THE NATURE OF MAN by George C. Tenney

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Nov 14, 1892

THE NATURE OF MAN.

By George C. Tenney

BY ELDER G. C. TENNEY.

The Body, Soul, and Spirit.

IMMEDIATELY it is asserted that man is not immortal by nature, the question arises, Has man no soul then? This question is prompted by the prevailing impression that immortality and soul are inseparable terms, because one expresses an essential quality of the other. This question is sometimes met in a way that is not to be commended for candor by saying that man is all soul; that is, the words person and soul are sometimes used synonymously, hence man is a soul. That does not fairly meet the case. It is better to meet the query on the point which is assumed, namely, that immortality is a necessary quality of the soul. The logic advanced is this: The soul is immortal; man has a soul; hence the essential element of man is immortal. Some virtually admit the hypothesis, but reason thus: The soul is immortal; man is not immortal; therefore man has no soul. And to say that man is all soul is virtually to deny the existence of the soul as a distinct object, thus placing the controversy upon another question than the one really at issue.

Man as a being is of a threefold nature, recognized in the Scriptures as follows: "I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless," etc. 1 Thess. 5:23. It is not correct, therefore, in a specified sense, to say that man is a spirit, a body, or a soul; but it is proper to say that man has a soul. This conclusion is not based upon one text of Scripture, it is taught throughout the Bible. Here are a few texts showing that these three elements may be considered separately as distinct from each other. 1. The soul and body are not identical. Mic. 6:7: "Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?" Matt. 10:28: "And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul." 3 John 2: "Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth." 2. The spirit and body are not identical. This requires no proof; but, to show a biblical distinction, see James 2:26: "For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also;" and 1 Cor. 6:20: "Glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." 3. The soul and spirit are distinct. Heb. 4:12: "Piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow." If it be suggested that the technical definitions of the terms soul and spirit would involve the proposition of man's threefold nature in difficulty, it may be replied that this would not affect the main question at all, for the question of the terms by which the three elements of a human being are to be designated does not disturb the more primary one of their existence; and this is already sufficiently established.

Now as to what these three principles consist of. There will be a universal agreement as to what is meant by "the body." It is the physical system. For the other two principles of human life we seem to be compelled to use the names, spirit and soul. On some account it might be better if we had others, because wrong ideas have become associated with them in many minds, and also because their use even in Scripture is uncertain and their meaning often indistinct to the English reader, for whom these articles are written. Let it be understood then that these terms are chosen in the present argument because they apply only in the sense here indicated. The fact is they are used interchangeably in the Bible, and are applied to such a wide use as to forbid either of them being strictly limited to any one object. The idea now advanced is that there are two principles which help to compose human existence, that may be denominated spirit and soul, and the Bible thus speaks of them. What are they?

When God created man of the dust of the earth, he "breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." The principle here imparted was that of life, of animate existence. It was that principle which distinguishes between a living person and a dead body—a principle common to all animals. It comes from God, who is the sole author of life. In the Bible it is associated with the breath, and called by that name frequently; but literally we know that the breath is but air exhaled or inhaled. The blood is also said to be the life; it is the vehicle of life. Life is a principle permeating the system, a gift from God. We hold it by feeble tenure. Death is the cessation or absence of that principle. The Bible says that at death this life returns to God, who gave it. In Gen. 35:18 this life principle is called "soul;" but it is more frequently denominated "spirit," as in Eccl. 12:7: "Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was; and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it." Also Acts 7:59, where it is recorded that Stephen cried at his death, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." Christ himself used a similar expression at his death, "Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit." Luke 23:46. This life principle will be restored at the resurrection. See Eze. 37:14.

There is nothing to show that this vital principle possesses or carries with it the faculties of consciousness or separate existence. It is simply what steam is to the engine, or what the electric current is to the motor. God made the man, the most wonderful of machines, and animated him with life from himself. But when we have considered man as a machine, or as an animal merely, we have omitted a very essential part of his nature. And of this we shall speak in our next article.