Portrait of a Worshiper

Chapter 2

“Designed to Fulfill Our Purpose”

The Importance of How God Designed Humans

Remember, every invention is designed with a specific purpose in mind. It is that design which equips that specific item to be capable of doing what it was designed to do. The human being is no exception. How God made us has everything to do with how we accomplish our purpose for existence.

By the way, the design of any of God’s creations is the best it can be for accomplishing the purpose for which it was created. You cannot improve on God’s designs! There is no elephant 2.0, or human being 2.1.

We have seen how God has created us to “show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” This is God’s declared purpose for mankind. Again, since we were created for this purpose, the way we were designed and created has everything to do with us accomplishing the purpose for which we were designed. Therefore, to understand how we are to fulfill our purpose, we must first of all understand how we were designed and created.

The Design of Humanity

The scientific term for “the study of mankind” is the word “Anthropology.” Our study in this chapter would fall under this scientific term.

To discover the “blue print” for how God made humanity, we can consult Paul’s writings, the apostle who was given an abundance of revelations by the Spirit of God. In writing his prayer for the Thessalonians, Paul allows us to share in his revelation as to how God designed and created mankind.

1 Thess 5:23 (KJV) And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Paul’s prayer was for the whole person (“wholly”). Then he listed the three parts which make up a whole human being.

The Worshiper’s Anthropology Chart #1

Bible Reference The Parts of a Human Being

1 Thes. 5:23 spirit soul body

Table VI

A Confirmation of this Design

One of the miracles of the Bible is that it confirms itself. Let’s look back to the original account of creation in Genesis to see if this three-part blue print for humanity can be verified.

Gen 2:7 (KJV) And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

In this creation account here in Genesis, all three of the parts of mankind are mentioned.

Part #1 – The “form” of man is the body, which was created by God out of the dust of the earth. Remember that God had previously spoken the earth into existence, now he is forming man from that dirt.

Part #2 – The Hebrew word for “breath” in this Scripture is nashamah [nesh-aw-maw'] which also means “spirit.”

Part #3 – Notice that the union of the dusty form of a person, and the spirit breathed into that body from almighty God, created a “living soul.”

Let’s match these three parts with Paul’s revelation of how we are wholly made.

The Worshiper’s Anthropology Chart #2

Bible Reference The Parts of a Human Being

1 Thes. 5:23 spirit soul body

Genesis 2:7 breath soul form/dust

Table VII

Notice that a human being does not exist until the spirit of life from God is joined to the physical body, causing the soul to result from the union of these two. Therefore, man is not man without all three parts of our being.