So as we begin chapter three,
you remember in the previous chapters, Paul has been dealing
with carnal versus spiritual, or spiritual
versus natural, which is the same thing. We're naturally born
carnal creatures. And just having written about
the difference, between the natural man and the spiritual man, the
natural man being blind and completely ignorant to anything spiritual,
and the spiritual man to whom the Lord has revealed all things
in Christ, everything with Noah. So he sharply now, the apostle
sharply rebukes these Corinthians because though he calls them brethren,
We should notice that. And he refers to them as babes
in Christ, and yet he says they are behaving as carnal or natural,
fleshly, and that word carnal means fleshly. They're behaving
as though they're completely ignorant of anything spiritual.
They're behaving as though they don't know the Lord or anything
of the Lord, the things of Christ. They're not behaving like spiritual
people to whom God has revealed his gospel, as he just spoke
of in chapter two, but they're behaving like people simply that
don't know God. And Paul's basing this assessment,
this is, I think, key to establish in the outset of this. He's not
basing that assessment on things that this world's religion frowns upon. I don't know how
many of you were in religion like I was before the Lord saved
you, but I can tell you a little bit about religion being steeped
in it for my life up until my teenage years
and some beyond, and having some experience with it as well after
the Lord has saved me, just knowing people in religion Religion talks about the outward a lot. Smoking, drinking, don't wear
blue jeans to church, you know, what you wear, no cussing, no associating with people, the wrong people. And notice, as we get into that,
it's important, I believe, that we notice that. What is it? It's
not the outward. It's what's going on here that
comes out in behavior. But we'll notice the three things
he mentions in verse three here. Envy, strife, and divisions. It's not about using tobacco
and alcohol and things like that. And notice now that he mentions
babes in Christ. You're acting like carnal people. And I had to address you as though
you were babes in Christ. You're not saying they were babes
in Christ. And that's important to know too. But when the Lord
first reveals himself to you, as we learn here, he does not
teach you everything he's going to. On the first day of knowing the
Lord, you're not gonna learn everything that the Lord's gonna
teach you over the years. It takes often many years to
mature just a little bit, especially if you're me, it takes a long
time. Often the baggage of the flesh
takes a while to shed. And we're to be patient and kind
in long suffering with one another for that reason, among many other
reasons. Paul doesn't say, as I said,
these are babes in Christ, but they're acting like it, or worse,
they're acting like unbelievers. And then verse two, he said,
I fed you with milk and not with meat, for hitherto you were not
able to bear it. neither yet now are you able. That's the problem. He fed them
with milk and not with meat because they weren't able to bear it.
And that's fine. As young believers, they needed the sincere milk
of the word. But he said, neither yet now
are you able. There's a time to be patient
and understanding with young believers, with one another,
we always should be, but there's also a time for believers to
grow up. That's clearly what he's saying
here. You're still not able to bear
any meat because you still haven't learned the basics. If you still have problems with
these things, How are you gonna move on to
more mature things? So Paul addresses these now and
he's saying it's time to grow up. The analogy of babes drinking
milk is an apt one because grown people act like belligerent,
selfish children when tested. You know, everything's fine,
everybody's getting along great until a test comes along. until
the Lord tests us, and then we reveal ourselves to be what we are by nature. Childish, selfish, proud, and
all the rest of this that we'll look at. The difference is now,
children being that way is one thing, When you're 40 years old or 50
years old or 60 years old and you're acting like that, it's
shameful. It should be embarrassing. It's ugly. And there's no excuse
for it. You see the word yet. You're
yet not able. You're yet. That's a concept
that we see elsewhere in scripture. And I would ask you to turn please
to John 14. And think about what he said,
you still, you still don't have the capacity to move on from
these elemental childish lessons. So that word yet there in verse
three reminds us of this, John 14, eight. Philip said to the
Lord, show us the father and it sufficeth us. And Jesus saith
unto him, have I been so long time with you? And yet hast thou
not known me, Philip? He that hath seen me hath seen
the father. And how sayest thou then, show
us the father? Notice the word yet in this passage
as well. and yet hast thou not known me. You still, I've been with you
a long time now, and you still don't even know who I am. I wouldn't
be too hard on Philip here either. None of us can be. If we knew
the Lord, would we act like we do? Would we be as petty as we
are, really? And I wanted to draw that parallel
here. Yet, yet, still, we're still
struggling with these things. Because it's important to see
what Philip's problem was. What did the Lord say Philip's
problem was? You still don't know me. That's
the problem in our text. If you have trouble with pride
and selfishness and contention and division and petty feelings
and issues, it's because we don't know Christ like we need to. Very important. The most important
thing we will see in this text tonight is that. Our problem
is not that we don't know enough doctrine. We haven't seen Christ. We ain't half seen him yet. We
don't half believe on him. That's why we still have problems
with this petty stuff. It didn't mean that he didn't
know the Lord at all, but if he had known Christ like
he ought to have by then, hence the words long time, he
would not have asked the question that he did. The reason that
this is important is that it's the same exact problem in our
text. The reason these Corinthians were carnal long after they should
have been more mature in the faith, and they needed a rebuke
for it, is not due to a deficiency in the knowledge of doctrine,
but it's because of a lack of the knowledge of the person.
