1 Corinthians 3:1-15 Carnal Minded Christians

1 Corinthians 3:1-15 CARNAL MINDED CHRISTIANS 3-12-11

Today I want to talk for a little while to do with Christians that never seem to grow in the things of God, and yet they may have been saved for many years, often times their bible is never opened from one Sunday unto the next when they go to church, and even then not always opened.

And many are sitting under a Preacher that’s not very deep in the things of God himself, according to Paul here in verse one of our text these people are saved-

And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ.

And these that are saved are just as saved as they’re every going to be, but there’s many saved people that are much like little babies when it comes to understanding the things of God and especially Gods Word, and I must confess that I certainly don’t understand it all either, but I do believe it all, I believe that we’ll still be learning when the Lord calls us out of this world.

It’s not necessary for us to be bible scholars to be saved, but our desire should be that we want to grow in the knowledge of the things of God.

2 Peter 3:18 But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Now we can be certain that not all that come to the Corinthian church was saved, its that way in most churches, the bigger the number of the congration in an assembly the more likely it is that there’s lost church members.

Ø What we find in this passage that we’re about to read is not about a person’s relationship to Christ, but on service to Christ.

Ø LISTEN as I read today’s text.

1 Corinthians 3:1-17 And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal,** even as unto babes in Christ. (Carnal==fleshly desires--governed by human nature, instead of by the Spirit of God)

2 I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. --- Paul cannot talk to such folk about spiritualities in very much depth, as they’re not yet ready for it. First he must talk to them about their carnalities.

This is a consequence of a babe in Christ; he has a carnal understanding to the Word of God. This unnatural man, this carnal Christian, is a babe in Christ. He has ability but no desire. A baby has the potential to become a learned man, but he has to start out by drinking milk.

Peter refers to it as the sincere milk of the Word;

1 Peter 2: 2 As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:

In Hebrews we read;

Hebrews 5:12 –14 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.

13For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. 14But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.

- even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.

NOTICE:-- by reason of use—

In other words the more we read and study and hear the Word of God the more we’ll be able to understand what God wants us to know, and to recognize error when we hear it.

Romans 10: 17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Not by what Doctor wiggle jaw says about it, but what the forever settled Word says.

Once a subject or thought is explained and settled in our mind and heart from the Word of God we will never waver from these truths.

We found out from Gods Word that all mankind are sinners and must be saved, we found out from the Word of God Who the Savior is and that we need to receive Him as our Savoir, and then we found out from the Word of God how long this salvation will last, and we will never have a change of mind about these matters because it is all told to us in Gods Word, it is settled.

Well our common sense tells us that a newly born baby, a baby just arriving into this world can not sit down at the table with a T-bone steak and start eating it, he begins with milk, the very basics of his young life, and as he grows over a period of time he will gradually be able to digest stronger food, the same applies to the new born Christian, it would be very unusual to start teaching him from the book of Leviticus or Deuteronomy or Revelation because he simply would not understand.