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Commentary on "The Atmosphere of Praise"

TERRY MIRRA

 

Day 3: Monday, May 17, 2010

 

OVERVIEW

The first part of this lesson discusses air, oxygen (its composition) and our need of this for life. The second part talks about the first breath given to Adam and how it brought him to life. Even though all the animals of creation use air to breathe and have breath, God didn’t breathe directly into them—“What does that tell us about ourselves, about our uniqueness in God’s eyes?” The author states that through the act of breathing, we keep the original breath of life alive in us, and that each breath should remind us of that original breath breathed into Adam. Through our father, Adam, the breath of God has been passed down to all of us.

 

OBSERVATIONS

The assumption in this lesson is that breath is some kind of “divine air”—a sort of magical “puff” pushed into Adam’s lungs. At the most basic level, this “breath” breathed into Adam is simply the animating force of the body—and even so, it wouldn’t be the air itself that would bring him to life as a human with a soul. Anyone who has done CPR on an unresponsive (expired) person knows that the air itself isn’t what constitutes life. A better biblical explanation is that this “breath” given to Adam by God (and unique to mankind) refers to the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, through whom God acts, reveals His will, empowers individuals, and discloses His personal presence (the same Spirit that is mentioned in Gen. 1:2). While the creation of our physical bodies is truly a miracle (including the air we breathe), it’s the Holy Spirit living in us that brings us back to “spiritual life”. (2 Cor. 5:5, Eph 1:13, 14). Talking to believers, 1 Cor. 6:19 reminds us of the importance of taking good care of our bodies:

“Do you not know that your body is a sanctuary of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body.”

It’s the presence of the Holy Spirit that makes our body a sanctuary, otherwise it’s just an aging, fleshly tent. While good healthcare is important, diet and health do not actively play a role in holiness or salvation. It’s all about God in us, not us making a perfect environment in which to praise Him.

 

CONCLUSIONS

  1. The first breath God breathed into Adam is not referring to some kind of magical “puff” of atmospheric air, but to the Holy Spirit.
  2. While our physical bodies are a miracle of God in and of themselves, it’s the presence of the Holy Spirit in us that mandates our stewardship. We are not our own, but God’s, bought for a price.
  3. It’s not better physical health that makes us more spiritual, but a matter of the heart and who dwells there. Diet and health do not actively play a role in holiness or salvation.
  4. Our focus should be on praising God, not what kind of an environment we’re in and whether it’s conducive to good health.
  5. Where should our greater priority be: our physical health or our spiritual health? One is temporary, the other is eternal.

 

GO TO DAY 4

 

Copyright 2010 BibleStudiesForAdventists.com. All rights reserved. Revised May 14, 2010. This website is published by Life Assurance Ministries, Glendale, Arizona, USA, the publisher of Proclamation! Magazine. Contact email: BibleStudiesForAdventists@gmail.com.

The Sabbath School Bible Study Guide and the corresponding E.G. White Notes are published by Pacific Press Publishing Association, which is owned and operated by the Seventh-day Adventist church. The current quarter's editions are pictured above.

 

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