“Do not be drunk with wine but be filled with the Spirit.” Ephesians 5.

The Apostle here identifies the main relationship of soul and spirit. If you and I will not subdue our soul our full spirit is useless. And so our prayers for a full spirit fall onto deaf ears because the soul and spirit must be aligned for there to be righteousness. God gets no glory from an independent, full soul. The soul that is full of wine, in this case, is useless. But need it only be wine that is the problem? We have how many books of the New Testament telling us to not go back to religion. Isn’t that just as filling to the soul as alcohol? As substitutionary in satisfaction? As heart warming as liquor? And so we see that the love for the world, the unsubmitted flesh, and the deception of religious feelings all make the soul a useless channel for a full spirit. If God ever got a soul to obey the many Psalms about silence, quietness, and pondering no great thing, then when his Spirit fills, he would now have a vessel of Life.

Paul said it best, we must discern soul and spirit. Because if we refer to a religious soul as a full spirit it will lead to something that is anti-Christ. And when the body won’t submit to the head, we have no display of the manifold wisdom of God.

The good news is that if we follow the Psalm 25 formula, we can present our soul to the Lord and he can submit it, crucify it, and reclaim it for his purpose of Spirit. A purpose which will bless us now and define us forever. May it be so with us.