WRITINGS
The Bible opens with God’s declaration of His creation of the heavens and the earth: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). The verse tells us that from the beginning, God created two worlds: the physical universe and the unseen heavenly or spiritual realm. Even though invisible, we must never forget that this spiritual realm is created, and within it are the spiritual beings that inhabit this domain—the angels.
It is written, “The LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life [nishmat chaim]; and man became a living being [in Hebrew a living soul—Nefesh Chaya]” (Genesis 2:7). Thus, God created man in His image, male and female He created us. We are therefore complex beings comprised of a body formed by the hand of God and made from the dust of the earth, and a soul, a spirit that God breathed into us. While certain basic instincts and emotions chemically derive from our physical bodies, our God-breathed souls contain the more profound essence of who we are. For this reason, we are not like any other creature.
Arguments between early Jewish and gentile believers often resolved around a theological disagreement over the Law of Moses. The word law is translated from the Hebrew word Torah, and literally means instruction. This instruction was intricately woven into the Mosaic Covenant, encompassing 613 positive and negative obligations (does and don’ts).
