Who Are We? Soul

Sermon Text

Matthew 10:16-33

16 “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. 17 But beware of men, for they will deliver you up to councils and scourge you in their synagogues. 18 You will be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. 19 But when they deliver you up, do not worry about how or what you should speak. For it will be given to you in that hour what you should speak; 20 for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.

21 “Now brother will deliver up brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death. 22 And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved. 23 When they persecute you in this city, flee to another. For assuredly, I say to you, you will not have gone through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

24 “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more will they call those of his household! 26 Therefore do not fear them. For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known.

Jesus Teaches the Fear of God

27 “Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops. 28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. 30 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.

Confess Christ Before Men

32 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. 33 But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.

New King James Version (NKJV) Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.

• God made each human being as a body-soul unity by forming the body from dust and breathing life into it; the soul is a real, created, immaterial, and immortal substance.
• The biblical terms soul and spirit overlap as descriptions of the inner person rather than identifying two separate immaterial parts.
• At death, body and soul undergo a temporary and unnatural separation: the body returns to dust while the conscious soul returns to God.
• Believers who die are immediately with Christ and made perfect in holiness while their bodies await resurrection and reunion with their souls.
• Because only God can judge both body and soul, disciples should fear God rather than surrendering their confession of Christ to threats, shame, or persecution.
• The certainty of the soul's continued life and the promised resurrection gives Christians courage to confess Christ and endure suffering faithfully.

• How does being more than a merely physical organism affect my understanding of human dignity?
• Why is the separation of body and soul at death temporary and unnatural rather than the believer's final hope?
• What do Jesus' promise to the thief and Stephen's dying prayer teach about the soul after death?
• Am I more controlled by reverence for God or by fear of what people may say or do?
• Where am I tempted to soften or conceal my confession of Christ to avoid shame or loss?
• How does the promised resurrection keep Christian hope from becoming a rejection of the body?
• What comfort does Scripture offer when a believer's body is buried?
• How can I prepare now to meet God as the maker and judge of my body and soul?

Soul

The real, created, immaterial inner person who lives in unity with the body and continues consciously after bodily death.

Spirit

A biblical term that often overlaps with soul as a description of the immaterial inner person.

Dichotomy

The understanding that a human being consists of two distinguishable aspects, body and soul, united as one person.

Immortality of the soul

The truth that the soul does not cease to exist when the body dies.

Intermediate state

The temporary condition between death and resurrection, when the soul exists apart from the body.

Resurrection

God's future raising of the dead, when soul and body will be reunited rather than remaining separated forever.

Fear of God

Reverent allegiance to the holy Judge whose authority extends over the whole person and outweighs every human threat.

Fear of man

Allowing the threat, opinion, shame, or power of other people to govern faithfulness to Christ.