01.04. CHAPTER 2

" And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, as unto babes in Christ " (1 Corinthians 3:1 R.V.). Let us repeat again at this point, that the " soul " is the seat of the self-consciousness (the personality, the will, the intellect), and stands between the spirit-the seat of the God-consciousness; and the body (the seat of the sense), or world-consciousness. Gall says that the " soul " derives its life, or animating power, from either the spirit (the higher part), or the animal (or lower part). In Latin the word for " soul " is anima-the animating principle of the body. In the converted man i.e., one who has had his spirit regenerated, or quickened into life by the Spirit of God communicating life to the fallen spirit-the soul is dominated either from beneath, by the animal-life; or from above by the spirit life. It may be said, therefore, that there are three classes of Christians, * and these three classes of believers are clearly referred to in the Scriptures as(I) The spiritual man-dominated by the Spirit of God, indwelling and energizing his renewed human spirit. (2) The soulish man-dominated by the soul, i.e., by the intellect or emotions.(3) The carnal man-dominated by the flesh, in fleshly habits or desires, i.e., " the power of the flesh ". The word used in 1 Corinthians 3:1 is not psuche--soul; but sarkikos-fleshly, the adjective of the word in Romans 8:7, where it is written, that the " carnal (sarx) mind is enmity against God ". It is not said that the " psuche ", or soulish life, is enmity to God, but the fleshly mind. It is true that the natural, or "soulish " man, cannot receive, or understand, the things of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:14), but he is not said to be in enmity, simply because he is soulish ! " And I (i.e., as the natural man-’ man of soul’, Gk.-cannot receive, so I, also) could not speak unto you, the deep things of God, as I would to the spiritual; but I was compelled to speak to you as I would to men of flesh," * wrote Paul, in effect, to the Corinthians, for although truly regenerate and " in Christ " yet they were so dominated by the flesh that he could only describe them as still " carnal " or fleshly. This was proved by the manifestation of the works of the flesh in jealousy and strife, for he writes to the Galatians, " the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousies, wraths, factions, divisions, heresies, envyings, drunkenness, revellings, and such like "(Galatians 5:19-21). Any of these manifestations seen in a believer mark the workings, in some degree, of the "sarkikos " or fleshly life, passing out through the avenues of the soul, or personality, in jealousy or strife, etc. Such a one is not even a "soulish " man i.e., merely " natural "but a man walking " after the flesh ", even though his spirit may be revivified, and quickened into life; and those who are thus walking " in the flesh ", cannot please God. The Apostle’s description of these Corinthian believers as being " carnal " or fleshly, and yet " babes in Christ ", shows clearly that " babes in Christ " are generally under the domination of the flesh-or " in the flesh "-at the initial stage of the spiritual life. In their regeneration they are truly " in Christ "i.e., vitally quickened with His life, and planted into Him by His Spirit, as it is written in John 3:16, " that whosoever believeth into Him may have everlasting life " (Greek) ; but these " babes in Christ ", vitally in Him by a living faith, have not yet apprehended all that the Cross severs them from by their being baptized into His death on the Cross, and quickened by His life. It appears from the Apostle’s language that he blames these Corinthians for being still " babes ", for the babestage ought not to be of very long duration. (Compare Hebrews 5:11-14) The regeneration of the spirit, which comes through the in-breathing of the Spirit of life from God, on the man’s simple faith in the atoning sacrifice of the Son of God upon the Cross in his behalf, should be quickly followed by the apprehension of the death of the sinner with the Saviour (Romans 6:1-13), which brings about the deliverance from the life after the " flesh " which the Corinthian Christians had manifestly not yet known. The marks of the carnal Christian, babes in Christ, the Apostle sketches very clearly, and by these marks every believer of the present time can judge for himself whether he, too, is "yet carnal". This leads us to consider at this point: