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By Andrew Wommack
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The most important revelation I have ever received is the understanding that we were created by God with three distinct parts: spirit, soul, and body. Over forty years ago, that revelation opened the eyes of my understanding to the Bible and the true nature of God. Everything I teach is based on the revelation of who I am in Christ, or my born-again spirit.
We have millions of new viewers since I last taught on Spirit, Soul & Body back in 2008, and I want to make sure everyone knows that this truth holds the key that will unlock the treasure chest of God’s blessings. Once you understand this, the Bible comes alive.
For example, you already have inside of you the same power that raised Christ from the dead, regardless of your experience. It’s in your spirit. You also have love, joy, and peace in your born-again spirit, although you may be suffering depression, anger, and bitterness.
If you don’t understand what happened in your spirit, though, you will miss these blessings. The Bible says that every born-again believer has undergone a complete inner transformation.
“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ” (2 Cor. 5:17-18).
It doesn’t say that all things are becoming new or have the potential of becoming new; they are new, the moment you are born again. But, in order for that to make sense, you must first understand how God created you.
God’s Word clearly teaches that we are three-part beings, but very few Christians have a functional understanding of spirit, soul, and body in their daily lives.Intellectually, most Christians believe they are three-part beings, but functionally, they are ignorant of their spiritual identity. They’ve confused the operation of the soul and spirit, seeing them basically as one.
Even Strong’s Concordance fails to distinguish all three! It defines “spirit” (pneuma in the Greek) as “the rational soul.” However, in my study of God’s Word, I have found a very distinct difference between spirit and soul. Your spirit is your innermost part, not your “rational soul.”
First Thessalonians 5:23 makes it very clear that we are three-part beings:
“And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (underlines mine).
If you were talking to me face to face, you’d be seeing my body but speaking to my soul. The word soul is defined by some as the mind, will, and emotions, and while that’s certainly true, it’s incomplete. The “conscience” should also be included in that definition, as well as the “imagination.” The soul is really what most call the “personality.”
You can feel both your body and your soul, and you are receiving information from them all the time. For example, if I asked you if you were hot or cold, you wouldn’t have to pray about it and get back to me. You instantly know that. Likewise, if I asked how you felt emotionally, you don’t have to study on it and tell me tomorrow. You know if you are sad or glad at any moment.
It’s easy to know how your body feels, what’s going on in your mind, and what emotions you are experiencing. However, your spirit is much different; it cannot be accessed through your five senses.
John 3:6 says,
“That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”
Jesus meant that there’s no direct connection between the two. Spirit is spirit and flesh is flesh. You simply cannot contact your spirit through your five senses or through your mind, will, or emotions. This is the key that unlocked my brain.
If you don’t understand that spiritual reality can’t be felt, then you’ll be confused when God’s Word declares that you have, living in you, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead (Eph. 1:18-20). If you think truth can be discerned through your natural senses, then you’ll be baffled when the Bible says you’re a brand-new creature who can do the same miraculous works that Jesus did (2 Cor. 5:17 and John 14:12).
The apparent disparity between your natural experiences and God’s Word will cause you to throw up your hands in frustration and conclude that it must not be true. It’s the understanding of spirit, soul, and body that unlocks who you are and what you have in Christ.
In the natural, the spirit realm can’t be seen or felt. The only way to accurately perceive spiritual truth is through the Bible. Simply believe God’s Word!
Jesus said in John 6:63,
“It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.”
God’s World reveals spiritual reality. If you want to know what your spirit is like, you must find out from the Word, not by relying on emotions or other perceptions. God’s Word is spirit and life! When you look at your face in a mirror, you trust what you see. God’s Word is just like that mirror; it reflects perfectly who you are in your spirit.
“For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therin, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed” (James 1:23-25).
You must look into God’s mirror and trust the spiritual reality you see! It reflects your new, born-again spirit, your innermost part.
Although full payment has been made for your glorified body through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, you still have a corrupted body. One day it will be redeemed and changed into an incorruptible one, but for now, you still have the same body.
Your soul wasn’t saved either, so you may have the same thoughts and emotions you had before you were saved. Because of that, some of you seriously doubt whether or not you were saved. You don’t understand that the change took place in your spirit. Typically, your body and soul are both impacted by what happens at salvation, but it’s not instant or complete.
The good news is, you can change your soul as you change your mind. In fact, you are commanded to do so.
Romans 12:2 says,
“And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
Your soul will be transformed to the degree you renew your mind, change your attitudes, and conform to the Word of God. This doesn’t happen automatically when you are saved.
In your soul, old things did not pass away, and all things haven’t yet become new. For that reason, you could actually die from sickness or disease even though all of the power that raised Jesus from the dead is residing untapped within your spirit. It’s like dying of thirst while leaning against a well full of life-giving water.
Think of your soul like the valve on a faucet: It controls the rate and volume of the flow of the spirit into your body. If your mind is renewed and in agreement with the Word, the valve is wide open. But if it is in agreement with what your body is feeling or what your emotions are experiencing, then the valve is closed to God’s life in your spirit.
Your soul has the power to keep every drop of life-giving power from ever reaching your physical body, or it can flood your body with the same power that raised Jesus from the dead. If the valve is open, you’ll experience healing, deliverance, anointing, victory, power, joy, prosperity, and more. So, keep it open.
This revelation of the relationship of the spirit, soul, and body has transformed my life. When I realized that God had already given me everything I needed and it’s all contained in my spirit, it set me free. All I needed to do was release it. That simple understanding changes everything. It’s infinitely easier to release something you already have than it is to get something you don’t have.
The Christian life isn’t a process of “getting from God”; it’s a process of renewing your mind and learning to release what you’ve already received.
If you don’t understand that you have already received all that you will ever need at salvation (in your spirit), there will always be an element of doubt. You may know it’s possible or even promised in the Word, but you’ll be trying to perceive it in the mental, emotional, or physical realm, and that’s a formula for failure.
That erroneous concept can also result in a performance-based relationship with God; i.e., if you’re good enough, if you read the Bible enough, if you pay your tithe, and on and on it goes, in an attempt to motivate God to give you what you need. It’s the misconception that God hasn’t already given you everything, and somehow you have to make yourself worthy enough to get it.
You’re already worthy because of Jesus Christ and His sacrifice. He paid the price for everything you will ever need. In fact, you’ve already got it. It’s just a matter of understanding the relationship of the spirit to the soul and body.
Understanding spirit, soul, and body is critically important to every believer. It’s like the key that opens the treasure chest of God’s grace. It could be a matter of life and death, and it’s the foundation to understanding the rest of Scripture.
In 2005, I published my book, Spirit, Soul & Body and the companion study guide. They contain my complete teaching on this subject. The study guide breaks the book down into lessons, each with a lesson outline, teacher’s guide, discipleship questions, and an answer key. In addition, it contains a CD-ROM that you may use to reproduce the outline and questions for those you are discipling.
