(1 Cor 3:1-3 NKJV)

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(1 Cor 31-3 NKJV) And I, brethren, could not
speak to you as to spiritual people but as to
carnal, as to babes in Christ.
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2 I fed you with milk and not with solid food
for until now you were not able to receive it,
and even now you are still not able
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3 for you are still carnal. For where there are
envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you
not carnal and behaving like mere men?
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KEY INSIGHT In the Bible we find that God very
clearly divides mankind into two groups - 1.)
The natural 2.) The spiritual
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Those who are yet dead in trespasses and
sins. Those who through faith in Christ have
been born again and are now alive to God.
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KEY INSIGHT The CARNAL MAN is NOT a third
category of man.
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He is NOT a NATURAL man because he has truly
been made alive to God. We might say that he is
the UN - natural man.
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The carnal man is a real Christian. We know that
because of the way that Paul addresses them -
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(1 Cor. 31 NLT) Dear brothers and
sisters Paul is CERTAIN that they have been
born again into the family of God.
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(Eph. 218-19 NLT) Now all of us. May come to
the Father So now you gentiles are no longer
strangers and foreigners You are members of
Gods family.
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The carnal man is a real Christian. But, though
he is indeed a Christian, Paul is going to show
us that he is an UNNATURAL Christian.
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He is an UNNATURAL Christian because he is in a
state of retarded spiritual growth. Because of
this the carnal man in many ways still resembles
the natural man.
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That is why Paul calls this person CARNAL. The
word CARNAL means FLESH.
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KEY INSIGHT Though he has been born again, and
has been united to Jesus, he is not satisfied
with Jesus.
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KEY INSIGHT One of the most easily detectable
signs of carnality is that your joy is not found
in Jesus alone, it is found in Jesus AND.
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Your joy is wrapped up in Jesus AND - Some
possession Some pleasure Some position.
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The Scriptures clearly define the characteristics
of the CARNAL MAN. Lets examine them.
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Verse 1 babes in Christ.
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KEY INSIGHT The CARNAL Christian is someone who
has never grown out of spiritual diapers.
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KEY OBSERVATION The fact that many of the
Corinthians had never grown out of spiritual
infancy is seen by the words of Paul in Verse 2 -
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Verse 2-3a I fed you with MILK and not with
solid food for until now you were unable to
receive it, and even now you are still not able
for you are still carnal
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At birth infants are nourished on moms milk or
formula because they can NOT digest solid foods.
There are also certain properties in moms milk
that help to develop immunities.
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Seeing mom with infant is a very beautiful and a
very natural sight.
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But there comes a time when the infant matures
and can begin to eat semi-solids. Then They grow
teeth and can begin to chew and digest solid
food.
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Remember how we said at the beginning that he is
the unnatural Christian?
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Ladies, imagine that you are visiting a friend
and their teen age child comes into the room and
says, Mom, Im hungry. Can I have a snack?
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Nothing unnatural about that. But just imagine
your shock if your friend said Sure honey, and
then unbuttoned her blouse and started to breast
feed her teenager! UNNATURAL!
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That is exactly the picture of the CARNAL
Christian. He is an UN-NATURAL spiritual man.
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He should be nourishing himself on the meat of
the Word, but instead is a weak, anemic, milk
drinking infant.
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He is a spiritual dwarf, never growing into
maturity. After being away from him for five or
ten years you would find his prayer life, and his
witness have not changed at all.
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QUOTE J. Oswald Sanders
True, nothing is more attractive than baby-talk,
but what is charming in a child is tragic in a
man. The Carnal Christian is a spiritual
monstrosity.
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KEY INSIGHT This state of carnality is not only
unnatural, it also leaves the carnal Christian in
a state of being -
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KEY INSIGHT The carnal Christian is HELPLESS
and DEPENDENT on others for his spiritual
development and well being.
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He incapable of feeding himself from the
Scriptures. Remember we noted that the Carnal
Christian lives on the milk of the Word.
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The fact that he is a milk drinker tells us that
the carnal Christian is dependent upon others for
spiritual nourishment, because what is milk but
solid food that has passed through the another
digestive tract.
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KEY POINT The Carnal Christian has a poor
appetite for the bible and is incapable of
drawing nourishment from its pages.