of the Lord Jesus Christ. Let me show you that in 2 Peter
3, 17, please. Man, somebody put some cold water
up here, and I appreciate that, whoever did that. It might've
been my wife, no? Well, thank you. I might just
take a break. Y'all go ahead. You see 2 Peter 3.17, ye therefore
beloved, seeing you know these things before. Is that something
we can learn as we mature in the faith? We know some things
before now. by experience, by the Lord trying
our faith, and we find in Him faithful, we find in ourselves
unfaithful, we learn a little bit about ourselves, we learn
a little bit about His grace, and before things even happen
now, we can say, all right now, I'm gonna try not to be such
an idiot next time. I'm gonna try to bow to His will
next time, instead of being a baby about it. You see that? You know these
things before. Beware lest you also being led away with the
error of the wicked fall from your own steadfastness. Here's
what needs to happen. Grow in grace. And what did we
say was Philip's problem? What did we say was the problem
in the Corinthian church? grow in grace and in the knowledge
of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. To Him be glory. And that's not just a tag. To
Him be glory. Let's learn before stuff even
happens, we're gonna glorify Him in this if it kills us. And
then maybe we won't, and maybe it will kill us. But we know
better. To Him be glory, not me, not
me getting in my way. To Him be glory both now and
forever. Amen. This is why it's so important,
it's such a blessing to hear the gospel and to worship the
Lord continually that we might learn of Christ. Take his yoke
upon us and rest. Did you know that contention
and strife, these things that Paul was dealing with in this
Corinthian church, these issues are a terrible burden. Your life is a constant turmoil. The wicked are like the troubled
sea that never rests. It's always casting up mire.
Can we not be that way? Since the Lord has said peace,
be still. It's a terrible burden. May God
help us to lay it down at his feet. Let it go. Look at verse three, for you
are yet carnal. For whereas there is among you
envying and strife and divisions, are you not carnal and walk as
men? Envy, this is a problem believers
should never have. Jealousy, it means contentious
rivalry. Everything's a competition. We don't even realize most of
the time that we're doing that. With these people, it was about
who had taught them the gospel. Paul, Apollos, Cephas, some said
Christ just as a way to shame the others, because Paul rebukes
them for that too. And this same envying manifests
itself in many other ways. If you can't think of examples
of this, you're not thinking hard enough, or you're just blind
to your own sin, as I most often am, as these Corinthians seem to
be, and that's a problem. That's why we had these exhortations. And again, looking in the mirror
is not gonna help you. Looking to Christ is how we see
how wretched we are, how far we fall short of his glory. We will not overcome our flesh
until our motive in doing that is his glory. If you have to have your way
about everything, contentious raffle ray, then you're a problem. And I am too. If you criticize
everything except yourself and what you do, you're a problem
in God's church. Be content to be nothing, Spurgeon
said, because that's what you are. Can we, you think we'll
ever get there? And I'll tell you this, if God
uses you in spite of the fact that you're nothing, there won't
be any contention or strife, jealousy. That's your putrid
flesh that brings that, not the Lord. Think for a moment about how
foolish it is. If you're a believer and you
have the Lord Jesus Christ, what are you envious about? We don't envy anybody. We don't
envy the world. We don't envy the richest man
in the world. We don't envy anybody or begrudge
them anything. All things are ours in Christ. And second, has not our Lord
taught us something? Listen, look with me at Matthew
20. It's Matthew chapter 20, verse
20. Then came to him, our Lord, the
mother of Zebedee's children with her sons, worshiping him
and desiring a certain thing of him. And he said unto her,
what wilt thou? He already knew what she'd come
up there for, come to him for. She saith unto him, grant that
these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand and the
other on the left in thy kingdom. But Jesus answered and said,
you know not what you ask. Are you able to drink of the
cup that I shall drink of and to be baptized with the baptism
