS?

The ancient Greek philosophers Socrates and Plato held that there must be something inherently immortal inside man and woman-a soul that survives death and never really dies.  Earth wide, millions believe this today.  This belief often engenders as much fear of the dead as it does concern for their welfare.  The Bible teaches us something quite different about the dead.

In considering the condition of  the dead, we must remember that our original father, Adam, did not have a soul.  He was a soul.  In an awe-inspiring act of creation, God formed  man-the soul-from the basic elements of the earth and then breathed into him "the breath of life."  (Genesis 2:7 tells  us:  "Jehovah God proceeded to form the man out of dust from the ground and to blow into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man came to be a living soul."  Adam's life was sustained by breathing.  Yet, more than  the blowing of air into man's lungs was involved when God put the breath of life into Adam.  The Bible speaks of "the force of life" that is active in earthly living creatures. -Genesis 7:22.

What is "the force of life" ?  It is the vital spark of life that God puts into the lifeless body of Adam.  This force was then sustained by the breathing process.  But what is the "spirit" referred to at Psalm 146:4?  That verse says of one who dies:  "His spirit goes out, he goes back to his ground; in that day his thoughts do perish."  When the Bible writers used the word "spirit" in  this way, they did not have in mind a disembodied soul that continues living after the body dies.

The "spirit" that departs from humans at death is the life force that originated with our Creator.  (Psalm 36:9; Acts 17:28) This life force does not have any of the characteristics of the creature it animates, just as electricity does not take on the features of the equipment it powers.  When someone dies, the spirit (life force) ceases to animate the body cells, much as a light goes out when the electricity is turned off.  When the life force stops sustaining the human body -the soul-dies. -Psalm 104:29; Ecclesiastes 12:1, 7.

Next time: " TO DUST YOU WILL RETURN"

The Book - KNOWLEDGE That Leads To Everlasting Life, 1995