The Triune Nature of Man

The tri-unity of man, made in the image of God consists of spirit, soul, and body; the spirit being the highest part of man. In the beginning, before the fall of man, the nature of man functioned in perfect harmony. Man then enjoyed wonderful fellowship with God, being very much alive spiritually to God (see Gen. 1:26-28; 2:7, 18, 21-25).

However, when man fell through sin, the order dramatically changed. Now man functions through the body, soul, and spirit. (see Gen. 3:1-24; Rom. 5:12). The spirit then becomes the lowest part of man. What occurred at the moment of man’s fall into sin can be explained in this way. The spirit fell into the realm of the soul, the soul fell into the realm of the body, and the body came under the sentence of death.  Hence, resulting in man being mostly dominated by his physical nature; being ruled by the nature of his soul and body through his passions, desires, and appetites. Man became spiritually dead in his relationship to God. Despite the fact the natural man is very much alive in the flesh, he is very much dead in his spiritual nature in relation to God due to his sin.

Though marred and separated from God by sin, man still possesses the innate conscious knowledge of God’s existence (see Rom. 1:19-21). Still man chooses to rebel against this knowledge. Because man is primarily ruled by his natural physical/soulish nature he is unable to receive the things of the Spirit of God, because they are foolishness unto him, nor is he able to know them, due to the fact he needs to be spiritually alive to receive them (see 1 Cor. 2:14). Man needs to approach the existence of God on God’s terms, not on his terms. The LORD reveals Himself only to those people who come to Him in faith and repentance.

1.       The Spirit of Man—“God Conscience.” This is the highest part of man. The spirit in man gives him the ability to perceive, know, and worship God. This is the part of man that sets him apart from animals and gives him the ability to have a relationship with God.

2.       The Soul of Man—“Self Conscience.” This is the middle part of man. This aspect of the nature of man is the seat of his personality, self awareness, mind, will, emotions, and the ability to connect with others.

3.       The Body of Man—“World Conscience.” The lowest part of man. The physical nature of man that allows him to experience the world around him through the five natural senses. For example, if you were to stub your toe on a piece of furniture, you would feel it. The pain would raise your awareness of the physical world around you.