The Holy Scriptures tell us that man has a spirit. In Job 32:8 it is referred to as “the spirit that is in man.” In 27:3 he refers to “the spirit of (from)God that is in me.” In Job 27:4 he says of the life-producing/sustaining spirit: “The spirit of (from) God is in my nostrils.” Recall that “God breathed into Adam’s nostrils and he became a living soul (Gen. 2:7). In none of the reference does the Word “spirit” in the Old Testament * is the Old referring to man’s spirit (Job 32:8) The spirit that God places in man works in ways very few people realize. The Apostle Paul tells us how his spirit worked, even to the point of determining life and death of another person. In one instance he received news that there was in the church in Corinth a man who was having sex with someone other than his wife. The people in the church not only knew about it, they were proud of their spiritual superiority. I assume that this was an early on attempt at moral “inclusion.” Paul was not able to travel to the church in order to deal with the situation in person, so he wrote to the people telling them that he would be there in spirit when they met together, and that, through his spirit (not the Holy Spirit) he (Paul) would, “turn him (the adulterer) over to Satan for the destruction of his flesh” (1 Cor. 5:5). I have done this. I did not tell Satan to kill the man who had wronged me, but that he would make the man very sick. And, because I have “power over all the power of the enemy” (Satan), the man wound up in the hospital–twice (Lk. 10:19).

Man’s spirit is that part–and only that part–of man that returns to the Lord when he dies (Ecc. 12:7). Jesus died at the instant that He “gave up the ghost” (His human spirit). Seconds before doing so He said to the Father, “Father, into Your hands I relinquish My spirit.” The spirit is man’s will, his personality–that which makes him individually unique. Man’s spirit comprises his “master status” (a sociological term) by which he is known in this life.

When God’s people ascend from the earth during the first resurrection, their individual spirits will return to them from God, as they rise to meet Jesus in the air as spirit (born again) beings. Paul writes about the next life following the Lord’s return: “I will know (other people then) as I am known (by them now)” (1 Cor. 13:12). Several passages of Scripture attest to the fact that man has a God-given spirit by which he determines what he does, says, thinks, wears, eats, drinks, drives, buys, etc. At birth, man is given a spirit (a breath from God) that is general–it is the same for all people and gives physical life to the newborn baby. However, it is the individual him/herself who determines what “form” his/her spirit will eventually take. His spirit is developed from the individual preferences that determine his personality, that determines who and what he is relative to those around him and to God. MAN DETERMINES WHETHERE HE WILL BE A SAINT OR A SINNER. Satan CANNOT FORCE an individual at any age to adopt his will and to be a sinner. By the same token, God WILL NOT FORCE anyone to adopt His will and to be a saint. I know a young boy who is a thief and a liar and has been for several years. Because of my influence on his life he has known right from wrong from early on in life. He has from the beginning chosen the wrong way. I pray that God will open his eyes to His Truth. He (God) will not force a change in his will. I know that he (the boy) knows the Truth for I have taught him. However, unless he CHOOSES to change his will, he will become worse.

Man is subjected to both positive and negative forces from the time of his birth. Upon reaching the age of accountability the human being becomes responsible for choosing which forces he will embrace and which he will reject. The singular word–“WILL”–is used Biblically to define the outcome of man’s choices–his personality–the many-facited expression of his human spirit. One’s personality–likes, dislikes, choices, words, thoughts and deeds relative to his “walk” (life) is determined by man himself. His “walk” is the demonstration of His will. Note that “the spirits (wills) of the prophets are subject (under the control of) the prophets (1 Cor. 14:32). This is beautifully brought out by Jesus of Nazareth as He was preparing to endure a beating like no man has ever suffered, then to be nailed to a cross where He would die the most terrible death imaginable. I cannot comprehend the terror He experienced as the time approached. He was dealing not only with thoughts of the physical pain He was destined to suffer. He also knew that, being human, He would be tempted to give up, to renounce His status, be spared the agony He knew was coming. Knowing what He knew, that would have been His most gut-wrenching concern. He knew that if He failed, man would not have a savior and God would live alone forever. Notice what transpired during his time in the Garden of Eden before the soldiers came to take Him.

