"But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."
These last few verses of the 2nd chapter of the 1st epistle to the Corinthians furthers our understanding of the purpose of the Apostles initial, minimal restrictions on the Gentiles.
The Gentiles were pagans, born and raised, the Natural man. The Natural man cannot understand circumcision. As a man, I assure you that, in order for a grown man (over 18) to get circumcised he must have some knowledge and understanding about why and its purpose. Before someone can be asked to change their dietary habits, they must know(ledge) something about why its important. Even baptism seems like foolishness to the Natural man, because Baptism is an outward sign of an inward decision. Therefore it serves no natural purpose to the natural man.
In Chap.3 he goes on to say:
"And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?"
"For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?
Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man? I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.
So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase. Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour." (1Corinthians 3:1-8)
This type of behavior is still in practice today.People believe what they believe despite what the Bible says, because of 'what my pastor said.'
Paul spoke to the gentiles like babes in the word because that's what they were. And he knew they did not have a Bible (new or old testament) that they could go home and read at their leisure.
"Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.
Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?" (1Corinthians 1:10-16)
This scripture is the foundation for this blog... STUDYTHEBIBLENOTTHESERMON
We learned yesterday that after Paul and the disciples have laid only the most basic of the Commandments on the Gentiles, he still thought it necessary to tell them that unrighteousness will not inherit the kingdom of God.
What is Unrighteousness?
How do we as believers in the Bible define what is righteous and unrighteous behavior??
... Of Course we look to the scriptures and let the Bible interpret itself.
"And the LORD commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as it is at this day.
And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before the LORD our God, as he hath commanded us." (Deuteronomy 6:24-25)
It is the doing of the Commandments that make you righteous. And it is a persons lifestyle of not obeying the commandments that is their own judgment and deems them therefore unrighteous.
"For there is no respect of persons with God.
For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law; For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified." (Romans 2:12-13)Believers will be judged by the law. Righteous enter the Kingdom, unrighteous enter the Lake of Fire.
And those who don't even believe we should be keeping the law will perish without the law.
Just as it is in the world. If you know the law of red lights (stop), and break the law of red lights (do not stop)you will be judged guilty and fined within the parameters of the laws of your county.
If you do not know the law of red lights (stop), and break the law of red lights (do not stop) you will be judged guilty and/or negligent and will likely still be fined within the parameters of the laws of your county.
In traffic court in Chciago the judge is known for saying,
"Ignorance of the Law is not an excuse for breaking the law."
I conquer, and the Judge of ALL Mankind feels the same way!
"Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing... Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace." (Galatians 5:1-4)
Taking this scripture at face value it appears that Paul is even condemning Timothy; whom Paul himself circumcised, according to what we learned in Part 1 of :unplugged: (Acts 15-16).
No. Paul is simply relating that being circumcised does not give you space to not believe in Christ. We are not justified by the law, we do the law because we were Commanded to. So that, we might live. and things will go well with us (Deuteronomy 6:24-25). We are justified by the fact that we believe in the law. For it was written in the law that Christ would come.
It is because of a belief/faith in Christ that the Gentiles would have been circumcised. They obviously wouldn't do it because of Abraham or Moses, but once Christ came, and was preached by the Apostles and knowledge and faith was gained, the people would then begin to keep the Commandments. He goes on to say:
Through the grace of God we are able to place faith in the fact that Christ came and did all those things that were written of Him by Moses and the prophets and that in doing that is able to remove the sins committed in the past.
"To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith."
Because Jesus was righteous (did the Commandments), He can justify our mistakes, shortcomings, and pitfalls because of our faith in him. The law of faith; we do the Commandments because although we are not perfect like Jesus, He will justify our imperfections through our faith in Him.
"Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law. Is he the God of the Jews only? is he not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also: Seeing it is one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through faith. Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law."
(Romans 3:23-31)
Yes! We were justified upon hearing the Word/Gospel and believing, since we were justified before we understood all the things that were required of us, does that mean that we shouldn't do the Commandments?
God forbid: We (being those that are justified) will be the main ones doing the Commandments!
For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:
But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.
What advantage then hath the Jew? or what profit is there of circumcision?
Much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God."
(Romans 2:25-29/3:1-2)
FOOD 4 THOUGHT (you do the dishes): Being circumcised only matters if you keep the Commandments of God. Obviously in keeping the Commandments of God you would be led to circumcision because it is a token of the covenant that God made with Abraham (the promise of Christ was also made to Abraham in him keeping this covenant). Basically the Bible here divides the people of God who are circumcised and those pagan nations who also believed in circumcison, and thru that procedure they became holy. There is only 1 way to be holy and that is to do the Word of God. It is therefore safe to say that if a believer wants to get circumcised he is probably holy because only through the Word of God would a grown man let someone take a knife to his manhood...May the Lord add a blessing to the doing of His Word
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