that I am baptized with? And they say unto him, we're
able. And he saith unto them, you shall drink indeed of my
cup and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with,
but to sit on my right hand and on my left is not mine to give,
but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my
father. And when the ten heard, they
were moved with indignation against the two brethren. But Jesus called
them unto him and said, you know that the princes of the Gentiles
exercise dominion over them. and they that are great exercise
authority upon them, but it shall not be so among you." It's not
gonna be that way. That word in our text, again,
it means contentious rivalry. They're wanting to be the greatest.
Everybody's wanting to be the greatest. They were mad because
they were just like them. Think about that one. You know
that's right. They didn't just ridicule and
say, hey, you know, that was stupid. They were mad at them.
because they wanted to be greater. Whosoever will be great among
you, let him be your minister. And whosoever will be chief among
you, let him be your servant, even as the Son of Man came not
to be ministered unto, but to minister and to give his life
a ransom for many. There we are right back at Christ
crucified. Our motivation is Christ giving
his life for us. The word strife, and I don't
want this to be just defining these words and talking about
how horrible we are. The main point of all of this
is see how that in every passage concerning this, we're pointed
right back to Christ and what he did. every passage we've read. Strife. Let's remember this verse
in Proverbs 13, 10. Only by pride cometh contention.
Only. There ain't no surprise about
where it comes from. No use wondering about it. You're
proud. It doesn't matter what it's contention
about, who's right or wrong, it's pride. But with the well-advised
is wisdom. Boasted is excluding in salvation. Are you done being saved? It's
okay to start boasting now. Has Christ saved you? Then boasting
has no place. It has no place. Preaching to
myself. Contention. You know what contention
is? If only by pride cometh contention. You know what it really is? It's
just a way to say me, me, me, me, me. Me, me, me. You're just going on saying me,
me, me, look at me. I'm right, you're wrong. I'm
hurt, I'm the victim, you're the problem. Me. Just saying me, me, me. Just
go around saying that and be honest about it. Just say, look
at me. Me, me, me. And it's, Listen to this scripture in Proverbs
27, too, because it has to do with more than just what you
might first think. Think about this not just in
terms of you doing something good and being praiseworthy,
maybe, but think of it in terms of a contention where maybe you
are right, maybe somebody did do you wrong. Listen to this
verse. Proverbs 27, two, let another man praise thee and not
thine own mouth. A stranger and not thine own
lips. Let everybody else know that
if it's knowable. And if not, shut up about it
anyway. Let vindication come as well
as praise from another quarter, not from your mouth. Because
when it comes from you, it's not good. It's ugly. It's selfish. It's pride. It's me, me, me, me, me. That's what it is. I know a little
bit about this because this is me. We all know a little bit
about this if we're honest with ourselves by God's grace. And there's two reasons for that
to shut up about vindicating yourself or patting yourself
on the back. And I'm sure there are other
applications to this verse as well. It's all, it's selfishness,
it's pride. First of all, we're really bad
at that. If we're going to praise ourselves
or vindicate ourselves, we're not good at that. You and I will
say me, me, me, me, me over the stupidest things. Not good at it. Nobody else is
praising you, you're doing it all by yourself. Secondly, it's shameful and should
embarrass us to do that. If you have to toot your own
horn, what does that tell you? What does that tell me? On the other hand, if you actually
do well, or you're wronged or something
terrible happens to you and you glorify the Lord in it, Others will notice that. And
it'll be a blessing. And not a shame. Proverbs 6 16. These things that
the Lord hate, he a seven or an abomination unto him. Proud
look. a lying tongue and hands that
shed innocent blood, and heart that deviseth wicked imaginations,
feet that be swift and running to mischief, a false witness
that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren."
