3 Types of Man: the Natural Man

Monday we looked at some scripture that speaks about the Holy Spirit, who He is, and why He came. Living a life void of God's presence, represented by the Holy Spirit, will result in a life without power for change. Walking in the Spirit is marked by the fruit of the Spirit. A life in touch with God and directed by Him.

Paul talks about 3 types of people in the following scripture passage: the natural man, the spiritual man, and the "fleshly" man. Let's look at the three types of men and how they relate to the Holy Spirit. We will see the critical differences pertaining to spiritual life which exist between these three kinds of individuals.


1 Corinthians 2:14-3:3
14. But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. 15. But he who is (a) spiritual (man) appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no man. 16. For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he should instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ. 1Cor 3:1. And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to babes in Christ. 2. I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able [to receive it]. Indeed, even now you are not yet able, 3. for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men?

Let's take a look at this diagram to get a little better understanding of what the Natural Man is like.

(click to enlarge)

Version: NAS

Ephesians 2:1-3
1. And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, 2. in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. 3. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.

This is a pretty concise description of a person before salvation. They are spiritually dead and living a life apart from God. This person sins as a matter of fact. He has a soul of course in that he can think, have emotions and choose. His mind, will, and emotions are not directed by God, but by his own flesh, his "old man".

The Natural Man's spirit is dead, living apart from Jesus. He cannot fulfill the purpose for which God has placed him here on earth.

This person is independent of God, and if affects his will. This independence from God gives sin the opportunity to dwell in this person's body and mind. He may try to find purpose in life apart from God, but it will be futile and temporary. He may wander from "place to place" physically and emotionally without ever finding happiness and satisfaction in life. He makes wrong choices and decisions out of habit. He cannot get off the cycle of sin.

Toxic emotions take over this person, envy, bitterness, anxiety. Obsessive thoughts and fantasy life, strife, anger, immorality; anything that rules your life and controls your thinking. Inability to forgive, love, or have sympathy. These are all attributes of a person that does not know God. As believers we still have some of these traits, but hopefully they do not dominate our lives.

He has a body that because it is not directed by God can be completely dominated by illness and disease. Now I want to give my own opinion here out of experience. I've had to adjust my thinking and ideas about "health" and healing, from this book. I have some physical ailments, yet I walk by the Holy Spirit. Do they influence me, yes they do at times, but the difference is that they do not "dominate" me. You and I may have some physical issues but the key is to not let them "define" who you are. Now, I still believe in healing, but I am not healed yet. A controversy? No. Not for me.

There are many hard line Christians who say if you're sick, well then something is definitely wrong with your spiritual life. Sin can of course affect our physical life. It's in our attitude and trust in God. I may not be completely healed, but I'm believing that God is in control, and I'm moving forward. I'm not living in fear or dread or unbelief. I believe that God wants me well and that when His timing is perfect I will be walking in it. It's not black or white. "The Healing Doctrine" can be simple, yet at times it is multi-layered and personal.

It is clear that living a lifestyle that is controlled by stress, abuse, and neglect, a person can easily become ill and then later disease ridden. "Possessing peace of mind and the calm assurance of God's presence in our lives positively affects our physical health".

Romans 8:11
But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who indwells you.

If you are affected by illness or physical disease, do what I do; seek God for His healing touch and thank Him in advance, everyday, that you are getting better and better.

Next time we'll look at the "Spiritual Man"; how we relate to God, after being born again. Remember, if you have questions or comments we would all love to hear them. Just say "Hey!" and let us know you're here. Hope you're having a great week.

love, in Jesus,

Debra

(concepts and quotations taken from

Victory Over the Darkness

by Neil Anderson)

Learning to "Walk by the Spirit"

Last week we started talking about "sanctification"; our journey after salvation, with the Holy Spirit, to be conformed into the image of Jesus. Salvation transforms our spirit. We become alive in Christ, yet we still live in the same physical body and we have the same soul, which is our mind, will, and emotions. After salvation, our spirit desires to be at one with the Holy Spirit. Leaving our old ways of thinking and doing things may be our desire, but it may not always be easy.

