| saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art and unto dust shalt thou return.". From the above we see that man, who had had free access to the tree of life was condemned to a corruptible body in that he now was separated from the tree of life. Also, even though the penalty of blood is not literally stated until Genesis 9:4-6 it is very plainly stated to Noah by God after the flood, "But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat. And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man. Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man.". Is that all? Yes, except there is another penalty for being in Satan's camp. We saw Satan's penalty in Isaiah 14:15, "Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.". So, we see that a man with only body and soul is sentenced to pay a penalty with his blood, be cast into hell and be separated from God, in popular terms he is `lost'. While, the three part man is in the will of God and as such has not quenched the spirit, has not lined up on Satan's side and is still able to be in the presence of God, or in popular terms he is `saved'. My study has led me to conclude that both sides in the trichotomous - dichotomous controversy are right to a point. What they appear to have missed is that man is in one of two states; either dichotomous, having body and soul from birth, and lost; or saved as Adam and Eve were before the fall, doing the will of God under control of the spirit, in a trichotomous state. Praise God that he loved us enough to give us an opportunity to become restored to his pure image. Isaiah 64:8 tells us , "But now, O Lord, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.", and 17 ________________________________________________________________________________ Isaiah 45:9-13 says, "Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker! Let the potsherd strive with the potsherds of the earth. Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, What makest thou? or thy work, He hath no hands? Woe unto him that saith unto his father, What begettest thou? or to the woman, What hast thou brought forth? Thus saith the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker, Ask me of things to come concerning my sons, and concerning the work of my hands command ye me. I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded. I have raised him up in righteousness, and I will direct all his ways :...". The next and succeeding chapters will discuss how we can return to the state of our original creation, and what is expected of us from that point forward. Proverbs 14:12: " There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the ends thereof are the ways of death.". Proverbs 3:5-6: " Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. ". 18 ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ |
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