We are the Building of the Holy Spirit, not Meant to be a Building of Carnality

1 Corinthians 3

Click for a description of the mark of the beast.

• The carnal way of life is not able to digest the way of Holiness.
• Our focus has to stay on Jesus and not human beings.
• Our body is God’s building, and only Jesus Christ can build it up.
• God’s building cannot be built up with money and possessions.
• Thoughts and wisdom of this world doesn’t build up the building of God.

The carnal way of life is not able to digest the way of Holiness. “And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ.” 1 Corinthians 3:1 We are not able to talk to people who live for this world as if they are already living for spiritual things. We have to talk to them about coming to Christ for the forgiveness of sin. “I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able;” 1 Corinthians 3:2 The solid food is talking about the infilling of the Holy Spirit and the process of sanctification. If a person is still carnal, then they will not be able to digest the solid food of Holiness. “…for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?” 1 Corinthians 3:3 Looking around our community, and around the world, we see the carnage that carnal values bring. There is more than enough envy, strife, and divisions. The thing that has the power to form emotions, feelings, thoughts, and behaviors is carnal, and corrupts the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

Our focus has to stay on Jesus and not other human beings. “For when one says, “I am of Paul,” and another, “I am of Apollos,” are you not carnal?” 1 Corinthians 3:4 We are still carnal when we take our focus off of Jesus Christ and lift up the importance of human beings. “Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one?” 1 Corinthians 3:5 Human beings can help one another to come to Christ and to grow in Him, but we are only voicing the teachings of the Bible. “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase.” 1 Corinthians 3:6 We can share the Gospel until we are blue in the face, but it is only the Holy Spirit that brings life in the name of Jesus. “So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.” 1 Corinthians 3:7 One person can plant the Gospel seed, and another person can add to it, but that means nothing unless a person is receptive to the Spirit of Christ. “Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor.” 1 Corinthians 3:8 As followers of Christ, we are all one through the teachings of the Bible, the sower of the Gospel seed is one with those who add to the implanted seed. We sow and water to spiritual things and our reward will be spiritual.

Our body is God’s building, and only Jesus Christ can build it up. “For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building.” 1 Corinthians 3:9 The mind and heart of each one of us is God’s field, we are the temple of the Holy Spirit. “According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it.” 1 Corinthians 3:10 We have to be careful what we contribute into God’s field, our body as His place of construction. The thing that has power to form thoughts, emotions, and feelings has no respect for the body as God’s field. It is laying the foundation for the mark of the beast. However, as written, “For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 3:11 Our body is created to be the home of the Holy Spirit, that foundation has already been laid, and only through Jesus can we be built up as the building of God.

God’s building cannot be built up with money and possessions. “Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw,” 1 Corinthians 3:12 The foundation of the building of God, our body, has been laid by the Gospel of Christ. There are bad results when money, possessions, and physical comforts are used to build up a person. Today, materialism, self-esteem, and physical comforts are used to build a person up who lives by the mark of the beast. “…each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is.” 1 Corinthians 3:13 A house built on money, possessions, and physical comforts is not going to stand faithful to Christ when the Day of affliction, ridicule, and mockery comes. Likewise, this present world’s system will not stand in the day of global tribulation, chaos, and lawlessness.

“If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward.” 1 Corinthians 3:14 For those of us who build on the foundation of Jesus Christ, to build up the temple of God, we will receive our reward. “If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.” 1 Corinthians 3:15 Even though we use the Gospel of Christ to build up the building of God, some people will not be receptive to the teachings of the Bible. The work we have done will be burned, but we will be saved for remaining faithful to the testimony of Jesus. “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” 1 Corinthians 3:16 Our body is the temple of God; we are the building of the Holy Spirit. “If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.” 1 Corinthians 3:17 The thing that has power to form our thoughts, emotions, and feelings is defiling the temple of God, it detests Jesus Christ who gives us the Holy Spirit. Its intent is to make us the building where the mark of the beast resides. God will destroy it, the mark of the beast, and all who live by the mark.

Thoughts and wisdom of this world doesn’t build up the building of God. “Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise.” 1 Corinthians 3:18 The wisdom of this world does nothing to build on the foundation of Jesus Christ. It is better to be thought of as a fool to become wise in the Spirit of Christ. “For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their own craftiness”;” 1 Corinthians 3:19 Those who live by the wisdom of this world are a detriment to themselves, and that is foolishness to God. “…and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” 1 Corinthians 3:20 God knows the thoughts of those who are under the influence of the thing that is able to form their thoughts, emotions, and feelings. He knows that they despise Him, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit and it is futile to fight against the human body as the building of the Holy Spirit.

“Therefore let no one boast in men. For all things are yours:” 1 Corinthians 3:21 As followers of Jesus Christ, we have to stop building up other people as if they are to be esteemed over Jesus Christ. We have an inheritance in Heaven and all things are ours. “…whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas, or the world or life or death, or things present or things to come—all are yours.” 1 Corinthians 3:22 There is nobody, nothing in this world, nor even death that can separate us from all things that God gives us through Jesus Christ. “And you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.” 1 Corinthians 3:23 We belong to Christ alone, nobody else, and Jesus is the Son of God.

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“….to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets,“
‘I will not impose any other burden on you, except to hold on to what you have until I come.’”
“I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.”
Revelation 2:24-25, 3:11