Carnal Christians — The Spiritual Man

Carnal Christians

Every believer ought to be like Paul, who was filled with the Holy Spirit when he believed and was baptized (Acts 9:17–18). However, many believers do not truly believe in the accomplished fact of Christ’s death and resurrection on their behalf. Nor do they sincerely obey the Spirit’s call to walk according to the principle of death and resurrection. As far as Christ’s redemptive work is concerned, the believer has died and been raised with Him. And as a disciple, he ought to die to self and live to God. Yet, many are still governed by the flesh, living as though they had never died or risen again. Such believers are abnormal Christians. But abnormal Christians are not a modern phenomenon—they already existed in the days of the apostles. The Corinthians were such an example, as seen in Paul’s words to them:

"And so, brothers and sisters, I could not speak to you as spiritual people but rather as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for solid food. Even now you are still not ready, for you are still of the flesh. For as long as there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving according to human inclinations?"— 1 Corinthians 3:1–3 (NRSVue)

Here, the apostle divides Christians into two categories: spiritual and carnal. Truly spiritual believers are not extraordinary; they are merely living according to the normal Christian standard. It is the carnal Christian who is truly abnormal. These Corinthian believers were indeed Christians, yet they were not spiritual, but fleshly. In this passage, Paul calls them fleshly three times. Through the wisdom given by the Holy Spirit, the apostle knew he must first discern their spiritual condition before determining what teaching to give them.

According to Scripture, regeneration is a birth. When a person is born again, their innermost being—their spirit—is renewed, and the Spirit of God comes to dwell within. However, it takes time for the power of this new life to extend outward—from the center to the circumference. Therefore, we cannot expect an infant in Christ to have the strength of a “young man” or the experience of a “father” (cf. 1 John 2:12–14). Even a newly born-again believer who loves the Lord passionately and serves Him faithfully still needs time to gain deeper awareness of sin and self, greater understanding of God’s will, and progress along the spiritual path. Often, such zeal is merely emotional or intellectual and has not yet been tested by fire. Hence, it cannot endure. A newly regenerated believer, regardless of how fervent, will inevitably exhibit carnal traits. Though the Holy Spirit may fill him, he has yet to recognize what the flesh is. A person cannot overcome the works of the flesh if he does not know that they originate from the flesh. Thus, many newborn believers are, in fact, carnal.

The Bible does not expect a new believer to become spiritual instantly. But if one remains stagnant for years or decades, stuck in spiritual infancy, that is both shameful and pitiful. After stating that babes in Christ are fleshly, Paul goes on to say that those who remain as babes for a long time are also of the flesh. This is only natural. Formerly, Paul considered the Corinthians carnal because they were babes in Christ. But even now, after time had passed, they were still fleshly. By now, they should have matured. Yet, they remained withered and infantile, still carnal believers.

The time required for a believer to move from carnality to spirituality is not as long as many imagine. The Corinthian Christians had only been saved for a few short years after turning from a life of pagan sin, yet the apostle already considered them babes for too long—still carnal! They should have become spiritual by then. Christ’s redemption aims to remove every obstacle, that the Holy Spirit may govern the whole person and make him spiritual. Such a redemption cannot fail. The power of the Spirit is not ordinary. Just as a carnal sinner can be born again, so too can a born-again carnal believer become spiritual. The saddest thing is that many believers today remain spiritual infants not just for years, but for decades—unchanged, with no progress. And if someone does grow spiritually in a few years, it is often seen as something exceptional—when in fact, this should be entirely normal: the steady, proper growth of life. Reader, how long have you believed in the Lord? Have you become spiritual? Let us not be aged infants who grieve the Spirit and harm ourselves. All who are born again should earnestly desire a fully spiritual life. In all things, we must allow the Holy Spirit to be Lord, so that He may bring us into what God has prepared for us in the shortest time possible. Do not waste precious time. Remaining as a child for years without growth is a grave matter. There are likely two reasons for this: either the spiritual leaders focus only on God’s grace and the believer’s position in Christ without urging them to pursue deeper spiritual experience—or they are ignorant of the Spirit-led life and thus unable to guide others into its fullness. Or, it may be that the believers themselves lack interest in spiritual things, content with being saved and lacking true hunger and thirst. Even if they know the conditions, they refuse to pay the price. And so the church is filled with spiritual infants.

