The Carnal Christian “Will The Real Child Of God Please Stand Up!”
The Carnal Christian
“Will The Real Child Of God Please Stand Up!”
First, of all, let ME acknowledge that “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God,” as expressed in Romans 3:23: so, I’m not pointing a finger to say who is carnal and who is not; but I’m going to outline some characteristics of what a ‘Carnal Christian’ looks like.
A true believer is one that’s sensitive enough to the Spirit that when they do sin, they’re quickly to acknowledge it, ask for forgiveness, and continue to walk upright before God as expressed in I John 1:8-10, “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.” Carnal Christians sometimes commit sins and don’t see anything wrong in what they’re doing- they operate to close to the world.
Definition: A Carnal Christian according to scripture is BORN AGAIN, but lives in a spiritual state in which they knowingly, willingly, intentionally and persistently live to please and serve self, more than our Lord, Jesus Christ.
Keep in mind that Carnal Christians do what they want and often say “it’s God’s will.” They often say what they think and believe they’re RIGHT because they have no degree of humility in their lives. [The new movement today is called: The Emerging Church – God is too mystical and we really can’t know the Bible because it’s too complex; therefore, whatever we agree upon, ultimately becomes the ‘New Truth.’]
They are emotionally dependent – meaning their actions are based on FEELINGS rather than on making Godly decisions. For example, when their favorite evangelist comes to town, they (often) show-up for service, but when it’s raining or cold outside, they find excuses as to why they’re not in service, but yet continue to believe God for nice homes, car, and other material blessings, because they’ve been taught, the Gospel is God giving us lots of ‘stuff, because He wants us ‘HAPPY!’ The true Gospel includes a lifetime of obediently walking with Jesus as Lord. It’s a relationship between faith and works, clearly revealing Why Jesus is both Savior and Lord to all who believe.
An excellent example of a Carnal Christian’s behavior is found in James Epistle. In James 4:2, he talks about HATE, BITTERNESS, and ANGER being so bottled up in a person, that they literally wish the death of that individual. Why? Because they are so driven by their uncontrollable evil desires, that they will fight to the death to fulfill them. They are unwilling to ask God for His peace, love, joy and His terms – they refuse to submit to God or acknowledge their dependence on Him.
[Saints] The desires of the unbelievers are motivated by personal gratification and selfish desires. They seek things for their own pleasures, not the honor and glory of God.
After hearing the definition of a Carnal Christian and an unbeliever, don’t they seem about the same? That’s why Jesus said in Matthew 13:24-30, let the wheat and tares grow together: because you can’t determine who’s who. In the end, Jesus will do the separation!!!
It’s very difficult for an emotional person to believe when they don’t feel God’s presence; so they don’t believe He’s there. In Hebrews 13:5 & Matthews 28:20 – God said, “I’m with you always … even to the end of the age.”
We need to be in agreement with what God’s word says; if not, we’re in agreement with our feelings and that puts us in agreement with our enemy (Satan). Romans 6 explains that, “Flesh is instrument that Satan works through that’s why we have to say/do what God’s word say.
Remember, as true believers, WE don’t do things for the kingdom of God because WE feel like it; WE do so because WE’RE committed! We cannot 100 percent trust our feelings because of deception; Emotions are part of our five senses that’re tied into our FLESH; and Carnal Christians permit their flesh to dominate them, as expressed in I Corinthians 3:1-3, “But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way?”
Paul told the Corinthian Christians, you’re babies in Christ- you’re milk drinkers, I want to share spiritual meat with you, but you got to grow up into spiritual men and women. He said, “But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is judged by no man.”
I like what Dr. Tony Evans said about a baby Christian. “The baby Christian is new to life. He doesn’t understand all of the spiritual language and culture. He walks and talks like a baby. But eventually reaches maturity.”
Carnal Christians who fail to move toward maturity is a Christian in a sad ‘state of being,’ because he/she has one foot in Christendom and the other in the world. James said in 1:6, “But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.” And in 4:4, “Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.”
A Carnal Christian needs to be aware that his flesh and spirit are at war with one another according to Galatians 5:17, “For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.”
Remember we live in a society where-FLESH rules and to lessen the blow of immorality, we’ve given sinful acts a new name, for example: premarital sex is normal, divorce become “NO FAULT,” for abortions, we have ‘mock funerals’ to say good-bye to the infant, that was just murdered, see you on the other side.
