Part 6: The Natural Man vs The Spiritual Man

1 Corinthians 2:10–16 NASB95

For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words. 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. But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one. For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ.

Introduction

Begins by reminding them who they are in Christ

Then he chastises them for having divisions. They are to be united on the Gospel.

He tells them how powerful the Gospel is. The implication: it it powerful, not just to save, but to unite.

Paul then exhorted them: if you are going to boast about following someone, boast in the Lord. Not Paul, Peter, Apollos, or even themselves.

Last week, we saw Paul explaining that what matters most in preaching is Christ crucified. It’s not about how one speaks it per se. It’s about the message of Jesus.

The wisdom Paul has is from God, not the world. Although he may not speak with flowery words, the message he preaches is divine wisdom.

One of the underlying practical points for Paul’s audience: The Corinthians are not spiritual Christians; they are “natural” Christians. Paul is laying it all on the line.

1. Spiritual Truth is Revealed (2:10-11)

1 Corinthians 2:10–11 NASB95

For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God.

First thing to note: “For to us God revealed them through the Spirit . . .”

“To us” = Apostles

To Us, the Apostles

Ephesians 3:1–5 “For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles— if indeed you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace which was given to me for you; that by revelation there was made known to me the mystery, as I wrote before in brief. By referring to this, when you read you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit.”

God Revealed Them

What does “them” refer to? What things were revealed?

Goes back to 1 Corinthians 2:9 “but just as it is written, ‘Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, And which have not entered the heart of man, All that God has prepared for those who love Him.’”

That God intended to bless all the nations through Jesus Christ:

Eph 3:6 - “. . . that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.”

[Romans 3:21–26 “But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”]

Salvation, a new creation, a new heavens and earth, God’s presence among those who have faith in Christ, peace, joy, contentment, no sorrow, no sin

God had to reveal these things because they were/are the plan of God. No one can know the thoughts and plans of God. V. 11 goes on to say: “For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God.”

We should note the significance of Paul saying that the Holy Spirit knows the thoughts of God. If no one knows the thoughts of God except God himself, and the HS is said to know the thoughts of God, then the HS must be God.

Significance for us:

If spiritual truth must be revealed, then it is imperative for us to reveal it (evangelize).

When was the last time you spoke to someone about Jesus? When did you last invite someone to come hear the Gospel taught and preached?

2. The Spirit Revealed Truth to the Apostles (2:12-13)

1 Corinthians 2:12–13 NASB95

Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.

Spirit of God vs Spirit of the World

Here, Paul is continuing the defense of being an apostle called by Jesus. The wisdom he preached to the Corinthians was not something he made up; it is not a philosophical system conjured up by man. The wisdom he preaches was given to Paul by the Holy Spirit.

As he continues, he says, it was combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words:

Spiritual Thoughts and Words

Lit. “joining spiritual things with spiritual words” - Let’s note the significance here: Paul did not teach “in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit” followed up by “joining spiritual things with spiritual words.”

It is not just the thoughts that are divine but even the words Paul taught them in.

In theology, we call this “verbal inspiration.” The Holy Spirit inspired what Paul taught, including the very words.

What it does not mean: dictation. Paul and others who taught and wrote revealed truth were not mere machines.

What it does mean: that in some unknown way, God guided and gave his stamp of approval with how Paul and others preached about the Gospel, including the words they personally chose.

Significance for us:

The writings we have today, collected into what we call the Bible, are what the apostles and prophets of God wrote. As such, the Bible is the inspired Word of God. It gives us the most important message that our world will ever hear: the message of the Gospel, how to be saved, made right with God.

Illustration of message in a bottle

Man stranded on an island. One day he finds a bottle. There appears to be a message in it. But it seemed too difficult to get out of the bottle so he left it on the beach. As time went on, he built himself a small hut for a house. He made himself weapons, like a spear, to hunt the animals on the island for food. As the years passed, he often looked at the only picture he had of his family, wishing he could just get back home. But no one past by to save him—so ships, no planes. More years passed. He had done well figuring out how to live and stay alive by himself.

One day, while laying on the beach, he looked over and saw the bottle he had left there years before. He finally decides to break it and read the message inside the bottle. The message read:

“If you get lost on this island, just walk 10 miles east to the nearest village and the people there will take you home by ship. No one ever travels on this backside of the island, so they will never discover you.”

The point: too many times we look in numerous places in search for answers, but the one place that has the answer—the Bible—is often ignored. All we have to do is crack it open.

At other times, we keep the Gospel message locked up in the bottle and never crack it open for others to know it. We keep it to ourselves.

Unfortunately, there are times that we do look into the Bible for the answers, but rather than following what the message tells—rather than obeying the Word of God—we just keep it in our brains. We know what it says, but we do not DO what it says.

This is actually related to the main idea that Paul is relaying to the Corinthians:

3. Natural Men Do not Accept Spiritual Truths (2:14)

1 Corinthians 2:14 NASB95

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.

