Aron,
Nice find on Eramus. I think he errs, though, by making the body synonymous with the flesh. The flesh is a post-fall phenomenon. In the pre-fallen condition, all three parts were fine and good ... very good, even (God breathed the spirit into the body and the living soul was produced).
In the fall, all three parts were sullied, not just the soul, not just the body, but also the spirit which was deadened. In Christ's redemption all three parts are brought back to a good state. The spirit is regenerated (that's good), the soul begins being transformed (that's very good), and the body is eventually transfigured (that's very, very good).
I think the LC went wrong by focusing too much on the negative aspect of the soul. The idea was that since the spirit was regenerated and life was there, the soul must turn to it rather than itself or worse, the body for its source and satisfaction. What does it mean to "turn to your spirit"? That is something the LC leadership never made clear and has caused a lot of grief.
The concept is actually good but it must be understood properly. To turn to one's spirit simply means to turn to the Lord. "Whenever the heart turns to the Lord ..." Every believer has some understanding of what this means. It simply means to contact the Lord, maybe by prayer, maybe by confession, maybe by musing on the Word, maybe by talking with another believer, maybe just by thinking about God. It means to stop listening to your stomach (or other bodily parts) and listen to the Lord's speaking in whatever way works for you.
It's a shame it became a mantra, a form of chastisement, and a slogan. Probably the worst thing you can tell a brother who is in the throes of some negative situation is to "turn to your spirit." Rather, we should be a form of that process by just fellowshipping with the brother.
SC
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