HUMAN NATURE

"Man being in honour abideth not: he is like the beasts that perish". (Psalm 49:12)

THREE SPECIES OF LIVING THINGS:

Vegetable life, animal life, and spiritual life: these are the three known forms of life. God’s creation of all forms of vegetable life, (Genesis 1:11,12) followed the creation of water and land, by which that life can be sustained, (Genesis 1:9,10).

God’s creation of animal life followed His creation of water, land, and vegetable life – by which animal life can be sustained.

Spiritual life, also called eternal, or everlasting life, was never created, it always was, for God, the Creator is spiritual life, because He is a Spirit-Being, (John 4:24), and it is impossible for anything to create itself. God is from everlasting to everlasting. He always was, always is, and always will be. So God is sometimes called ‘The Eternal Uncreate’. Spiritual life is as far above all other forms of life as heaven is above earth.

MAN BELONGS TO ANIMAL LIFE:

Mankind, or human nature, was the last created, and is the greatest species of animal life, because we were made in God’s image and likeness. (Genesis 1:24-27). Man was to be sustained in life by both the vegetable life and the other animal life which preceded his creation. (Genesis 1:29-30). There is no suggestion or hint whatever that man was given anything at all of the spiritual, or eternal life. Rather, "the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul" (Hebrew, nephesh chayiah = ‘living, breathing creature’), (Genesis 2:7). Certainly the life he received (and still receives) from breathing, eating and drinking was a precious gift, most precious, from God. But the "living soul" he became was NOT an ever living soul, but a continuing-to-live-soul, or person. Made as 'animal', and therefore necessarily frail, and of corruptible constitution, his continuance in life depended upon two things: 1. Continuing to eat the 'herbs and meat' (Gen. 1-30), of the Garden of Eden, "very good" in their life-sustaining, energizing ingredients and power; and, 2. Continuing obedient to God’s clear and simple law of Eden. (Genesis 2:15-17).

When Eve, then Adam failed "2". above, they were then denied "1". (above), which made sure and certain the decreed punishment for their crime, "thou shalt surely die", (Genesis 2:17), and " . . return unto the ground, for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return", (3:19). Adam and Eve shared a common source as the rest of the animals, (2:19). They also shared a common "breath of life" (Hebrew nephesh chayiah, rendered "living creature" in (Genesis 3:19). Because of sin, mankind now also shares a common destiny with the rest of both vegetable and animal life - to return back to the ground from which all originated.

IT IS VITALLY IMPORTANT, IF WE WOULD APPRECIATE GOD’S OFFER OF ETERNAL LIFE BY REDEMPTION FROM DEATH, TO ACCEPT THAT MAN'S NATURE IS ANIMAL, CORRUPTIBLE, AND WHOLLY MORTAL.

GOD, THE ANGELS AND CHRIST, HAVE SPIRITUAL LIFE:

Jesus says that God is a Spirit, (i.e., a Spirit-Being), (John 4:24). Paul says that the angels are "ministering spirits", (Hebrews 1:14). He also wrote that, "the Lord [Jesus] is that Spirit", (2 Corinthians 3:17). Though Jesus was once a frail, mortal as we are, because he was obedient to God unto death, God raised him from the dead and changed his mortal, corruptible nature into immortal, incorruptible spirit-nature. So God, His angels, and His Son all have spiritual or eternal life.

THE FALLACY OF THE 'IMMORTAL SOUL':

Probably the greatest fallacy we must all put aside in coming to the wonderful truth of God, is THE CHURCH’S GREAT LIE, that man has what is called ‘an immortal soul’. Paul told the young Timothy that "God only hath immortality", (1 Timothy 6: 16), that Jesus Christ "hath abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel", (2 Timothy 1: 10). If God "only has immortality" inherently, then man certainly hasn’t got it inherently from his birth. If Jesus "brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel", then it is only through, or by means of the Gospel that we have HOPE of immortality, for we certainly don’t have immortality now, even when we believe.

THIS MORTAL MUST PUT ON IMMORTALITY:

But though we are corruptible "living creatures" , for whom death and extinction in the grave is our certain, natural end, yet God has promised that those who believe the Gospel and are "in Christ shall be made alive" at Christ’s coming, (1 Corin. 15: 22-23). Believers who have died, will be raised from their graves and with the living believers be transported to Christ’s Judgment-Seat, where they will receive the things "done in the body according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad", (2 Corinthians. 5:10). The righteous approved of Christ will then "in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye", be changed from corruptible flesh and blood to incorruptible flesh and spirit, from mortality to immortality, (1 Corinthians 15: 50-54).

THE WAY FROM THE ANIMAL TO THE SPIRITUAL

It is by getting 'out of Adam and into Christ', and remaining "in Christ" until we die or the Lord comes. This is done by believing and obeying the Gospel, (see Mark 16:15,16; Galatians 3:26-29).

Let us accept God’s wonderful offer of redemption from death.