“A natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God”:

Does not Accept

There are times when we just do not accept the message God gives to us. Here, Paul is telling the Corinthians that a natural man does not accept it because it seems foolish to him.

In fact, it is much stronger than than that. Paul says:

Cannot Accept

The natural man cannot even understand the things of the Spirit.

Who is “natural man?” Why is it that he cannot accept it?

Some have tried to make this about how a person cannot respond to the Gospel at all, and so God has to make you believe the Gospel because you just cannot understand it as a sinful human. But in context, this is not what Paul has in mind.

First, Paul is actually saying that the Corinthians are the natural men. He will in fact criticize them for that in the chapter 3. So, if the Corinthians are the “natural men” who cannot even accept the Gospel, then it is foolishness for Paul to be writing the letter to them, appealing to them as Christians.

Moreover, we can see from what Paul has already written that he is actually using the idea of “natural man” to refer to how the Corinthians are acting like unregenerated, unsaved people. That’s the point.

1 Corinthians 1:18 “For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”

parallel also with 1 Corinthians 1:23–24 “but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.”

In 1 Corinthians 2:6 “Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away;”

I.e.: the “natural man” = spiritually immature, rulers of this age, worldly wisdom, even those who are perishing.

Same idea as “walking in the flesh” as found in other places in Paul’s letters.

The point: The Corinthians, with their divisions and quarreling, are acting like foolish, worldly, unregenerated people. As such, they are not and cannot—in their present state—accept what Paul is trying to tell them. At this point in their life, the Corinthian Christians ought to know how to be loving one another and what God desires of them and be living in accordance with it. Unfortunately, they have left the message in the bottle and ignored it. They are acting as natural men.

He will go on in 1 Corinthians 3:1–2 “And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to infants in Christ. 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.”

Significance for us:

Are there not times when we can find ourselves acting as a “natural man?” Sure there are. When we quarrel, gossip, slander, defame, be divisive, etc.—any time that we walk according to the flesh and not the Spirit, we are just like the Corinthians—acting as natural men.

Whenever we demand that something be the way WE want it, whenever we become unnecessarily confrontational, we are acting like natural men—those who are walking by the flesh.

Galatians 5:19–24 “Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”

Another way to say this is how Paul puts it to the Corinthians:

4. Spiritual Men have the Mind of Christ (2:15-16)

1 Corinthians 2:15–16 NASB95

But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one. For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ.

The thrust of Paul’s words here is to defend the message of his preaching. He says that “he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one.”

“Appraise” = “to judge” = “He who is spiritual is able to judge/discern all things, yet he himself is judged by no one.”

The one who accepts the message revealed to and preached by Paul is the spiritual man. I.e., Paul is saying, “Take heed! Listen up to what I’m saying!”

Paul was chosen by Christ to be an apostle; God revealed to him spiritual truths to preach to others.

If one rejects what he is saying, they are effectively saying God is wrong:

The Spiritual Cannot be Judged

Charles Hodge:

An Exposition of the First Epistle to the Corinthians Continuation of His Defence of His Mode of Preaching. vs. 1–16

No one can judge a spiritual man, for that would be to judge the Lord. The Lord had revealed certain doctrines. The spiritual discern those doctrines to be true. For any man to pronounce them false, and to judge those who held them, supposes he is able to teach the Lord

Final thought is that Paul does not have a worldly mind here with his preaching, but the mind of Christ:

Paul (and the Apostles) have the Mind of Christ

Charles Hodge

An Exposition of the First Epistle to the Corinthians Continuation of His Defence of His Mode of Preaching. vs. 1–16

The philosophers of Greece and the scribes among the Jews had sat in judgment upon Paul, and pronounced his preaching foolishness. He tells them they were not competent judges. The natural man cannot discern the things of the Spirit, and is incompetent to judge those whom the Spirit has taught. As what we teach is the mind of the Lord, to condemn our doctrine, or to judge us as the teachers of those doctrines, is to condemn the Lord.

So we also have a choice to make:

Will we be spiritual or natural?

If we seek to be spiritual, we will seek God’s will and his word. We will make God’s Word—the Bible—the priority in our lives.

If we seek to be spiritual, we will live a life of obedience, attempting to walk by the Spirit, displaying the fruit of the Spirit.

James 2:26 “For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.”

Galatians 5:25 “If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.”

1 John 4:20 “If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.”

What does having the mind of Christ specifically look like?

First, the obvious part: It is to accept the good news that Jesus Christ died on the cross for the sins of the world and was resurrected on the third day. It accepts this as true wisdom, not foolishness.

To have the mind of Christ is to live according to the Spirit:

It avoids gossip.

Def of “gossip” - “An idle tattler; a newsmonger; one who spreads groundless rumors; one who rumors or information about the behavior or personal lives of other people”

It avoids slander: “a false report, oral or written, maliciously uttered and intending to injure the reputation of another”

To have the mind of Christ is to have a heart that is open to study God’s Word. Is your mind open to listening, studying, and meditating on God’s Word?