1 Corinthians 2:14-4:21 - Part A

So welcome to the sinners who are in different stages of sanctification… The way we are takes is the way we are. We must believe as bosses we, as we are. And that gets pretty messy. There were a lot of problems in the early church. Also Paul addressed them in his letters, speaking, admonition and encouragement to believers today on connect with Skip Skip explore some of those problems as he shares in insight with you about spiritual growth. Right now we want to tell you about a resource discovered the Bible's extraordinary relevant and transforming power in this world record has again confirmed that the Bible is the best-selling of all time. Research number to 7 billion in questions of Scripture been translated into nearly 3500 different languages but there's a big difference between having access to password and allowing it to change your life. Listen to Beth about practical Bible study from skip. I think observation was legal interpretation which must lead to application somebody once but if you want to meet in the street you take the Bible truths and put shoe leather on the lungs where the rubber meets the road. You do what Jesus said to increase the effectiveness of your personal Bible study with skip. I think the how to study the Bible and enjoy it.

This practical guide is thanking you when you get $25 or more to help keep his teaching ministry on the air. Get your copy today and take the mystery out of studying Scripture, 819 to 1888, or get online securely connectwithskip.com/offer first chapter as we join Skip for today's teacher will from time to time I hear well-meaning folks that will talk about how good it would be if we go back like they were in the early church when they hear that I get the sentiment because I remember saying that myself. Should be great to be like living life like in the early church.

Somebody says that I want to probe a little bit because I want to say so, how early are you talking about, but what you know like New Testament okay so the church at Corinth is a New Testament church you want to be like them out. They know first Corinthians at all to go well, not so much like them to go. Usually when all you know like the earliest church like the church in Jerusalem. But again, if you know your Bible you know that the early church in Jerusalem had its own share of issues and problems was a problem of hypothesis and God demonstrated how he felt about it by killing a couple of church members because of their high progress. That's a problem. I don't want to go back to that you resign, we sing a song and we don't really need it. There's iPod present Art's family have an undertaker at every service or in the six chapter when there was a problem between one group and another group over the daily distribution that was or was not taking place with a group of widows, there were problems. Even back then, so I just want to frame this and I think it's important that we grasp this isn't realistic to think that you could ever find a church that doesn't have its share of problems we have had our share of problems at this church. Through the years. My mind can land him as I go back to several different issues that we have had in rocky times we've had every assembly will and does have issues has problems simply because Jesus saves sinners. So welcome to the gathering of sinners who are in different stages of sanctification… The way we are takes is the way we are now… Too much to leave us the way we are. That's the holiness process, but we, as we are and that gets pretty messy from time to time. So that's important to realize because first Corinthians is largely a letter written to a church dealing with not one, not two, but several problems.

One after the other and we have sort of laid that out before you in the past few weeks church member named Chloe informed Paul, who is an emphasis about an issue with division. So Paul writes about that at the beginning of first Corinthians that was sort of the first problem he dealt with the problem of one group in the church against another group in the church. One would say I'm a Paul. Another would say I am of a policy was the pastor the came after Paul. Some say I'm of Cephas that is Peter the apostle we have no record of him coming to Corinth, but maybe there were influenced by his teachings.

Maybe he did come true. Were not sure and then another group disorder, say yeah I'm really not tied inhumanly drive of Christ and the point is they drew off into sub groups and created more disunity by being unified over one leader over another leader wasn't a leader's fault, Paul, Peter, Apollo's never insisted they I demand loyalty to me. It wasn't their fault. It was the people's fault who were attracted to those personalities and thought it was important enough to divide oversight was an issue that he deals with another issue that Paul is dealing with Minnesota bleeds into the first issue is that influence of Greek philosophy. There were attracted by the worldly wisdom of the Greeks.

The Greeks, of course, were known for their philosophical postulates and further their philosophers that were well renowned and well spoken of and could articulate matters of life beautifully and so with that as a background. They were attracted to being chic and being respectable and wanting worldly wise people to like them. So yeah they wanted to follow Christ, but they wanted to have kind of the backslapping of the world at the same time. So Paul talks about worldly wisdom, God has chosen the wise are the noble, but the foolish things of this world to confound the wise, the weak things of this world to put to shame the mighty and then those two problems of division and respectability. Worldly wisdom led to 1/3 problem that was carnality, and it's all tied together a disorder deals with the issue in different ways leading up to it in a sort of where we left off. It's it's the problem of stunted spiritual growth. All of us should be growing in our faith. I've been a Christian while I should still be growing in my faith. You may been a Christian just if you want your growing in your faith or few years you're growing in your faith. Remember when I was a four year old Christian, not four years old is a human, but an adult human being who had been born again for four years and I just thought man. I've been a Christian a long time. When I started dating this young girl had been a Christian a few weeks of scrolling limit that good.

