If someone were to ask you, “What are you?” how would you respond? Let’s take a moment to think about this biblically here. When God created humans, He took dirt from the earth, formed it into a human, and breathed a spirit of life into it - thus, at the most basic understanding, we are a created body and soul. Dietrich Bonhoeffer states it well when he writes, “A human being does not ‘have’ a body–or ‘have’ a soul; instead, a human being ‘is’ body and soul.”
“A human being does not ‘have’ a body–or ‘have’ a soul; instead, a human being ‘is’ body and soul”
After God created man, He called His creation “very good,” and then He rested to observe His handiwork - and this is what the Sabbath is, God’s invitation to join Him to rest and celebrate the works of His hand (His creation and also His redemption). Why is it important to accept that we are body and soul? Because God created us with an intended purpose to worship and glorify God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Our time on earth is not meant to be spent escaping this physical world but rather living properly within it. The Apostle Paul writes that our bodies are “for the Lord” (2 Cor 6:19), so use your body and soul to magnify the glory and beauty of God and love your neighbor as yourself (body and soul).