That word's contention. And then divisions, now this
is separation. We've all experienced this too,
divisions. It's a breaking of fellowship
with another believer. It's taking sides. We're quick to take sides, aren't
we? Even when we don't have any idea
what's going on. What a shame in the church of
God. It's the exact opposite of what
our Lord has taught us in Ephesians chapter four. Turn with me there,
please, and we'll be through. Ephesians chapter four. Verse one, I therefore, the prisoner
of the Lord, beseech you that you walk worthy of the vocation
or the calling wherewith you are called. Is that interesting
to anybody? Is that what we're talking about
tonight? Instead of needing rebuke from the Lord, we can maybe walk in such a way
that honors our Savior who called us out of darkness into his marvelous
light. with all loneliness. Is that what you would expect?
And somebody's going to talk about how you can be a good servant
of Jesus Christ. Oh boy, I'm going to pray. I'm
going to read my Bible three times a day. I'm never going
to miss a service. That's all good stuff. That's not it. That's not the
answer. with all lowliness and meekness,
with long suffering for bearing one another in love, endeavoring
to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. There is
one body and one spirit, even as you're called in one hope
of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and
Father of all who is above all and through all and in you all. Walking worthy of the calling
of grace in Christ is not going around blessing everybody with
your vast knowledge. It's not imposing your will on
others because you know better than everybody else. It's not
having a position in the church and religion. Everybody's gotta
have a position because otherwise there's Jealous rivalry. It's not being so morally superior
that nobody can stand to even talk to you. It's shutting up. It's forgiving because you've
been forgiven and because you need forgiveness every hour. It's being low. and meek, submissive
to the will of God. It's a continual effort, endeavoring
not to straighten out everybody else. It's an effort to straighten
out yourself. It's an effort to overcome yourself
by the grace of the Lord. It's growth in knowing Christ. If you're at Ephesians 4 still,
look at, I wanna notice something about this chapter, just in closing.
Let me get over there, because I was reading from my notes. It starts out the way what we
read there, lowliness, meekness, forbearing one another, unity,
we're one. And then look at verses 17 through
20. Well, first of all, look at the
last two verses. It starts out, get low, humble
yourself, realize what you are before you start correcting somebody
else. being angry with somebody else.
And then the last two verses, let all bitterness and wrath
and anger and clamor and evil speaking be put away from you
with all malice and be ye kind one to another. Tenderhearted, forgiving one
another even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. And then
right in the middle of this chapter that starts that way and ends
that way, right in the middle, verse 17, this I say therefore
and testify in the Lord that ye henceforth walk not as other
Gentiles walk, in the vanity of your mind, having the understanding
darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance
that is in them, the cause of the blindness of their heart,
who being past feeling have given themselves over until lasciviousness,
to work all uncleanness with greediness. And you know why
you're not that way? If ever for a moment, you're
not. You have not so learned Christ. It's not that you've learned
the law, thou shalt not, you know, don't do that or do this
and don't do that. We need to learn Christ. if our behavior is ever going
to change. If so be that you have heard
him and have been taught by him as the truth is in Jesus that
you put off concerning the former conduct of the old man. You see
that? How do we not be shameful? and proud and selfish and disruptive
and divisive. How does that go away? We learn Christ. Not the way this world does. But we learn that in him, he's
not just our example, but he's our motive. He's our ability. He's the reason,
his glory is the point. You see that? We have not so
learned Christ and all he's talking about. It's what we do, what we say,
how we act. Christ is all. He's our hope before God, when
we stand before God. He's our hope when we go to bed
at night. He's our hope if we're ever gonna
live in such a way that we're not a walking disaster. He's our hope of that. May God
teach us Christ for his glory and our good.