Jesus is recorded in the gospels as using three words in one sentence:
"He answered, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind and your neighbor as yourself.'” Luk 10:27 NRSVue
"And he answering said, 'Thou shalt love the Lord thy God out of all thy heart, and out of all thy soul, and out of all thy strength, and out of all thy understanding, and thy neighbour as thyself.' Luk 10:27 YLT
What are we to make of the distinctions which must have been in Jesus' mind? How are we to understand how all three are seen together, what it means to have all three seemingly to make up a whole concept?
The BDAG on the Greek behind "heart", "soul" and "mind/understanding" -
heart - kardia, the heart as "of inner awareness", "especially also of love"
soul - psuche, 2 c "of feelings and emotions"
mind - dianoia, 1 the faculty of thinking, comprehending, and reasoning, understanding, intelligence, mind
Does it describe our feelings and emotions(soul) brought about by a comprehending intelligence(mind), which two together refers to our inner awareness(the heart), as the complete person? Should we think our feelings and emotions should be derived from comprehending intelligence, our understanding; and that is how we see ourselves?
I've always wrestled with how to understand the three concepts as Jesus states them. People, give some other understandings as you see the three.
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Know what IS what before understanding.
Heart…Soul…Mind
Body…Soul…Spirit
Knowledge…Understanding
Natural body…
procreated from a human male seed which has fertilized a human female egg.
Called manKIND.
Natural fertilized egg develops within days, an organ called a placenta that attaches to the females womb.
Natural body…
formed in Secret, (unseen), in womb, (connected to the placenta), formed by God.
Called Created.
Natural body’s LIFE,
Called BLOOD, Begins in womb, (by through the placenta) (days after conception).
First organ to develop in the forming mankind of thing, is the Heart.
Cells begin establishing, body parts, organs, systems.
Placentas’ vital role is to deliver nutrients, oxygen, to the forming creation and receive waste from forming creation.
Heart (pump) maintains the Bodys’ (Blood) Life.
Body delivered from womb.
Placenta, delivered After the body, disgarded as waste…or
(Sometimes, kept, by hospitals, given to science labs, who conduct studies and experiments….) (Unbeknownst to the female from which the placenta was delivered).
Gods “Secret” presence, during delivery.
God BLOWS “another” LIFE into the nostrils of the babe.
This LIFE, IS Gods Breath,
Called a soul.
( This Soul, this Life, belongs to God. This Life is NOT subject to Death. This soul may or may not Be destroyed (after a future judgement)….but the LIFE IN or OUT of the soul can NEVER DIE.( Gods LIFE may remain in that soul forever…or that LIFE return to God.)
* The Living soul IN that body;
Allows that body’s…
Eyes to see, ears to hear, nose to smell, mouth to utter sound, tongue to taste, flesh to feel touch.(communication skills)
A living soul, will Depart OUT of a dead body, and such soul shall continue Living, (communicating)….
Such departed living soul…will leave the face of the Earth…and habitat, either IN heaven or hell…until Judgement Day.
The dead body will, know, feel nothing, rot and remain on Earth…until Judgement Day.
* The body AND soul will NATURALLY have the Same IDENTIFIERS…names, genders, pronouns, me, I, my, thought processes. etc.
Person- is defined as An Alive Body, With An Alive Soul IN the Body.
Living souls DEPART out of Dead Body’s.
A Dead Body, IS NO Longer …A PERSON.
The NATURAL Spirit of man…
IS the natural “truths” the growing babe into adulthood LEARNS (knowledge)…and TRUSTS (believes)…as NO DOUBT ABSOLUTE TRUTH.
This Natural Spirit Truth of mankind IS the THOUGHTS of that mans LIFE, (Blood), it’s maintainer (pump) of LIFE, HEART.
(Natural Truth, that individual Trusts, without Doubt, IN his Heart. (he can share his Truths or keep them secret…from every other man, but NOT secret From the ALL knowing God).
* This Natural Spirit / Truth IS subject to Death…Will die when the Body Dies.
The Carnal Mind of man.
A natural “processor (or sorts), of Knowledge” it receives (at a phenomenal rate of speed).