What are the characteristics of a carnal believer? The first is prolonged spiritual infancy (cf. Hebrews 5:11–14). The infant stage should not last more than a few years. One is regenerated by believing in the Son of God as their atonement on the cross. Such faith should simultaneously include the belief that he himself has been crucified with Christ, so that the Spirit may free him from the dominion of the flesh. Failing to realize this will almost certainly result in many years of carnality.

The second characteristic is the inability to receive spiritual teaching. Paul said, "I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready...even now you are still not ready." The Corinthians prided themselves on their knowledge and wisdom. Among all the churches, Corinth may have been the most intellectually advanced. Paul even thanked God for their “enrichment in every way...in all knowledge” (1 Cor. 1:5). If he had spoken spiritual truths to them, they could have understood every word—mentally. Yet, this understanding remained in their minds. Though they knew much, they lacked the power to live it out. Even today, many carnal believers understand much doctrine—perhaps even teaching spiritual truths to others—yet they themselves remain unspiritual. True spiritual knowledge is not merely deep or mysterious ideas, but rather the actual spiritual experience born of a life united with truth. Intelligence is useless. Even a strong desire to know truth is insufficient. Only a life wholly submitted to the Spirit can hope to be taught by Him. Otherwise, knowledge is merely passed from mind to mind and cannot make a carnal person spiritual. On the contrary, the carnal nature turns even spiritual knowledge into something fleshly. What such people lack is not more teaching (for the apostle deemed it unnecessary), but a submissive heart—a willingness to yield their lives to the Spirit and follow Him on the path of the cross. To these, spiritual knowledge merely strengthens their flesh and helps them deceive themselves into thinking they are spiritual. “How could I know so much and not be spiritual?” But one must ask, “Of all you know, how much came from lived experience, and how much from mental effort?” May God have mercy on us!

Another major mark of the flesh is found in verse 3: “You are still of the flesh. For as long as there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not of the flesh, and behaving according to human inclinations?” Jealousy and strife are sure signs of the flesh. In the Corinthian church, divisions arose—“I belong to Paul,” “I belong to Apollos,” “I belong to Cephas,” “I belong to Christ” (1 Cor. 1:12). Even those who claimed to belong to Christ were carnal if their declaration came from a divisive spirit. The spirit of the flesh is one of jealousy and contention. To exalt Christ in such a spirit is still fleshly! Religious boasting, no matter how noble the words, is often no more than the babble of spiritual infants. The cause of church divisions is not theological differences but a lack of love and a following after the flesh. “Contending for the truth” becomes just a slogan.

Carnal people of the world are those who have not been born again. Their soul and body rule over them, and so they are of the flesh. But when a believer is also carnal, it means he is living like the world. Of course the world is carnal. It is understandable if a newborn believer is carnal. But given how long some have believed, they ought to be spiritual already. Why then do they still walk according to the flesh?

Consistent failure and sin, reflecting worldly patterns, are proof that someone is carnal. If a believer has not overcome temperament, selfishness, a contentious spirit, an unforgiving heart, or unloving speech—no matter how much spiritual doctrine he knows, how deep his perceived spiritual experience, or how fervent and effective his ministry—he remains decidedly of the flesh.

To be “of the flesh” simply means “to walk according to human inclinations.” We must ask ourselves honestly: Have I truly ceased walking in the ways of the world? If your life still bears worldly characteristics, then you are still carnal. Let us not debate over labels—whether spiritual or fleshly. If we are not governed by the Holy Spirit, then what good is it to carry the name “spiritual”? This is a matter of life, not mere terminology.