Version: NAS

Galatians 5:16-18
16. But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. 17. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. 18. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law.

Romans 8:12-13

12. So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh-- 13. for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.


There are two main elements involved in gaining victory over "walking according to the flesh". From living according to the flesh to "walking in the Spirit".

1) The first is that we need to learn to condition our behavior to our new man, our new self which is infused with Jesus Christ. We need to learn how to "walk in the Spirit".

Galatians 5:16
But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.

2) The second is that we allow our old patterns for thinking and responding to our sin-trained flesh, be transformed by the renewing of our mind.


Romans 12:1-2
1. I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, [which is] your spiritual service of worship. 2. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.


Walking by the Spirit may seem like a mystery. What exactly does it mean and how do we as believers attain that "place"?

Let's start by looking in Acts Chapter 1, as Paul recounts Jesus and the disciples in one of their meetings before He ascended into Heaven. This was after His crucifixion, but before He left earth. There was a period of 40 days in which Jesus is speaking to them about what is coming, and gives them instructions for Pentecost. Pentecost falls 50 days after Easter, or Resurrection Sunday.

Acts 1:4-8
4. And gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, "Which," [He said], "you heard of from Me; 5. for John baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." 6. And so when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, "Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?" 7. He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; 8. but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth."

Luke 24:49

"And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high."

John 14:25-26
25. "These things I have spoken to you, while abiding with you. 26. "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.
We are going to be looking at the concept of "walking by the Spirit" for the next week or so. I wanted to share the previous scriptures before we get started. Before Jesus died on the cross the disciples of Jesus were "saved", but they found their salvation under the Old Testament covenant. Jesus had not yet been crucified, and in so doing, He had not yet fulfilled the requirement for New Testament salvation. Jesus had spoken to them about the Holy Spirit who would come and be with them. Under the Old Testament the Holy Spirit "visited"  a person, but under the New Covenant the Holy Spirit "indwells" a believer. The Baptism of the Holy Spirit brings God's power into our lives and enable us to live a life unto God.

Wednesday we will start looking at the three kinds of "man" Paul talks about, the "natural man", the "spiritual man", and the "fleshly man" and how each one interacts with God and then his relationships with others.

The topic of "walking by the Spirit" can be a pretty far reaching subject, and also the "Baptism of the Holy Spirit". I want to stick with the book for the next few days, but if you have questions or ideas I'm open for them. I'll do my best to find Biblical answers.

If you read the comments from the last post, you have read the insightful and personal thoughts from a young friend of mine, Cassandra. She is an amazing young woman who I have known for the last few years. Reading her comment was such a blessing to me. I encourage you to go back and take a minute, you will also be blessed.

love to you all,

Debra

Revealing Our Freedom Through God's Word

We have seen from the last post that freedom is clearly a promise. Our old man is dead. We are a new creation in Christ. We know we still sin, but we are no longer called "sinners". We are now "saints". Born again, and given freedom through Jesus' death on the cross. Our new identity "in Christ' will begin to propel us forward on our journey. That is what life is to me; a journey. A path to a new destination. Not only "eternity in Heaven" as a destination, but to me the journey is about conforming to the image of Christ. That is my goal.

Today I want to share with you some scripture about "freedom" and hearing from God through His Word. Spending time reading and studying and meditating on scripture is one of the key elements to begin applying the Truth to your life. Seeing change in our lives, starts with our relationship with Jesus Christ. Salvation is just the start of the journey. He wants to transform and renew our minds and life. Jesus wants to break the chains that have held us captive.

Version: NAS

Luke 4:18-12 (Isaiah 61)
18. "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, And recovery of sight to the blind, To set free those who are downtrodden, 19. To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord." 20. And He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant, and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed upon Him. 21. And He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."

