Photo by Mihai Surdu on Unsplash
A simple explanation from a Christian perspective
As a former personal trainer and author, I shared my belief that exercise and a healthy diet are to the body what prayer and Bible study are to the spirit.
As a Christian, I believe that a whole person consists of body, spirit and soul. But not all people share this belief. Christians and atheists have different views on the concepts of body, spirit and soul.
Body
We both agree that the body is the tangible, physical part of a person. It includes organs, muscles and bones and interacts with the world through the five senses. It requires food, water and rest to function.
As a personal trainer, my clients wanted me to help them improve their bodies through exercise training and healthy eating.
As a Christian, I believe that the body is a temporary home for the spirit and soul. My body is wonderfully made by God and my body houses the Holy Spirit.
I praise you because I am terribly and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139:14, NIV)
Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is within you, whom you have received from God? (1 Corinthians 6:19, NIV)
An atheist believes that the body is made of natural matter and functions based on biology and science.
Spirit
Spirit is often associated with a deeper, immortal aspect of a person.
It gives a person a sense of purpose and meaning.
As a writer, I addressed the improvement of spiritual practices through teachings on prayer and Bible study.
As a Christian, I believe that the spirit is separate from the body and enables communication and relationship with God. It is eternal and guided by the Holy Spirit.
We are sure, I say, and would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. (2 Corinthians 5:8, NIV)
An atheist does not believe in an immaterial or divine spiritual connection. Instead, some use “spirit” as a metaphor for mental or emotional states. They believe that consciousness and emotions come from the brain and stop when a person dies.
Soul
The soul consists of the mind, emotions and will. It gives a person their unique personality and makes them a special person. It is sometimes described as the bridge between body and spirit.
As a personal trainer, I did not specifically refer to the soul of the client. However, we often worked in the “battlefield of the mind” when it came to resistance training and eating habits.
As a Christian, I believe that the soul – like the spirit – lives on beyond death. It holds thoughts, feelings and personality.
Then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living being. (Genesis 2:7, NIV)
Atheists don’t believe in a soul. Instead, they see personality and emotions as brain functions.
I am a visual learner and enjoy proportions. What helped me understand the difference between body, spirit and soul is to compare it to a computer.
The body is the hardware (keyboard, screen, processor).
Spirit is electricity or battery power (connection).
The soul is the software and operating system (thoughts, emotions, personality).
Spirit & Soul
I used to think spirit and soul were the same thing. I’m not alone, as many people use the terms interchangeably. But biblically, they refer to different aspects of a person.
In Christian teachings, although the soul and spirit are both eternal, the soul represents a person’s unique, conscious self, while the spirit is the connection to God.
When a person dies, the body decays and returns to the earth (Genesis 3:19), the spirit returns to its source—God (Ecclesiastes 12:7), and the soul continues to exist either in God’s presence (Revelation 21:3–4) or eternally removed from Him (Revelation 20:15).
At the second coming of Jesus Christ, the body will be resurrected and transformed into a glorified body (1 Corinthians 15:52) and the soul and spirit will be reunited with this new body.
There are other belief systems (eg New Age, Indigenous Beliefs, Gnosticism) that believe that the soul and spirit have different fates after death. But Christianity teaches that although the soul and spirit are distinct, they go to the same destination after death.
As a born-again Christian, I look forward to the day when my whole self (body, spirit and soul) will be united with Jesus in heaven.
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. (1 Thessalonians 5:23, NIV)
