Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.

1 Corinthians 2-3

Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. 1 Corinthians 2:12

I continue my study of 1 Corinthians.  I am assisted in my study by the Christ-Centered Exposition Series commentary for this book.  Today my focus is a review - aided by the commentary - of 1 Corinthians 2:10-3:4.  The commentary* indicates the main idea of this text as "[h]ow a person thinks and lives will reveal whether he or she has the Spirit and is growing in maturity in Christ."  The introduction from the commentary* for this text opens a deep dive into the text by sharing how authors scripture often use categories of people to draw contrasts for illustrative purposes.  In the case of the text today, Paul compares natural/carnal people with spiritual people - not as a judgement but as a matter of "spiritual reality."  The commentary* lays out and describes three divisions for the text: 

1. The Natural Person Does What Comes Naturally (2:14): Here, the commentary* explains how a natural person (someone who is not a mature enough believer to see how the Holy Spirit is active in their life, "enslaved by their fallen nature") "does not accept spiritual things" nor "appreciate" them. The natural person cannot understand nor appreciate these things because by definition they need the Holy Spirit to discern them. This is not an "intellectual inability."  The commentary* summarizes the problem here as "[natural people] will never see [the Word] as beautiful, precious, and valuable. They are blind to its beauty, deaf to its melody, and insensitive to its fragrant aroma." 
   
2. The Spiritual Person Does What Comes Supernaturally (2:10-13, 15-16): Here Paul now describes spiritual people as those who "are captive to the Spirit of God who has taken up residence in them as his temple[.]"  The commentary refers us to 1 Corinthians 3:16, 6:19-20 for scriptural support with this interpretation. The division provided by the commentary* is further unpacked and broken down as the spiritual person (a) is informed by the Spirit, (b) instructed by the Spirit, and (c) is given insight by the Spirit. The commentary* quotes Leon Morris who shares: "When the Spirit enters the life everything is changed and one new thing that appears is the ability to make a right judgment. This does not mean that the man has acquired greatness; it means that the Spirit of God is guiding him. He has the point of reference within himself and is thus able to make judgments about all things."  Similarly, the commentary quotes Morris regarding the inability of natural people to understand spiritual people: "the spiritual man cannot be judged by the natural man for precisely the same reason that he himself can judge all things. He has the Spirit of God within him and the natural man has not. This makes him an enigma to the natural man."  We are referred here to Isaiah 40:13.
   
3. The Carnal Person Does What Comes Unnaturally (3:1-4): The commentary* describes how these verses are often misunderstood so it provides clarification about what is meant by them and how 1 Corinthians 3:1-4 are provided to address these issues:

• Christians can be slow to mature in their faith without proper nourishment. 
• Christians can sometimes act like spiritual babies when they should act like spiritual adults. 
• Christians need to be reminded of the basics of the gospel even as they grow in their depth of understanding the gospel. The gospel is both milk and meat! 
• Nominal Christianity is inauthentic Christianity.
• Spiritual backsliding is possible, but it should not be permanent (see also 1 Corinthians 6:9-11; Galatians 5:16-21).
  

The commentary* further unpacks the third division by describing how the church in Corinth (and us by extension can be) (a) are weak spiritually, and (b) are willful in sin.

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God - I am grateful for how the Holy Spirit entered my heart and continues to sanctify me - making me more like You.  Thank You.  Yet I know I am both undeserving and there is work to do - my sin continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

*Akin, Dr. Daniel L.; Merritt, James. Exalting Jesus in 1 Corinthians (Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.