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KEY INSIGHT Because of his own helplessness in
spiritual things he is INCAPABLE of serving
others. Rather than SERVING he must constantly be
SERVED.
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So the CARNAL Christian is characterized
by Spiritual Immaturity Spiritual Helplessness
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KEY INSIGHT The CARNAL Christian is quick to
argue over trifles.
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He has no real desire to know or defend the great
truths of Scripture, but he will fight to the
death over things that are INSIGNIFICANT or
NON-ESSENTIAL to the Christian life.
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Here are some of the more significant issues
which we have had tackle over the years -
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The color of doors. The pastors shoes. Where
the pastoral staff came from.
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So the Carnal Christian is characterized
by Spiritual immaturity Spiritual
Helplessness Arguing Over Trifles
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KEY INSIGHT The Carnal Christian is guided by
EMOTION rather than PRINCIPLE and TRUTH. As a
result he is touchy and easily offended.
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His whole perception of the world around him is
based on what he feels. As a result he is touchy
and easily offended.
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Those around him must walk on eggs because they
are always uncertain as to how he will react.
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So the Carnal Christian is characterized
by Spiritual immaturity Spiritual
Helplessness Arguing Over Trifles Lives on
Feelings
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(1 Cor 33-4 NKJV) for you are still carnal.
For where there are envy, strife, and divisions
among you, are you not carnal and behaving like
mere men? 4 For when one says, "I am of Paul,"
and another, "I am of Apollos," are you not
carnal?
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KEY INSIGHT 1 - Envy, Strife and Division are
the inevitable by products of the carnal life.
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ENVY - A Carnal Christian can not rejoice over
the success of another. They indeed sound
childish - Why does HE get to ____?
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ENVY - It kills him to see God blessing another
mans ministry and life more than their own.
Neither can the Carnal Christian rejoice over
the prosperity of another.
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STRIFE - Where the Carnal Christian is envious
(and he will be) there will soon follow strife.
The word literally means wrangling, debating,
or contention.
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STRIFE - He is going to let everyone know that
he cant believe why the pastor let so and so
take the position that he obviously deserved.
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STRIFE - To support his position that he was
the one who should have been promoted he wont
hesitate to accuse the pastor of having no
discernment and the other person of being a
sycophant.
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KEY INSIGHT The by-products of the Christian
life do not end with ENVY and CONTENTION. ENVY
will inevitably lead to CONTENTION which will
inevitably lead to DIVISION in the Body of Christ.
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DIVISION - The Carnal man will form parties
or factions in a fellowship. He will look out
for and rally to himself those who have the same
Carnal attitudes to support his position.
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DIVISION - He is able to draw to himself other
Carnal people who have ENVIED the success of
others, and who, as a result of their
disappointments regarding advancement share the
same low view of the pastor.
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DIVISION - The TRAGEDY of it all is that they
are willing to adopt ungodly church politics to
gain their end. To these people Paul declares -
YOU ARE YET CARNAL.
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KEY INSIGHT In the language of the Old
testament, the Carnal Christian lives in the
Wilderness - the barren desert lying between
Egypt and the Promised land.
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One moment he is creeping back towards the
borders of Egypt, the next he is on the borders
of the promised land, and then back again. He is
torn between the two!
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The memories of the old life still linger with
him and he is NOT prepared to pay the price of
entering into the promised land.
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On a Sunday morning he longs for the victorious
Christian life, but when he gets home he can not
resist the lures of Egypt. When no one is
looking he secretly makes excursions into that
forbidden territory.
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KEY QUESTION Are all of these things a picture
of your life? Are you yet carnal?
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KEY QUESTION Have you been brought to the
conclusion that you are yet carnal?
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KEY INSIGHT The way OUT of the CARNAL life and
IN to the SPIRIT-FILLED life is the very same way
that the Israelites left the wilderness and
entered the Promised Land.
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KEY INSIGHT For the Israelites this meant
CONFESSION of their failure to follow the Lord
into the Promised Land.
WILLINGNESS TO OBEY the will of God revealed to
Joshua and to finally leave Egypt behind.
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ABSOLUTE FAITH in the Word of God. As they
obeyed the Word of God they experienced the power
of God.
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In a spiritual sense this morning, are willing to
cross the Jordan River? If your choice is made,
wont you please at this very moment take that
step of faith, rest on the unfailing Word of
God? DO IT NOW!