Audio Messages:
Pastor Wade Burleson

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The Breath of Life

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Genesis 2:4-7 (KJV)

4. These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,
5. And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground.
6. But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.
7. 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.

The Biblical account of creation is found in Genesis 1, with a closer look at certain events in Genesis 2. In Genesis 2:7 we have a very specific phrase regarding man's creation.

1. The body of man is formed from the dust (clay) of the earth . . .
   The imagery of Genesis 2:4 is that of a potter forming a clay jar. Throughout the Old and New Testaments this imagery of the body compared to a clay jar is often used. Solomon says to remember God "before the pitcher is shattered at the spring, and the dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God" (Ecclesiastes 12:6,7). The Apostle Paul said, "We have this treasure (Christ) in earthen vessels" (II Corinthians 4:7).
   1. The body is not what gives man worth and dignity . . .
      It's dust. It's formed from materials of the earth. It will decay. It will be gone. The body is sacred because of what it houses -- the soul; it is not sacred in itself. What then does it say about the person who is only concerned with the body?
   2. The body of man returns to dust at God's decree . . .
      You have no control over the number of days you live. God sustains the body. "If it were God's intention and he withdrew his spirit and breath, all mankind would perish together and man would return to dust" (Job 34:14, 15). And, "Stop trusting in man, who has but a breath in his nostrils" (Isaiah 2:22).
2. The soul of man is created by the breath of God Himself . . .
   "God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul" (v.7). This formation of Adam's spirit was not unique. God breathes life into every person. Elihu said to Job, "The breath of the Almighty hath given me life" (Job 33:4). The prophet Zechariah declared "God forms the spirit of man within him" (Zechariah 12:1).
   1. The life of a man on earth begins when God imparts the spirit.
      Biological life and human life are not the same. Only God creates the spirit. "The body without the spirit is dead" (James 2:26). So, if a human is cloned: (1) It will never live . . . or . . . (2) God will impart a spirit to the body.
   2. The life of a man on earth ends when God removes the spirit of man.
      One of the clearest verses on this matter is found in Solomon's Ecclesiastes. "Remember now thy Creator . . . before the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel be broken at the cistern. Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it" (Ecclesiastes 12:6- 7).
3. The soul of man is dead toward God until the Spirit breathes life again.
   We are sensitive to dead bodies; but we ignore dead souls. Dead bodies corrupt. Dead souls corrupt. The soul without the regenerating grace of God is dead. The Apostle Paul compares the first Adam with the second Adam saying: "The first man became a living being; the last Adam, a life giving spirit" (I Corinthians 15:45). The Spirit of God moves among sinners and breathes spiritual life into the soul.