By Jeremy B. Stopford, May 6, 2018 10:30 AM
“Milk,” 1 Corinthians 2:10b-3:9
TODAY’S FUNNY
“Post Graduate Job” (in honor of our Saturday’s college graduate, Mike!)
An investment counselor went out on her own. She was shrewd and diligent, so business kept coming in, and pretty soon she realized she needed an in-house counsel, so she began interviewing young lawyers.
“As I’m sure you can understand,” she started off with one of the first applicants, “in a business like this, our personal integrity must be beyond question.”
She leaned forward.
“Mr. Peterson, are you an *honest* lawyer?”
“Honest?” replied the job prospect. “Let me tell you something about honest. Why, I’m so honest that my father lent me fifteen thousand dollars for my education and I paid back every penny the minute I tried my very first case.”
“Impressive. And what sort of case was that?”
The lawyer squirmed in his seat and admitted, “Dad sued me for the money.”
INTRODUCTION
Inspiration for this week’s message comes from my wife! I said to her, “Last week, we talked about ‘honey’. What subject goes with ‘honey’?” And she replied, “milk”. So there you have it!
You may remember that 62 times the word “honey” appears in Scripture. Who remembers how many times “flowing with milk and honey” appears in the Bible? [21]. So the word “milk” appears in Scripture only 46 times – so those 21 times are a big chunk. “Milk” was part of the bounty of the Promised Land!
In Proverbs 27:27, “milk” was an indication that the citizen of the land was quite content in the Lord. “You will have plenty of goats’ milk to feed your family and to nourish your female servants.” That’s good advice for today! Job 10:10 had these sharp words about his so-called comforters: “Did you not pour me out like milk and curdle me like cheese,”
In the Song of Solomon (have you read it yet?),in Chapter 5:12, in describing the shepherd (a type of the Good Shepherd, the Lord Jesus, the bride to be said, “His eyes are like doves by the water streams, washed in milk, mounted like jewels”. The Shepherd’s gaze on His sheep is quite penetrating!
Did you catch this morning’s Call to Worship from Isa. 55:1 – an invitation to the freeness of God’s grace: ““Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.”
Our text this morning, from 1 Corinthians, is both an encouragement and a warning to the people of the Corinth church. In Chapter 1 he called them “holy” or “saints”. Those that loved the Lord Jesus belonged to Him – just like us. But by the end of chapter 2, he was warning them about how within the local church there were at least 3 different types of people. Only you know what type you are. Only you and the Lord know! It may be “obvious” to those who might be making a judgment. But Paul’s purpose is to encourage both the unity and the maturity of the folks in the Corinthian church – just like he would in our church. Prayerfully, let’s look at these 3 types of people. And prayerfully, identify who you are!
PRAYER
#1 THE “NATURAL MAN” (or, “the man without the Spirit”)
He is identified this way:
* He is under what the old salts called the “wooing of the Holy Spirit”. As only man knows whether or not he belongs to God, only the Holy Spirit knows the things of God. And this man is being presented truth to draw Him to a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus.
* How does the Holy Spirit do that? We learned last week when talking about “honey”. The creation (Psalm 19:1-6) is what is known as “general revelation”. The natural man looks at the creation and says, “Someone Who is quite the Designer did that. I wonder Who He is.” That person could be in the farthest reaches of darkest Africa – or in the farthest reaches of Earlville, or even in your home.
And God has obligated Himself to take the person who is curious about the Origin of “general revelation” and share with him the “written revelation” – even the Word of God which is “sweeter than honey, and the honeycomb” (Ps. 19:7-11). And by God’s grace and mercy the Spirit draws that one to the cross and his need of the Savior.
* But his response could also be, “isn’t that a pretty picture. Neat how the cosmos works that all together.” A man without the Spirit, the natural man, has no use for the revelation of God. Ephesians says he is “without hope and without God.”
* Note our text, v. 14. He “does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them.”
* You’ve seen such a one. Our society is filled with them. When they hear “church”, they think “religion that wants our money”, or “a nice society where I can be popular” – but they have no use for an intimate relationship with the living God.
