The burden of the
word of the LORD
against Israel. Thus says the LORD,
who stretches out the heavens,
lays the foundation of the earth,
and forms the spirit of man within him:
Zechariah 12:1
Thus says God the LORD, who created
the heavens and stretched them out,
who spread forth the earth and that
which comes form it, who gives
breath to the people on it:
Isaiah 42:5
We
now approach the doctrine of Creationism as the common doctrine of the Church,
especially the theologians of the Reformation, is that the soul is not
generated or derived from parents, rather, it is created by the immediate
agency of God. As has been shown in previous blogs that the doctrine or belief
in the preexistence of the soul, which is to be found in such as Buddhism,
Hinduism, and in more modern times, Mormonism, and the doctrine of
Traducianism, whereby the soul of man is derived from parents, is not
Scriptural, that is, Scripture does not support such beliefs or doctrines. Does
Scripture support the doctrine of Creationism? Let us look at the arguments in
favor of Creationism of the soul. Is this doctrine consistent with the
representation of the soul given in Scripture? Consistency is important for if
Scripture is inconsistent in any form then we are to reject Scripture; we cannot
then rely on Scripture as being true or a source of truth, as coming from a
consistent and unchangeable God. When we examine the original account of
creation: “And 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 being”
(Genesis 2:7), we must notice a marked distinction that is made between the
body and the soul, one is from the earth, the other from God. This is
consistent throughout Scripture. Next, we must notice that the body and the
soul represent two different origins, and substances. The wise writer of
Ecclesiastes points this distinction: “Then the dust will return to the
earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it” (Ecclesiastes
12:7). This difference between soul and body can be given this distinction;
The origin of the soul is higher and different than that of the body, for the
soul is from God, the body from the earth. God gives the spirit, the body is
manufactured from the dust of the ground. The soul is never said to be made as
the body is said to be made. The soul is never given as from a material source,
the body is given as being made from a material source. When we examine the
opening Scriptures we can see that they agree with the opening account of
creation, the body and the soul. God is said to have breathed into man the
breath of life which is immaterial, and that the soul has its origin from God.
God is called: “Then they fell on their faces and said, ‘O God, the God of
the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and You be angry with all the
congregation” (Numbers 16:22)? It would be a mistaken notion if it is to be
said that God is the God of the bodies of all men as the soul stands in
relation to God and has its creator, God. The body does not stand in that
position to Him. The writer of Hebrews states: Furthermore, we have had
human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much
more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live” (Hebrews
12:7)? The thesis presented in this Scripture is that God is the Father of
all spirits and deserves our subjection, and the antithesis here is between the
fathers of our bodies and the Him who is the Father of our spirits. Our bodies
come from our parents, and our spirits come from God. In the New Testament this
doctrine of creation, that of the soul, that it is from God, our bodies are of
this earth and generated by our parents is forward by Paul when he mentions
that those who had not seen his face in the flesh (Colossians 2:1) speaks of
the life he was now living in the flesh. Paul in speaking and writing to the
Philippians says: “Nevertheless to remain in the flesh is more needful for
you” (Philippians 1:24) is reminding the Philippians that he should remain
in his mortal flesh. When the Psalmist states of the Messiah: “Therefore my
heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; My flesh also will rest in hope for You
will not leave my soul in Sheol, nor will You allow Your Holy one to see
corruption” (Psalm 16:9–10),
By
means of many Scriptures there will be additional revelations in regards this
subject as to the origination of the soul, that the soul is from God, given to
man by God, and that the body is from parents. The authority of Scripture
denies the doctrine of preexistence of the soul, or that of the Traducianists
whose doctrine is that the soul is from our parents. We need more enlightenment
of this subject therefore we must examine the nature of the soul which is the
content of the next blog.
And what
agreement has the temple
Of God with idols? For you
Are the temple of
the living God.
As god has said: “I will dwell
In them and walk
among them, I will
Be their God, and they shall
Be my people.
2Corinthians 6:16
Remove the idols
from your presence
Richard L. Crumb
No comments:
Post a Comment