She's just so immature and so mature and as the years pass. As the years go on is why I have that life verse God's chosen the foolish things of this world. I realize how foolish I was and am but then I quickly rejoice the God selects those people so in chapter 2, toward the end I made a statement as I close last week that Paul identifies not two different groups of people, but three different groups of people in the world. What is the natural person or the natural man.

He will call second is the spiritual man and the third is the carnal man that's in chapter 3, but toward the end of chapter 2, he speaks about those first two categories, the natural person of the natural man and it doesn't mean you engender just a person a natural person versus the spiritual person so in verse 14 he says, but the natural man does not receive the things of the spirit, not just again for context. He talks about the fact that the Holy Spirit knows the mind of God and has revealed the mind of God to us, who is known spirit of a man except the one who knows the things of a man except the spirit of man that is in them same it is with God the Holy Spirit knows the mind of God and reveals things to us so we are recipients of God's revelation through the Holy Spirit. But verse 14 but the natural man does not receive the things of the spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. That's the first category, the natural man. The natural person. The Greek word is Suki costs Suki doesn't mean somebody was governed by human nature. That's the natural man. The natural woman. It's not like him a natural woman… That idea of that song. Although it does fit, if you're unregenerate. If you are an unsaved person.

If you're a person simply governed by human nature, appetites of human nature, then that's what you are a natural man and natural woman. Now this natural man mentioned in verse 14 might be a very charming, handsome, beautiful, charismatic, intelligent, even religious person and yet unsaved, and as an unsaved person as a natural person even if he or she is all of those things they don't understand spiritual matters real spiritual truth. I used to get so frustrated when I would witness to people and I would make the argument so logical my presentation so airtight in its units understanding logically and theologically and you might have people look at me like, and I would say to them. Can you see it.

Don't you understand it. Don't you get it in the answer my questions were no how can you expect somebody who can't see or understand spiritually to get a spiritual truth you're trying to convey. It's as much folly as telling a blind person. Look at the beautiful sunset we've had today.

Look at those colors is me Skip energy notice I caring a walking cane. I can't see all that. Look at it, can you get it done in that beautiful I don't.

I lack the capacity I don't have the capability to appreciate somebody who's either deaf or tone deaf to the list you player a bit of music that is your favorite music to listen to those violins are that shallow, or listen to that those harmonies and the I can appreciate. I lack the capability so it is with the natural person they lack the capability because Paul says they are spiritually discerned. Got asked to open their hearts, the Holy Spirit has to enable them to discern to get it to understand in Ephesians chapter 2 Paul says that you were dead in trespasses and sins. If your dad you lack the capacity to feel that you go to a casket and there's a dead person lying there and you know Jim or talk to them or try to hug them they can appreciate it there insensate. They have no sensations toward you. They lack any kind of ability to have apprehend stimuli whatsoever. Some unsecured debt in times past you walked according to the course of this world. He continues, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience and you were listen by nature the children of wrath, even as others even as other unbelievers, so this is the unregenerate man the unregenerate woman the natural man that Suki costs verse 15 introduces us to a second category of person, but he who is spiritual Greek word here is pneumatic costs judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one for who has known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him, but we have the mind of Christ, so we have the natural man know we have the spiritual man or if you don't mind the natural man and a supernatural man because God is awaken his or her spirit to the things of God there thinking now, not just in the natural world, but in the supernatural world there interested in supernatural things spiritual things. I was amazed when I came to Christ. One of the indications to me that I was saved was not that I was perfect because that still hasn't happened.

Ask anybody who knows me well, especially my wife, but one of the indications that I was saved is that I had a change of appetite.

The things I I used to hate.

I started to like the things that I love. I didn't have the same taste for skeptical party was good.

Doesn't sound interesting to me. Oh come on, which along with, you know, none of one question what's right with me and the things I never had an interest in like reading the Bible, praying, being around other Christians. I hate I thought Christians were weird. I still have my doubts about some but it's God's family and I love them I love being around them. I love his word.

I love his church.

I love his plan. I don't understand it but I love it. I've knew appetites. I'm spiritually inclined is are you supernaturally inclined and I love it. In verse 15. He was spiritual judges all things that is he gets it he understands he apprehends all things I once was lost but now am found I was blind but now I see now I understand the darkness I was and now I understand the meaning of life. Now I understand what the future is going now I understand, was really in control of the universe and who was at war and odds with each other.

