1 Thessalonians 5:23 states that God wants to make us WHOLE body, soul, and spirit. Jesus’ redemptive work can penetrate all areas of our lives and make us whole, and a whole-istic person is the most powerful weapon in the Kingdom of God. The greatest struggle point in the process of being made whole is in the soul. It is in the soul that sin is conceived and outwardly manifested.

Many Christians today think that the soul is evil. It isn’t. Nothing within us is evil once we accept Jesus into our lives. His redemptive work beings the moment we are saved; however, when we get saved, we don’t really look saved. Our spirits are instantaneously transformed, but our soul and body begin to go through the salvation process. Mark 7 lists just how dangerous an unredeemed soul can be. It is the root point for all the sin with which we struggle. Yet, even in knowing this, God calls us to love Him with all our soul (the Greek word if “Psycheâ€), our mind (“Dianoia†which means “intellectâ€) and our heart (“Cardiaâ€). He would not command this of us if the soul was unredeemable.

There are several scriptures that back the truth that Jesus cares about our soul:

• 1 Thessalonians 5:23 “…and may your WHOLE spirit soul and body be kept blameless…â€

• Mark 3:4 “…is this a day to save life or destroy it?†(the word “Save†is translated from the Greek word meaning “Wholeâ€)

• Luke 10:27 “…love the Lord your God with all your heart (cardia) and with all your soul (psyche) and with all your strength (physical being) and with all your mind (dianoia—intellect)…â€

• Ephesians 3:16 “…He will empower you with INNER STRENGTH through His Spirit.â€

• Romans 12:2 “…be transformed by the RENEWING of your MIND…â€

• Psalm 23:3 “He RESTORES my SOUL…â€

Jesus can and will redeem your soul if you let Him. The key is the Word of God. Hebrews 4:12 says that the Word of God is a two-edge sword that “cuts between soul and spirit.†When we allow the Spirit of God to speak to us through His Word, He will pinpoint the areas in our soul that need redemption. We are seen by God as holy and blameless; we can enter His presence and worship and fellowship with Him; but there are still areas of our life that need redemption. It is a process that Jesus and the Spirit complete in us every day. We gain the mind of Christ as He “makes His home†in our emotions, thoughts, motivations, and logical reasoning. Then, as the process continues, we begin to see that what once tempted us doesn’t tempt us anymore. We begin to see our soul being redeemed. We begin to see that Jesus is making us WHOLE.