* Note the key: the things that come from the Spirit of God are “foolishness” to Him. Look back at 1 Cor. 1:16. The “message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing…”
* Finally, look at 1 Cor. 1:21: “God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.” It is the message of foolishness, that Jesus died for your sins on Calvary’s cross, that can change a “natural man” into one who trusts Jesus.
Are you a “natural man” (or woman) – without the Spirit?
#2 THE “CARNAL MAN” (or “worldly” man—1 Cor. 3:1-4)
He is identified this way:
* A “mere infant in Christ” (vs. 1-2)— one who thrives only on milk and not meat (or “solid food”). He was not ready for solid food, and he still is not ready for solid food. Why? Because he does not hunger for the meat of the Word of God.
We are not limited to this book for our understanding of the “worldly” Christian. Hebrews 5:11-14 talk about the one who cannot be taught the Word because he has no desire for it. Listen to the author of Hebrews say it so well:
“11 We have much to say about this, but it is hard to make it clear to you because you no longer try to understand. 12 In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! 13 Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. 14 But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.” Wow! Pretty clear there!
* He also is characterized as having a temperament which s filled with “jealousy” and “quarreling” (v. 3). Listen to what the Apostle Peter says in 1 Pet. 2:1-3: “Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. 2 Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, 3 now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.”
Did you catch that? “Jealous” and “quarreling”, “malice”, “all deceit”, “hypocrisy”, “envy”, “slander of every kind” are typical of the child, not the mature; typical of the carnal, the worldly, and not the spiritual.
So…are you carnal? Are you a “worldly” person who, though you confess Jesus as Savior, your life is filled with the rudiments of a little child – an immature one who still needs to hold Mommy’s hand.
Are you carnal?
#3 THE “SPIRITUAL MAN” (or, “the man with the Spirit”—1 Cor. 2:15)
So – we’ve seen the natural man, who is without the Spirit. He may believe in Churchianity, but he doesn’t believe in a saving relationship with the living Christ. The Spirit of God is not in him. The carnal man is a saved man, but the cares of this world have choked the Word of God in his life. He has given up striving for maturity in Christ. He is living a defeated life. The Word of Christ, which used to be precious to him, has little active connection with him.
But who, then, is the “spiritual man”? Verses 15-16 are our main understanding: “the spiritual man makes judgments about all things…has the mind of Christ”. Phillips’ translation is helpful: “The spiritual man, on the other hand, has an insight into the meaning of everything, though his insight may baffle the man of the world. This is because the former is sharing in God’s wisdom, and ‘Who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him?’ Incredible as it may sound, we who are spiritual have the very thoughts of Christ!”
The spiritual man understands all things in light of eternity. The natural man is baffled by the insights of the spiritual man. He has the very thoughts of Christ – and as a result is led by the Spirit, filled with the Spirit, understands the things of the Spirit, hungers for the things of God, and leads a most productive AND satisfying life.
Did you notice that Paul gives greater warning to the natural and to the carnal men? Why? Because he wants them to be complete in Christ and appreciate all that the Lord Jesus has available to the one who will trust in Christ.
I sure hope that the “spiritual man” is you! You have an “otherworldly” insight to things. You daily hunger for the things of the Lord – especially as found in His Word. And in your trust in the Lord Jesus, you find life most productive and most satisfying.
Is this you?
CONCLUSION
Today’s service has included a recognition of one of our own having graduated from college. What a milestone! Mike has insights into the knowledge of his field that none of us has. In his field, he is a “spiritual man” – for he understands the ins and outs of his field. He has his textbooks to guide him into all truth of his field. I’ve shared a few conversations with him about his field of expertise. I think he’s speaking English. But I know he knows that what he is doing is not only profitable for society, but it is also profitable for his family.
Trusting the Lord Jesus should make a huge difference in the world in which you live. And it should make a huge difference in your own heart day by day.
Today, have you heard God’s voice through His Word? Who are you: the natural man (without the Spirit of the Lord)? The carnal man (who cares more for the things of the world than for the things of the Lord Jesus and His Lordship in your life)? Or the spiritual man, the man with the Spirit who sees things so clearly through the eyes of the Lord Jesus.
Who are you anyway?
Close in prayer
Rev. Jeremy B. Stopford, Pastor
First Baptist Church , 9 West Main St. Earlville, NY 13332
Inviting and Accepting