A continual bombardment of KNOWLEDGE…From, seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, touching, being touched…dissecting…pondering…ignoring…trusting…rejecting…believing…wondering…etc.
* can believe one minute then reject the next minute…vacillates continually…is “easily” manipulated…”easily” can deceive and be deceived.
* “such a NATURAL” Carnal Mind…IS AGAINST God…and has NO natural capability to “UNDERSTAND” Gods SPIRITUAL, understanding.
* Spoken and Written Spiritual “KNOWLEDGE”.
Spirital Knowledge, ie. Gods Approved knowledge.
Some men SPEAK on behalf of God, sharing Gods Knowledge.
Some men as well SPEAK on behalf of themselves, sharing “their” Knowledge.
* Regarding a speaker on behalf of God…
Called a Servant of God…
* The LISTENER, has an obligation, duty, to VERIFY, what he Hears…With Gods Approved Written Word.
Called Scripture.
Such a man WHO Verifies in such manner, is called NOBLE.
Human Body’s have all been procreated from a Human males CORRUPT SEED, which fertilized a human females CORRUPT EGG.
CORRUPT?? How so?
First male & female was Created “good”…body of dust (elements) of the Earth.
And then “made” “VERY GOOD”…receipt of Soul.
And…believing God, being taught and believing ONLY GOOD “knowledge”.
Until…THEY…exercised their FREEWILL, to Direct their Attention TO the ONE thing they were
WARNED to AVOID…
Seeing, Hearing, Speaking, Touching, Taking, Tasting, and EATING…and oops…Negative Consequence…
But, but, NOT to overlook or dismiss…what occurred and didn’t occur…Before they were escorted OUT of the Garden.
* Gods Forgiveness of their Body…for their Body’s disobedience.
* How So? God sacrificed an Animals Blood (Life) For Them. God fashioned them Clothing from animal Hides’ to COVER their body’s Sin.
* They were escorted pass the “TREE of Life”, which NOTHING…prevented them from seeing, reaching out taking, tasting, Eating, Before passing through the exit way of the Garden….But, they neither exercised their FREEWILL to take from THAT Tree.
And thereafter…every offspring human of a humans SEED is the same like manner…corrupt…
Corrupt meaning Naturally born Against God.
** The OT News…
An established set of…
* common laws…traditions, rituals, remembrances, celebrations, clans, tribes, observed amongst themselves.
* precepts…Gods acceptable behaviors between and amongst “any” of manKIND.
* statutes…positive and negative (penal) laws God established for a particular people, to be “written”, copied, distributed, taught generationally, to such particular people…WHO all “agreed” to Obey.
** The New (better) Testament News.
Introductions and Offerings…
OF God revealed to the OT clans / tribes…Introduced to men of the Whole World, regardless of race or clan or tribe or gender or age.
* Offerings…to all of manKIND to EXERCISE their own FREEWILL, to hear, learn about God and His Offerings. And CHOICE to Be Curious, Listen, Taste, Spit Out, Reject, Walk Away, Believe, Continue Hearing, Trust, Accept, Eat, “Vow” Belief, or Not.
* Rejection…Living (life/blood)man, ie Person, alive Body, with living soul (Gods Life)…who rejects God … God Shall Reject that mans “alive body” and “alive soul”.
Every man’s Body Life (blood) SHALL Die, God requires that.
A living body that Rejects God… that dead lifeless body After Judgement shall be destroyed, burned up, in the Lake of Fire and Forgotten.
The Living soul of such man…The Life of the soul (Gods Breath) shall return to God. The lifeless soul also destroyed, burned up IN the Lake of Fire, Forgotten.
The Natural Spirit of that such man…(natural truth) dies with its body…
* Acceptance of Gods Offering..OT…absolute “Belief” in one’s HEART….
AND “Obedience” to Gods Word / STATUTES!
Compliance?
God WITH THEM, THEY with God.
* Belief…but NON compliance…??
Non Compliance of “LAW”? Penal Law “punishment”…
…individuals of the First clans, tribes, can Raise, Care for, a new born animal, take the the yearling to Temple, Give to Priest For their Sin Offering, that that animals Life (blood) be given unto death, slayed young on the altar, for the forgiveness of their “years past” sins.
(Law has not been abolished…but no physical Temple Exists today).