In Luke 22:44 it is recorded that He was in such emotional turmoil that the blood vessels in His forehead burst so that it appeared that He was sweating blood. This phenomenon has proven to be possible by the experiences of others. Again, Jesus was a man who had a will which would determine what He would do, just as it had throughout his life. We see His will at work when He asked the Father if there was any other way for Him to complete His assigned task–to atone for man’s sins. He was a man like all other men. He dreaded what was coming as would any other man. His MAN’S SPIRIT/ WILL was in a state of turmoil as anyone else’s would be. Like anyone else, He WILLED that there could be another way to accomplish His assignment. Having asked the Father if there was, and having received the answer, He controlled His SPIRIT/WILL and willingly went to the cross. Understand this: JESUS COULD HAVE AVOIDED THE TORTURE, AGONY AND HORRENDOUS DEATH OF THE CROSS IF HE HAD WILLED TO DO SO. I thank Him and praise Him for controlling His SPIRIT/WILL and choosing to die for me. Admittedly, I am tearing up as I write this. I simply cannot imagine such love. One day I will have the joy of telling Him to His face how much I appreciate what HE WILLED TO DO ON MY BEHALF EVEN THOUGH I WAS OF ALL MEN MOST UNWORTHY. Again, such love is, for me, incomprehensible.

And understand this, EACH TIME WE SIN WE SPIRITUALLY CRUCIFY HIM AGAIN (Heb. 6:6). In God’s eyes each time we break His Law (sin–1 Jn. 3:4) we spiritually take the hammer and nails in hand and use them to attach His mangled body to that rugged cross. Those crucifixions are as real to the Godhead as it was 2000 years ago on that wooden cross. To Them, the spiritual carries the same reward or punishment as does the physical. Man, including churchman, has crucified the Lord trillions of times. If that does not break your heart you are as spiritually dead as the wood on which He hung. Once as I was on a cross-country car trip the realization of the price Jesus paid for my life hit me so hard I had to pull off the road where I sat for quite some time crying like a baby. My God, what love!!! Truly, greater love has no man, or all men combined.

I must fulfill my commission to bring out the “fine print” that accompanies every “headline.” We find the “fine print” connected to the salvation-offering “headline” of John 3:16. Turn to John 15:13,14 where we find Jesus speaking to His 12 disciples. Here he says to them: “Greater love has no man than He lay down His life for His friends.” He then said: “You (disciples) are my friends, IF YOU DO WHATSOEVER I COMMAND YOU.” Church people either stop reading at the Word “friends,” or they assume that they are His friends. The first sentence of the Lord’s statement is the “headline.” The second sentence is the “fine print,” without which the “headline” is meaningless. We must be “fine print” hunters, believers and doers. Otherwise our lives are being lived in vain and God’s “headlines” do not apply to us. Read Matthew 15:9.

I had not planned to go into the part about man’s spirit/will, etc. However, the Lord laid it upon me and I happily complied with His command. He awakened me at about 11:30 p.m. after about two hours of sleep and put me to work. It is now coming up on 4:30 a.m. and I am still wide awake. Truly, the Lord works in mysterious, but not always convenient, ways. I’m not complaining, you understand, just making a statement. We are commanded to give thanks in all things. That is sometimes easier said than done. I must admit that, relative to sleep, I now do my best work in the wee hours of the morning. This was not previously the case. In fact, the exact opposite was true. Could it be that He knows what He is doing? The irony involved in this situation is that I have always been a sleep addict. I had to have my full night’s sleep or I was a zombie for the rest of the day. In His infinite wisdom the Lord changed all of that. Also, you must forgive me for getting off the track–yet again.

In Genesis 2:7 we are told that “God formed man (Heb.–adam) of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath (sama) of life, and man became a living soul.” The word “sama” means air, wind and SPIRIT, as in “the spirit that is in man”–man’s personal spirit. God’s breathing into Adam’s nostrils turned a dead man into a living man–“he BECAME a LIVING soul (body–nephesh).” Once God’s sama (life-giving breath) has brought the human to life, then his spirit is called “ruah,” which also means air, wind and SPIRIT that Job calls “the spirit that is in man. How does the above tie in with diversity? The answer is coming up. L.J.