Part III We Are Spiritual Beings

We teach children that we have a spirit, a soul, and a body. God’s glory can be revealed in and through us as we yield ourselves to Him :

I Thessalonians 5:22-24 “Avoid every kind of evil. May God himself, the God of peace sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.”

Definition:

1. Our Spirit: Is the part of us that is made alive unto God when we accept Jesus as our Savior from our sins.

2. Our Soul: Is what the Bible describes as our heart ~ it’s the place of our mind (our capacity to think), our will (the choices we make), and our emotions (our feelings). The soul, after you become born again, must come under the control of the Spirit of God who dwells with us.

3. Our Body: Is our outward self ~ a house for our Soul and our Spirit.

A note about nurturing a child’s spirit: Consider giving as much attention to nurturing your child’s spirit as you do nurturing your child’s body and soul. You feed and clothe your child’s body making sure the child is safe, protected and kept well. You correct the child, teaching the child the word “no” as you begin to nurture the child’s soul so that your child will make correct choices. But how do you nurture a spirit?

You nurture your child’s spirit by exposing the child to the love of Jesus. You cannot begin too early in life. In fact, you could begin praying for the child before the child is conceived in the womb by preparing your womb, or your wife’s womb, before the baby’s birth. The spirit of the child should be nurtured while in the womb – the spirit of a child exists and responds in the womb to sounds, emotions, and voices – yet so often our concern is with a baby’s physical growth. (An example in scripture is John the Baptist before his birth – read Luke 1:41.)

The spirit of a child can develop in the womb and continue to develop after birth. Expose your baby to the sounds of worship, praise, prayer, adoration, love, etc. We are spiritual beings created in the image of God. God is a spiritual being – a tripart spiritual being – Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We also are tripart beings with a spirit, soul, and body.

If nurtured properly as a child, our spirit could naturally be in control of our body and soul after salvation. But because the
spirit may not be developed or nurtured before we nurture the body or the soul, the spirit falls behind in growth – even after salvation – the spirit, now alive unto God’s spirit needs to mature and grow. A mature spirit at the time of salvation could free your child’s spirit to rule over the soul and body at an early age. A mature spirit is a spirit full of the joy, and wisdom, and knowledge, and the love of God.

When teaching children, make every effort to nurture their spirits – one way do this is through teaching the Worship Arts.