I know what some of you are probably thinking “If a person is that carnal, then, it’s evident they’re no save. If we aren’t careful, we can all starve our spirits and feed our flesh and become Carnal-minded. Let’s look at some Biblical characters that were mightily used by God, but their flesh ruled them during their reign as leaders:
** King Saul – In I Samuel 10:9, the Bible states that God changed Saul’s heart; an anointing came upon him and he begin to prophesy – the people were in AWE … the son of Kish, a prophet? Yet his rebellion against God led to witchcraft and ultimately he committed suicide.
** King Solomn – Considered the wisest king ever lived. He was so committed to God that his prayer was “Don’t give me riches, give me wisdom to lead your people.” In 1 Kings 11, Scriptures talk about him having 700 wives and 300 concubines: he lusted after so many women (and permitted them to build altars to their gods when his destiny was to clean Israel of all false gods) that it became his downfall. In Ecclesiastes 1:2; 2:11, he talked about life as being vanity and vexation of spirit.
** Then, there was King David – He committed adultery and murder of one of his most honorable military leaders and tried to hide it until God sent the prophet Nathan to confront him. Yet he was called a “Man after God’s own heart!”
** Then there was the Corinthian Christian that ended up with his father’s ex-wife in the church – (I Cor. 5:5), Paul told the church to deliver such a one over to Satan for the destruction of his flesh that his soul maybe saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. (Turning him over Satan means stop fellowship until he gets his life together.) And he did by the time 2 Corinthians was written to the church!
What have we learned thus far about Carnal Christians?
** They commit the same old sins because they haven’t learned to put God’s Word first and foremost in their lives.
** They’re fleshly-minded Christians that seek to please ONLY themselves, and haven’t truly submitted to the authority of Christ. They are controlled by their old nature.
They are rebellious Christians – the Bible says that rebellion is as the spirit of witchcraft in 1 Samuel 15:23, “For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He also has rejected you from being king.”
The Book of Hebrews, which is written around TWO words – BETTER
COVENANT – shows the downfalls of a CARNAL Christian if he/she fails to walk in the light of what the Word of God says about a VICTORIOUS Christian.
** Carnal Christians show very little interest in spiritual matters –
Hebrews 2:2-3, “For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward; How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard [him].”
** Carnal Christians have a callous conscious – they are insensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit, when He’s telling them, “Don’t say that?” “DON’T GO THERE,” etc. Hebrews 3:12-13, “Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.”
** Carnal Christians show a willful refusal to grow to spiritual maturity –
Hebrews 5:11, “Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing.”
** Carnal Christians don’t like to fellowship in an assembly with true Believers – [Hebrews 10:23-25, “Let us hold fast the profession of [our] faith without wavering: (for He [is] faithful that promised;) And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some [is]; but exhorting [one another]: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.”
THERE ARE CONSEQUENCES FOR BEING A CARNAL CHRISTIAN
** You don’t get your PRAYERS answered – The Bible says in James 1:8, “A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways: and in James 4:8 – Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. And James 1:7 says, “For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.”
** You doubt your SALVATION – 2 Peter 1:5-11, “Giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make [you that ye shall] neither [be] barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off,
and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
** Possibly cause Physical Death – 1 Corinthians 10:9-11 simply states what happened to Israel when they failed to believe/trust God. Also, See Romans 15:4 which talks about things of old were written for our learning of what NOT to do to displease the Lord.
** You lose Eternal Rewards – 1 Corinthians 3:10-15, “According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise Master builder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon. For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.”
The Bible mentions various crowns that a true believer will receive, such as a crown of righteousness in 2 Timothy 4:8; a crown of Life in James 1:2; and a crown of Glory in 1 Peter 5:4.
The Carnal Christian, like the Prodigal Son, has to come to himself/herself before he/she realizes they need help and cry out to God. It is our job as trube believers to come along side to assist a Carnal Christian find his/her way. Galatians 6:1, states, “Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.”
IN MY CONCLUSION
God said in 1 Corinthians 11:32, But when we are judged, we are chasten of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world. God chastens His children, and if you’re a Christian living a Carnal life-style and you haven’t been trained by the Holy Spirit to walk in light of what God’s Word say you should, then the Bible said that YOU’RE NOT A CHILD OF GOD! Paul goes even further to say in 2 Corinthians 13:5, that, if you’re constantly doing things that are opposed to God’s standards, then, it could be that YOU’RE NOT A CHRISTIAN – THAT YOU HAVE A PROFESSION WITHOUT A POSSESSION!
Hebrews 10:29-31 puts the icing on the cake: If we say we’re Christians and we’re NOT walking in our faith, according to the Holy scriptures, and living a Carnal life-style and others [baby Christians and those outside of Christendom are constantly watching YOU], YOU have to ask yourself this question: “How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge his people.” It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”