“What is a man benefited if he gains the whole world, yet loses or forfeits himself?” Luke 9:25 HCSB

Who are you? You are a body, soul, and spirit. 

Your body is called the flesh in the Bible. It is the part of you that wants to do whatever it wants to do. It is the part of you that is in rebellion to God. The body will die and be buried in the ground unless Jesus returns to take His church out of this earth.

Your soul is the part of you that will live eternally either in Heaven or Hell. It is the part of you that longs for God.  It is the part of that has the God-shaped hole that only God can fill.

Your Spirit is the part of you that aligns with either God or the devil. With the Holy Spirit living inside of Christians your soul lines up with God. Without the Holy Spirit, your spirit naturally lines up with the devil.  Without the spirit, your body cannot live.

So which of these can you lose or forfeit? All three! The Body is lost when we allow it to govern our lives. The soul is lost when we never discover The God who can fill it. The Spirit is lost when we never welcome the Holy Spirit of God into our lives to guide and direct us.

“Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely. And may your spirit, soul, and body be kept sound and blameless for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
1 Thessalonians 5:23 HCSB

“For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.”
James 2:26 HCSB

“Don’t fear those who kill the body but are not able to kill the soul; rather, fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”
Matthew 10:28 HCSB

“And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, then He who raised Christ from the dead will also bring your mortal bodies to life through His Spirit who lives in you.”
Romans 8:11 HCSB

“So then, brothers, we are not obligated to the flesh to live according to the flesh, for if you live according to the flesh, you are going to die. But if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. All those led by God’s Spirit are God’s sons.”
Romans 8:12-14 HCSB

The struggle in the Christian’s life is learning to love God with our body, soul and spirit. We must learn to love God with all our heart (emotions), soul, mind (thoughts), and strength (actions). and we must worship God with all our heart and soul.

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.”
Mark 12:30 HCSB

“If you carefully obey my commands I am giving you today, to love the Lord your God and worship Him with all your heart and all your soul,”
Deuteronomy 11:13 HCSB

“Blow the horn in Zion; sound the alarm on My holy mountain! Let all the residents of the land tremble, for the Day of the Lord is coming; in fact, it is near —

Even now — this is the Lord’s declaration — turn to Me with all your heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning. Tear your hearts, not just your clothes, and return to the Lord your God. For He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, rich in faithful love, and He relents from sending disaster. Who knows? He may turn and relent and leave a blessing behind Him, so you can offer grain and wine to the Lord your God. Blow the horn in Zion! Announce a sacred fast; proclaim an assembly. Gather the people; sanctify the congregation; assemble the aged; gather the children, even those nursing at the breast. Let the groom leave his bedroom, and the bride her honeymoon chamber.

Then the Lord became jealous for His land and spared His people. The Lord answered His people: Look, I am about to send you grain, new wine, and olive oil. You will be satiated with them, and I will no longer make you a disgrace among the nations.

After this I will pour out My Spirit on all humanity; then your sons and your daughters will prophesy, your old men will have dreams, and your young men will see visions.

Then everyone who calls on the name of Yahweh will be saved, for there will be an escape for those on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, as the Lord promised, among the survivors the Lord calls.”
Joel 2:1, 12-16, 18-19, 28, 32 HCSB

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