Soul And Spirit

Q

I am a Christian and have been for most of life. Yesterday, I was speaking with a new age friend and the question arose “is our soul the same thing as our spirit”? I didn’t know how to answer. Can you help me?

A

Hebrews 4:12 says the word of God is sharper than any double edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit. This tells us the two are not the same. For what it’s worth, someone once said our soul is what makes us part of the animal kingdom, but it’s out spirit that makes us human. Others say our spirit is the eternal part of us, while our soul consists of our mind, will, and emotions.