If we see this point, we will clearly know where our service should be: not in the outer man but in the inner man; not in the soul but in the spirit; not in the mind, emotion, or will but in the spirit of life. If we know this and have this experience, we will be able to discern if a person’s service is from the spirit or from the soul. We will not try to determine someone’s worth before God according to what he is and does outwardly. We will be able to touch a person’s inner parts to know if his living today is in the soul or in the spirit and to know if he is living in the soul or in the spirit.
A great deal of man’s praises today are immature and inaccurate. For example, a certain brother may have some good points or strong points which are all of the self. Many brothers and sisters, however, praise him as being very spiritual. His living and what he is and does have not touched the spirit but are all in the soul and the self. Therefore, the brothers and sisters who praise him as being spiritual are inexperienced. Simply because he has strengths and good points does not mean that he is spiritual. Just because he does the right thing does not mean that he has acted spiritually. We still must ask and touch whether his strengths, good points, and being right are from the spirit or from the soul. Has his soul truly been broken by God? Has God dealt with his mind, emotion, and will? Has God torn down the self in him? Has he ever met God? Has he ever been touched by God? If you have had these kinds of experiences, then when you touch others, you will be able to tell if they are living in the soul or in the spirit. You will be able to sense that this brother, although he is good and right, is living actually in the soul and has never been broken. He is altogether a natural man. All of his living may be well-disciplined and perfect, but it is from the self and not from God. You can discern this; you have such a discerning ability.
Some may ask, If our mind, emotion, and will are all broken, will we not become simpletons? No, God breaks our mind, emotion, and will, but does not nullify them. We still have them. Furthermore, the mind of a truly spiritual person is many times sharper than it was before, his will is many times stronger, and his emotion is many times richer. The more spiritual a person is, the sharper his mind, the richer his emotion, and the stronger his will. The spiritual man, however, does not allow these things to take the preeminence. Rather, his spirit takes the first place. Whenever he encounters a situation, he lets his spirit come in first, and only then does he use his mind, emotion, and will. When he rejects his mind, emotion, and will and allows his spirit to come first in this way, the result is that his mind becomes sharper, his emotion richer, and his will stronger. The Spirit of God has the ground within him and rules not only in his spirit but also in his mind, so his mind becomes sharper and wiser. This is the natural outcome. The more a person denies himself, the wiser his mind will be. If a person only wants the Lord and rejects himself, he will be the wisest person because the Spirit of God is in him, and no one can be wiser than the Spirit of God. In this universe, is there anyone wiser than the Spirit of God? Since the Spirit of God reigns in him and enters into his inward parts to such an extent, it is no wonder that he is wise! He has the Holy Spirit not only in his spirit, but he has the Holy Spirit even in his mind. Because the Holy Spirit has gained the ground in him to enter his mind, his mind becomes very wise.
It is the same with the emotion. The most spiritual person must be the one with the richest emotion. The emotionless ones are the non-spiritual ones. Suppose a person sees something good but cannot appreciate it, encounters a sad situation but cannot cry, meets with a happy event but cannot laugh, or does not know what difficulty and ease are, because to him suffering and joy, difficulty and ease, make no difference. In this case, he has no way to be spiritual. Every spiritual person is rich in emotion because the God who has entered him and filled his emotion is rich in emotion. Because such ones allow God to reign in them, His Spirit can enter into their emotion. Therefore, they are definitely abounding in emotions. Many times they shed more tears than others, and they also laugh more joyfully than others. Like the spiritual apostle Paul, they are truly joyful when they are happy and truly sorrowful when they are sad. Although they are richer than others in emotion, they are not wild but restrained. They are directed and governed inwardly by the Holy Spirit. When you touch their emotion, you sense that they are full of the presence of God within them. Although they are rich in emotion, they do not live in their emotion; instead, they live in their spirit.
In the same way, a spiritual person also has a very strong will. This is because the Holy Spirit reigns in him to strengthen his will. The more spiritual a person is, the stronger his will. At the same time, the more spiritual a person is, the more pliable his will. The will of a spiritual person is strong, on the one hand, and pliable, on the other hand. It can stand up and it can also bend. It is truly both strong and pliant. Such a person submits to God’s authority, allowing the Spirit of God to enter and rule over his will so that his will is balanced between strength and pliancy. When he should be firm, he is firm; when he should bend, he bends.
Thus, it does not mean that if one lives in and by his spirit, then he loses his mind, emotion, and will. On the contrary, the more a person lives in and by his spirit, the sharper his mind is, the richer his emotion is, and the stronger his will is, because the Holy Spirit dominates him and reigns in him. The Holy Spirit within him has the ground and is able to enter and reign in every part of his being, including his mind, emotion, and will. Thus, every part of his being, under the strengthening and control of the Holy Spirit, not only becomes stronger but also is used properly.
Therefore, we must see that once we live in the spirit and allow it to have the proper ground in us, the mind, emotion, and will of our soul will be strengthened and made normal. We must remember, however, that they are of secondary importance and that the spirit is of primary importance. They are under the direction of the spirit as the source, the preeminent part, and the dominant part. In every matter we should begin from the spirit, allowing the spirit to come in first. Then we should allow the spirit to direct and control every part of our being. If we do this, and only then, our living and service will be of the spirit, in the spirit, touching the spirit, and supplying others with the spirit. May God bless us in this way!