“And Man Became a Living Soul”

Understand the Origin of Humanity

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.

~ Genesis 2:7, Moses 3:7, Abraham 4:7 ~

Adam, our first progenitor, “the first man,” was, like Christ, a preexistent spirit, and like Christ he took upon him an appropriate body, the body of a man, and so became a “living soul.” The doctrine of the preexistence—revealed so plainly, particularly in latter days—pours a wonderful flood of light upon the otherwise mysterious problem of man’s origin. It shows that man, as a spirit, was begotten and born of heavenly parents and reared to maturity in the eternal mansions of the Father, prior to coming upon the earth in a temporal body to undergo an experience in mortality. It teaches that all men existed in the spirit before any man existed in the flesh and that all who have inhabited the earth since Adam have taken bodies and become souls in like manner.

~ Origin of Man – Ensign – February 2002~

In Word: Pure doctrine and revealed truth is that we are spiritual offspring of Divinity. Revelation also teaches that we were created after our Heavenly Father’s image and likeness. Christ himself is said to be in the express image of the Father (John 14:9; Hebrews 1:3; and Colossians 1:15). Upon fashioning the physical body, our Heavenly Father breathed into Adam the breath of life. Through this process, Adam became a living soul. The nature and origin of humanity’s existence is one of spiritual nature and one of physical creation. We are fashioned with eternal spiritual bodies. It is then that our Heavenly Father breathes into our mortal bodies the breath of life so that we become a living soul. Scripture also declares unto us the promise that those who come to faith in Jesus Christ – by the miracle and gift of the infinite atonement – will have a new heart and spirit (Ezekiel 36:26).

In Deed: By freeing ourselves from the false sophistries and philosophies of men – we come to understand the simplistic truth of Our Heavenly Father. We are his image bearers in spirit and in mortality. Through our faithful obedience, we can fulfill His commandment to honor thy mother and thy father (Exodus 20:12). Since our divine nature is both one of a spiritual being and that of a mortal being, we share in the same essence as that of our Savior. Upon our death, our spirit will leave and return to our Heavenly Father while our bodies shall return to the earth from whence it came (Ecclesiastes 12:7). The promised blessing of the infinite atonement also gives us the blessed hope of the resurrection. Our spirit being reunited with our bodies in a state of immortality. This will fulfil the purpose of God where His desire, His work, and His glory are to bring to pass our immortality and eternal life (Moses 1:39). Our savior was the first to be risen unto immortality and glory. Upon our resurrection, we shall stand before our Heavenly Father and give an account of our life (Alma 11:41, 43). And depending on our faithfulness to the Gospel principles and truths – we shall inherit our respective eternal glory.

Take a Moment and Ponder: Revealed, and pure, doctrine and truth teach that we have a divine origin. Scripture also teaches us that we are blessed with a body of flesh and bone where our spirit dwells. Scripture also teaches that we will face death and our spirit will return to our Heavenly Father. There, we wait for the resurrection and our spirit will be reunited with our physical body. Thus, we will pass from mortality to immortality. Standing ready to give an account of our life. How does this help you in growing in faith and relationship with Jesus Christ? With our Heavenly Father? What is so significant about our creation that impacts the way one views life? What things may need to change in your life to where one is living faithfully to the teachings and commandments of our Heavenly Father? What hope does it provide where we look forward to the resurrection? In what way do you feel God is capable of breathing life into your present situation – where you have a change of heart and spirit and become a living soul?