Where Do the Human Soul and Spirit Go When We Die? (Part II)

In our last episode, we deeply explored the human soul. We saw that both the Old and New Testaments clearly teach that humans ARE souls and don’t HAVE souls. We further confirmed that the Bible is explicit about the destiny of the human soul being death, as that was the irrevocable penalty for sin given to Adam at the beginning. As surprising as all this might sound, it is all verified in Scripture. We will now consider the human spirit. What is it? Is it a tangible being or an intangible essence? Is it a life force all of its own? Are the soul and spirit the same? Is the human spirit immortal, or can it die? These are complex questions. As with the soul, the answers can be found in the Bible, but only if we are careful to consider both the Old and New Testament records together. Wind, breeze, breath = spirit The words for “spirit” in both the Old and New Testaments primarily mean a wind, breeze or breath. This sounds simple and basic until we look at how these words are used. The Hebrew word is usually translated as some variation of wind or breeze when used in the context of nature. The simplicity ends there. The same word is translated “spirit” when referring to God’s spirit. Of course, God’s spirit is so much more than some breeze or wind. His spirit was the moving power in creation. His spirit inspired the Old Testament prophets to write and speak. It was the power behind the New Testament miracles of Jesus and others. His spirit dwells within New Testament Christians to guide us in our lives. Spirit of man The same words for wind and breeze in the Bible are also used to describe the spirit of man. There are many descriptions of what man’s spirit does. The human spirit can be sorrowful. It can ponder, it can seek out God and His will, be impatient, grow faint and be worthy of imitation. We can serve God with our human spirit. With all of these specific applications the Bible gives to our spirit, we can now begin to address its makeup. Is the human spirt the same as human soul? What happens to it when we die? A comprehensive look at the biblical descriptions of our spirit clearly reveals that our soul and spirit are in fact very different. So, what does this mean? Check out our May 9, 2022 podcast, “Where Do the Human Soul and Spirit Go When We Die? (Part II)” for more. The Old and New Testament words for spirit are cited nearly 700 times in Scripture. We examine several of these verses to understand the varied uses of these words. We focus in on the human spirit's origin, makeup and fate. What we find is a surprising yet logical explanation of our spirit. Join us and learn the power, purposes and destiny of your own human spirit.