Body and Soul

Experts from Physical, Chapter 3

“…Fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”
Philippians 4:8 (NLT)

What you think in your soul has an influence on your physical body. Your soul is made up of your mind, will, and emotions. Your will is the part of you that chooses what to do, including what your mind thinks about. What you think about is what you set your mind on.

Q1. Do you see any connection between what you think about and how you feel?

Spirit or Flesh
The Bible describes two mindsets. You can either set your mind on what God wants: on the Spirit. Or you can set your mind on what the world wants, what the Bible calls, your flesh.

The Bible describes the flesh as wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, and wanting to appear important.

“Don’t love the world’s ways. Don’t love the world’s goods. Love of the world squeezes out love for the Father. Practically everything that goes on in the world—wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important—has nothing to do with the Father. It just isolates you from him. The world and all its wanting, wanting, wanting is on the way out—but whoever does what God wants is set for eternity.” 1 John 2:15–17 (MSG)

Q2. Do you recognize the presence of the flesh in your life? When was a time when you wanted your own way, wanted everything for yourself, or wanted to appear important.

Mindset and the Body
The Bible teaches that when your focus is on the flesh, it brings you down and leads to negative consequences. However, when your focus is on the Spirit, you will be lifted up and experience peace.

“For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace.”
Romans 8:6 (NASB)

Q3. Do you experience negative consequences as a result of your selfish decisions?

Notice in the following diagram that your mindset, whether it is set on the flesh or on the Spirit, will affect your body. In time, it will produce some form of life or death.

If your mind is set on your flesh, it can result in feelings of depression, fear, anxiety, and the like. These emotions ripple through the soul and eventually affect the physical body.

The fleshly motivation for what you do will typically be rooted in one of these three:
The drive to control life and others.
The tendency to judge yourself and others.
The desire to be praised and accepted by others.

Q4. Do you see any of these motivations behind your decisions?

Sowing and Reaping
The desire to be in control, judge, and seek praise will lead to certain decisions. Those decisions have negative consequences.

“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.” Galatians 6:7–8 (NASB)

In time, your mindset on the flesh could lead to one of many physical consequences in the body.
1. Illnesses (check the ones you experience on a regular basis)
_____ Headaches
_____ Ulcers
_____ Hives and rashes
_____ Allergies
_____ Arthritis
_____ Spastic colon
_____ Respiratory ailments
_____ Fatigue
_____ Insomnia
_____ Escape in sleep
_____ Hypertension
_____ Heart problems

“…My whole body is sick; my health is broken because of my sins.”
Psalm 38:3 (NLT)

2. Sexual Diseases

“…Our bodies were not made for sexual immorality. They were made for the Lord, and the Lord cares about our bodies.” 1 Corinthians 6:13 (NLT)

3. Chemical Dependency

“Don’t be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, let the Holy Spirit fill and control you.” Ephesians 5:18 (NLT)

4. Eating Disorders

5. Disfigurement of your body

6. Abortion

7. Suicide

“…The physical part of you is not some piece of property belonging to…you. God owns the whole works. So let people see God in and through your body.” 1 Corinthians 6:20 (MSG)

All of these problems are in one way or another, an illness, a disease, or an abuse of the body.

Repentance
Pride, vanity, trying to control, and judging are all ways your flesh is trying to be God. When you attempt to be God you will bring death on your body.

You must turn from the direction you are headed and go God’s way. This is called repentance.

“Some were fools in their rebellion; they suffered for their sins. Their appetites were gone, and death was near. ‘LORD, help!’ they cried in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress. He spoke, and they were healed – snatched from the door of death.” Psalm 107:17–20 (NLT)

Jesus – Our Model
Going God’s way or setting your mind on the Spirit means you will trust God’s control instead of trying to control your life and others. This is what Jesus did.

He trusted God’s control even when other people were rejecting Him.

“…and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously.” 1 Peter 2:23 (NASB)

He did not judge. He accepted Himself and others.

"If anyone hears My sayings and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world.” John 12:47 (NASB)

He did not seek the praise of men.

“Though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his rights as God. He made himself nothing; he took the humble position of a slave and appeared in human form.” Philippians 2:6–7 (NLT)

Set Your Mind on the Spirit
Setting your mind on the Spirit means you will accept yourself and others. You won’t be judging, comparing, and envying. Finally, when your mind is set on God you will give Him praise and not be seeking praise for how you look.

“Don’t be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead, fear the Lord and turn your back on evil. Then you will gain renewed health and vitality.” Proverbs 3:7–8 (NLT)

As a result, you will experience health, freedom, and renewal.

“A merry heart does good, like medicine, But a broken spirit dries the bones.” Proverbs 17:22 (NKJ)

“So Christ has really set us free. Now make sure that you stay free…” Galatians 5:1 (NLT)

“For I want you to understand what really matters, so that you may live pure and blameless lives until Christ returns.” Philippians 1:10 (NLT)

You will have purity, self-control, and restoration. You won’t be doing destructive things to your body because you won’t be looking for love and acceptance in the wrong places.

“Knowing God leads to self-control. Self-control leads to patient endurance, and patient endurance leads to godliness.” 2 Peter 1:6 (NLT)

Your focus will be on your dependence on God and your hope in Him and the fact that you will get a new body, a resurrected one!

“It is the same way for the resurrection of the dead. Our earthly bodies, which die and decay, will be different when they are resurrected, for they will never die.” 1 Corinthians 15:42 (NLT)

Q5. Will you choose, with your will, to set your mind on His Spirit? If not today, when?

Read the rest of the Physical workbook to gain a better understanding of God's plan for your body. Learn how to experience freedom by focusing on the truth and staying within the boundries God has given you. Discover a new direction for the physical area of your life that will bring about lasting change.

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