To bring freedom to the captives; that was part of Jesus anointing, not only while He walked here on earth, but as He resides with the Father, it is still His ministry; to bring freedom to all who are slaves to sin.

Version: NAS

John 8:32-36
32. and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." 33. They answered Him, "We are Abraham's offspring, and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, 'You shall become free '?" 34. Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. 35. "And the slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever. 36. "If therefore the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.

Knowing the Truth is the key element in finding freedom, Jesus is the embodiment of the "truth". So we must not only know Him, but learn to walk in the truth He reveals to us.

Romans 6:17-18
17. But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, 18. and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.

Galatians 5:1

1. It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.

Talking about "Freedom", and Isaiah 61, I want to share a little part of my testimony with you. You may have noticed a time-line in my life; a series of revelations the Lord started giving to me back in the late 90's. Drawing me close to Him and revealing Himself to me through His Word, the Scripture, and then even more definitively for me through experiences.

God started making several passages of scripture "jump off the page" at me. I imagine most of us have had that experience. We will be reading the Bible and all the sudden a passage seems just as if it has our name attached to it. It becomes embedded in our minds and hearts. It becomes a "sign", direction giver, "calling", and road map.

Isaiah 61 was one such passage for me. It seemed that everything I read, heard, and thought about went back to that one chapter in scripture. (books, Christian articles, music, sermons, Christian TV) This was when God was first revealing Himself to me with a call to ministry. I was continually amazed at what God was doing and shared each time when this scripture would "become real"  for me with my husband. We, at that time, started growing in the Lord together. We became "one" in mind, spirit, and heart for the first time in 29 years of marriage. We did Kingdom work together, prayed together, and read God's Word together.

When I had the heart attacks in October of 2002, it was a total surprise. No symptoms, no advance warning. We were totally taken off guard. In fact I thought I had a pinched nerve in my right arm. After a weekend of three "attacks" we finally made it to the ER on a Monday morning at 6 a.m. All I could think about was that my husband would need to be at work shortly and I was going to cause him to be delayed.

When we arrived I was in big trouble, in the middle of another massive heart attack. Bad bad news. They rushed me into the heart cath lab to see what was going on. I don't think they gave my husband much hope, and of course, you have to sign a waiver that they are not responsible if you die while you are in the test. So here he is sitting in the waiting room, completely alone. We had not called family, until we knew what we were looking at. My poor husband sat by himself; confused, shocked, in great fear, and alone. The only one in the waiting room was a young woman doing housekeeping. She was cleaning and dusting and trying not to be obtrusive. She finished her job and laid the Bible back down on the table where she had just dusted. She opened it randomly and quietly left the room. My husband stood up and went to pick up the Bible, needing God's direction and help. There in front of his eyes, as if in letters blazing with God's message, lay Isaiah 61. He knew I would come through this. God spoke to my husband through His Word.

Isaiah 61:1-3
1. The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, Because the LORD has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives, And freedom to prisoners; 2. To proclaim the favorable year of the LORD, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn, 3. To grant those who mourn [in] Zion, Giving them a garland instead of ashes, The oil of gladness instead of mourning, The mantle of praise instead of a spirit of fainting. So they will be called oaks of righteousness, The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.

If you desire to hear the Lord speak to your heart and have not experienced His revelation in this way, start, by asking God for it. He is more than willing and wants to communicate with you.

Dear Heavenly Father, I know I am your child, and I so desire to know you better. I want to hear from you in a personal way. Please speak to me from your Word, the Bible. I'll be reading and waiting to hear from you.
Thank you,
In Jesus Name,
Amen

Our freedom and transformation begins with accepting Jesus as our Savior. Then we embrace the Bible as God's Word to us. If you don't have a desire to read or study, please include that in your prayer. Ask God to also give you a desire to read and study the Bible. He will gladly do that for you.

I'd love for you to share times and scripture when God has "spoken" to you from His Word. It encourages all of us, when we learn of other peoples experiences in this. Please leave a comment if you feel God is leading you to share.

love in Jesus,

Debra