If we can recognize what kind of person is soulish, it is not difficult to realize what kind of person is spiritual. Since a soulish person lives by the mind, emotion, or will, a spiritual person must be one who does not live by these. Since a soulish person lives by the soul and not by the spirit, then a spiritual person must live in the spirit and not in the soul. Although spiritual persons also have souls, and although the mind, emotion, or will in their soul may even be stronger and abound more than that of ordinary soulish persons, yet they do not live by these soulish organs, nor do they live in them. They live by the spirit and in the spirit, and they allow the spirit to be the master and source of their action and behavior. The spirit in them occupies the preeminent position; it is the source of their behavior and starting point of their action. The soul in them is in the position of submission. Although the mind, emotion, and will in their souls also function, these are all subjected under the ruling of the spirit and are directed by the spirit. Although they use their mind, emotion, or will, they always follow the sense of the spirit in using these organs of the soul. They are not like soulish persons, who let the soul be the master in everything, who allow the mind, emotion, or will of the soul to stand in the forefront to lead and to function. They deny the preeminence of the soul and refuse the leading of the mind, emotion, or will. Thus, they allow the spirit to be the master in them. They allow the spirit to direct their whole being so that they may follow the sense of the spirit. Whenever they encounter something, they do not first use the mind, emotion, or will of the soul to contact and deal with it. Rather, they use their spirit first to touch and to sense it, seeking first in the spirit for the Lord’s feeling as to this matter. After they have touched the Lord’s feeling in their spirit, they use the mind in the soul to understand the sense in the spirit, the emotion in the soul to express it, and the will in the soul to carry it out. Although they use the organs of the soul, they are not soulish, and they do not live by the life of the soul. They are spiritual, living by the life of the spirit, and the soul is simply an organ for them to employ.
We have seen that a fallen man, dead as he is in spirit, can only live by the soul. But we who are saved and have an enlivened spirit can live by the spirit. Furthermore, God saves us so that we can return to the spirit and live by the spirit. The fall of man caused man to fall from the spirit to the soul so that man no longer lives by the spirit but by the soul. God’s salvation saves man from the soul to the spirit so that man does not live by the soul but by the spirit. However, many who are saved still do not live this way. Some remain in the soul and live by the soul because they do not know the difference between the spirit and the soul and the matters involved therein. Moreover, they do not know that God’s desire is that they be delivered from the soul and live in the spirit. There are some who know that their spirit has been enlivened, that it is different from their soul, and that God wants them to live in their spirit; nevertheless, they continue to remain in the soul and live by the soul. This is because they are accustomed to living by the soul and not by the spirit and because they do not consider living in the spirit important. These Christians, who do not know the difference between the spirit and the soul and do not know that God wants us to be delivered from the soul and live in the spirit, think that to live by the mind, emotion, or will of the soul is fitting and necessary. They also think that if only they are careful and faultless, they are all right. However, they do not know that as far as Christians are concerned, this is far too poor!
God does not intend to deliver us merely from faults to a state of faultlessness. He intends to deliver us even more from the soul to the spirit. He wants us not only to live a faultless life, but even more to live a spiritual life, a spiritually faultless life. He wants us to live a faultless life not by the soul but by the spirit. Yet because of their ignorance, many Christians still live by the soul, and they strive and struggle to be those that are faultless by their soul-life. Although their spirit has already been enlivened, they do not know they should use their spirit and live by their spirit. They want to make themselves perfect men, living a satisfactory life by the power of the soul alone. Their view and judgment of things and their love and inclination are all in the soul, not in the spirit. Although they are well-behaved Christians, and their conduct and behavior are blameless, they still are living in the soul, not in the spirit. It may be granted that their thoughts are clean, their emotions are balanced, and their decisions are accurate, but they are still soulish, not spiritual. Their condition as far as Christians are concerned is abnormal. They are living the abnormal Christian life. Even if they are successful, they can only satisfy themselves. Sometimes some are truly satisfied with their success, a success which is truly doubtful. However, they cannot please God, for God wants man to be delivered from the soul and live by the spirit.
There are Christians who have some knowledge of the difference between the spirit and the soul and of God’s desire for us to be delivered from the soul and live in the spirit, yet they are still living by the soul. They are also living an abnormal Christian life. Although they know that their spirit has already been enlivened, they do not live by it. Although they know that God wants them to be delivered from the soul and live in the spirit, they still remain in the soul and live by the soul. Although they know that man should contact God in the spirit, they still use the soul to touch the things of God. They know they have a spirit, yet they do not use their spirit. They know they should live by the spirit, yet they do not live in the spirit. They find it convenient to use the mind, emotion, or will of the soul and are not accustomed to using the spirit. Hence, they neglect living by the spirit. Whenever anything happens, they always firstly use their mind, emotion, or will to deal with it. They do not firstly use their spirit to contact it. At most they can only be good and faultless Christians, although this is really doubtful. However, they cannot be spiritual Christians. They can only satisfy themselves; they cannot please God. They can only be commended by men; they cannot receive the praise of God. They still need the deliverance of God—not deliverance from sin but deliverance from the soul and not deliverance from the filthy flesh condemned by men but deliverance from the clean soul commended by men. Otherwise, they are still strangers and outsiders to the things of the Spirit of God.