I see all that night and see it before now. I judge all things I discern it I understand I get it.

Watch this, though you get it.

It's as yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. You understand, but they don't understand you. You get it, but the world doesn't get you anything, what, what's wrong with you like my friends what Skip what's wrong with you about Jesus and all that's weird. They just there blind to it again. There the natural man so you get it they don't get you. I used to drive my coworkers nuts.

Not because I I'd I tried to be obnoxious. I tried purposely not to be obnoxious, but to be gracious, but I remember it was Monday and it was for the later part of the morning I was working at a hospital in Orange County, California at the St. Joseph's in Orange, California, and I I'm I'm doing my work and I'm whistling and my supervisor.

She was just she was kind of ornery. I never really saw her happier or or lit up about anything good and so she just looked at me and she was why are you always whistling. You seem so this and she said all you you seem so happy.

I said well I am happy. Well I don't get it. I mean we have so much work and then the listing all the things that I should be unhappy by the those are true, but I've got something deeper inside of me going on the goes above and beyond that, that's irrespective an unrelated to that I don't get it, understand.

Because of this you get it they don't get you better understand your spiritual or natural. Now we get to 1/3 category in chapter 3 verse one image last week. The chapter breaks and verse numbers are not in the original manuscripts we just have the letter of Paul to the Corinthians. He didn't write chapter 3, verse one. He didn't do that. They came later on, the guy who did it was well-intentioned but he got it wrong is not inspired of God. He just came up and it's very handy to be able to say turn to chapter 3 verse one of a certain book. Very handy to do that but sometimes I think chapter breaks are better served con textually in different places than others, but that's that's for another study, let's just get into it and I brethren could not speak to you as to spiritual people just talked about the natural versus the spiritual. I couldn't talk to you is spiritual but asked to carnal, as to babes in Christ as the third category you have natural spiritual carnal Suki costs if you want the original language pneumatic costs and then this word carnal Starkey costs or fleshly or the NIV translates it worldly.

You are worldly. Sometimes Christians scholars commentators will say there's no such thing as a carnal Christian is only there's only Christians and non-Christians are natural and spiritual will I do believe there are carnal Christians for a number of textual reasons and what is confined ourselves of the remarks of this text. Because notice what he says I'm speaking to you not a spiritual but as carnal and then he defines it as to babes in Christ.

There still in Christ there Christians are related to Jesus Christ, but their immature their babies there spiritually immature, carnal, otherworldly there between two natures, the old nature. The new nature, the world, the flesh versus the spirit there in between two kingdoms. You might think of it this way, they have enough of Christ to be saved, all you need is to believe in Jesus Christ you really trust that he died for you on the cross. He believed that he took your sins on the cross. If you believe in your heart that in the God raised him from the dead.

Paul said in Romans, you will be say they have enough of Christ to be safe, but they also have enough of the world to be miserable in Christ, not really satisfied in Christ. They're not maturing as to babes in Christ.

Think of it this way there saved but their stunted in their growth. They're not as far along as they should be. I love evangelism I do. I love seeing people get saved love calling people to faith in Christ somebody so many of us to sort of make that the event the big deal the culmination it at a service.

If you are asking.

Skip is evangelism your biggest joy as much as I love it and I should say probably yes because I do want to see people go to heaven and not help but I think my greatest joy I would echo the words of John the apostle John said I have no greater joy than to see the my children want to improve that conclusion. Skip six message series expound first Corinthians want to let you know special opportunity to pursue biblical studies in a way that works with your schedule. If you're ready to study God's word, the on going to church and personal Bible ready for Calvin: take your learning and your life's purpose to the next level with education registration for the 2022 fall term is open right now. Classes have on-site Kelly Churchill and of online classes like Old Testament survey world apologetics and theology, specific courses, like Daniel, Romans, Revelation cover college partners with Veritas international universe Calvary Chapel universe so you can earn an accredited undergraduate or graduate simply increase your knowledge of God replication for the 2022 fall term is available now. Classes start August 15 apply to the Calvary church college.com that's Calvary church college.com. The Bible helps you grow spiritually guides your life brings joy to yourself secretly fully for Christ. We connect friends like you to God's word to this broadcast and it's your financial support that makes it all possible. So please consider getting today to help keep these teachings. He left available and going out to others around the world just call 890, 292 to 18 is a connected.com/Downing.com/Downing tune tomorrow is six years cooperative believers