April 23, 2023
Greetings and blessings to all of you. Did you know there are three individuals that God has to work with before He returns to claim His Kingdom. They are… the person without Christ (the natural man), the immature believer (carnal man), and the mature believer. The Bible teaches that the differences among these types are a result of their relationship not only with the Godhead but the Holy Spirit. The natural man will not accept God’s revelation in the Bible as true, because he lacks the capacity to verify its truthfulness. He depends on his senses and reason to determine what he will accept as true. Although he may read the Bible these truths can be verified only by the Holy Spirit. To whom the natural man does not have access. In the Living Bible (I Cor. 2:14) it states “But the man who isn’t a Christian can’t understand and can’t accept these thoughts from God which the Holy Spirit teaches us. They sound foolish to him because only those who have the Holy Spirit within them can understand what the Holy Spirit means.) Paul describes the carnal man like this in I Cor. 3:1-3… “and I brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal as to babes in Christ. 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; for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you… are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?” You will hear at times carnal men referred to as “babes in Christ” or “men of flesh”. Living a carnal lifestyle for a long period of time is a problem. God wants us to grow. Just like when a parent sees their baby ..at first he crawls, then walks then do other things letting the parent know he is growing .Hallelujah! So, when it appears there is a lack of growth...they become concerned. The parents then begin to ask questions. What is going on? Why isn’t our baby developing in motor skills, social skills, etc.? Therefore, we need to ask ourselves are we “carnal” and why? The fact that the Holy Spirit is in you; spiritual insights are not beyond your ability to grasp certain truths and begin growing in Christ with behavior becoming of a true follower of Christ (a mature believer). If you are a carnal believer…begin today to walk in the Spirit thereby denying the flesh (Rom.13:13). Begin to walk by faith not by sight (2 Cor. 5:7) Begin to walk in newness of life (Rom. 6:4)
With the Love of Christ
First Lady Vivian C. Currie
Pastor ALC