Preserving Your Inner Man (I)

Man is a tripartite being made up of spirit, soul and body. What everyone sees is the body. But there is the hidden inner man which consists of the soul and the spirit. While most of us know how to take care of the body, our inner man is largely left uncatered for.

God expects us to pay attention to and care for our inner man. Just as our physical body can become dirty, so also can the human soul and spirit become filthy. Hence, the Bible says we should not only cleanse ourselves from the filthiness of the flesh, but also of the spirit (2 Corinthians 7:1).

In caring for the inner man, you must first understand that you do not own yourself, and certainly, your inner man does not belong to you. You do not own the breath within you (Genesis 2:7). Also, the Lord declared, “Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine” (Ezekiel 18:4). Since your soul and spirit belong to God, you can be sure that He will be interested in how you handle His property.

The Bible says that at the end of man’s sojourn in this world, his flesh shall return to the earth and his spirit “shall return unto God who gave it” (Ecclesiastes 12:7). At that time, the owner of our inner man shall demand account on what we have done with what He gave to us. May we not be found wanting in that day.