Who Will Have the Last Word?

(The body, the soul and the spirit were having a discussion one day…)  It sounds like the start of a joke, but really is quite serious.  We face decisions every day.  Our bodies, souls and spirits will all have opinions as to the best course of action.  There will be a battle for supremacy and the spirit must win.
These (body, soul and spirit) are the three major players in this battle.  We are three part beings.  I have heard it explained like this. “We are a spirit.  We have a soul.  We live in a body.”  Each part has a distinctive role.  Each part is important.  And each part wants to win every disagreement.

The body can offer valid information obtained through the senses.  It can also be a petulant child who screams, “I want, I want, I want!”  The soul is the intellectual and can seek out necessary information.  But it often rationalizes and questions everything, wanting all the answers, even those beyond its comprehension.  The soul can also be very emotional, changing its mind as its moods change.  All who have been born again have a new spirit.  Paul states “No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit.  And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.” (1 Corinthians 2:11-13 NLT)  The spirit of a believer can communicate with the spirit of God, therefore having access to the wisdom of God.

The spirit of man communicates with the spirit of God.  How does this happen? Communication occurs by talking and listening to the other. Both praying and staying in the word are essential to making the spirit strong. Knowing God intimately will lead to trusting in Him. Discovering how big He really is will lead to that reverential fear that leads to wisdom. (The reverent and worshipful fear of the Lord is the beginning and the principal and choice part of knowledge [its starting point and its essence]; Proverbs 1:7a AMP).

Our spirit man must be the final decision maker in our life. This does not mean that the body and the mind are evil or even unnecessary. Quite the contrary! Without the sensation of the body, we could come to great harm. The pain the body feels when cut or burned can prevent serious harm or injury. Likewise, we are to think decisions through. We are told to count the cost and consider all aspects before taking on a new endeavor. (For which of you, wishing to build a farm building, does not first sit down and calculate the cost [to see] whether he has sufficient means to finish it? Luke 14:28 AMP). But in all things, the will of God must win out over comfort. Wisdom must win out over knowledge. God’s word and his will must be the supreme ruler in my life.
As the mother of the talkative preschooler can “half” listen to her child, so we must learn to listen to our bodies. We need to determine if they’re relating something important, or just having a tantrum to get their way.  In the same manner we can allow much of what our selfish desire screams for to fall into the background. We know the body is talking, but it can no more gain control than a four-year-old can control the household.
As a student who thirsts for knowledge, we should seek out facts. We can gather insights from others. We can even consider varying opinions. The Bible states that “Where there is no counsel, purposes are frustrated, but with many counselors they are accomplished.” (Proverbs 15:22 AMP)   But after all diligence and consideration have been made, we must remember that the wisdom of God far exceeds anything our minds can comprehend.  Wisdom must confirm or overrule knowledge and emotion.
When a difficult situation arises in life, there can be a variety of responses all taking place within the same person. The body may react with fear that includes a physical response of trembling or ‘butterflies’ in the stomach. The mind can respond with doubt and despair. The same process that seeks and determines the best method to accomplish goals, can now deliver countless reasons why things are impossible and even hopeless. Faith is the expression of the spirit who stays in constant contact with Father God. The body and the soul say, “We can’t.  The Giants are too big.”  The spirit taunts the same enemies with, “my Dad’s bigger than your dad…”

The same process can occur when God has given you a big dream.  Deep inside you know that it is from God.  Every fiber of your spirit is shouting “Go for it!”  But these shouts of encouragement can get muffled by the equally loud cries of the body saying, “It might hurt.” or “It is too much work.”  The soul chimes in with, “You are not qualified to do that!”  “Let someone else do it.”  Keep feeding your spirit until faith rises. That voice must become louder than the rest. “I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency].” (Philippians 4:13 AMP)

 No to your flesh and yes to God… No to your reasoning and yes to God... Several years ago there was a worship song that repeated “Yes Lord, yes Lord, yes, yes Lord… Amen.”  At first glance this may seem a little bit redundant. I believe the “Yes, Lord” is repeated so many times, because we face so many decisions every day.  The answer cannot be “Yes, Body,” or “Yes, Soul.”  We cannot say ‘Yes Lord’ to this and ‘no’ to that.  In every case, our response must be “Yes, Lord!”

So the body, the soul and the spirit will be having a discussion today. Who will have the final say in your life? A good discussion has input from all, but every group needs a leader. There has to be a final decision maker. Let your spirit take the role. Let your spirit consider all the inputs of the body and the soul. But, let your spirit be guided by the Holy Spirit. “Yes, yes Lord, amen!”