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@everydaygodswill

1 Corinthians 3:1-3 NLT Dear brothers and sisters, when I was with you I couldn’t talk to you as I would to spiritual people. I had to talk as though you belonged to this world or as though you were infants in Christ. I had to feed you with milk, not with solid food, because you weren’t ready for anything stronger. And you still aren’t ready, for you are still controlled by your sinful nature. You are jealous of one another and quarrel with each other. Doesn’t that prove you are controlled by your sinful nature? Aren’t you living like people of the world?

We can be saved and still act carnal. Carnal essentially means led by the senses. If a person limits themselves to what they see, hear, feel, or experience, they’re acting carnal.

If we want to fight anyone who looks at us funny, we’re acting carnal. If we get highly emotional because we didn’t get something we wanted, we’re acting carnal. If we freak out after hearing a negative report from the doctor’s office, that’s carnal too. None of these responses impact our salvation. We can love God and be appreciative of the sacrifice of Jesus, but still act carnally.

What limits or completely stops a Christian from acting carnal is being led by the Spirit and understanding what’s been freely given to us in Christ (Romans 8:9; 1 Cor. 2:12).

Listening to the Spirit of God telling us to “let it go” will keep us from getting into altercations. When we know we can have whatever we desire that aligns with godliness when we ask Him according to His will, we won’t be distraught when we don’t immediately get what we wanted (Mark 11:24; 2 Pet. 1:3; 1 John 5:14). We’ll realize it’s just a matter of His timing before it comes to pass (Gal. 6:9). That doctor’s report won’t move us because we’ll realize we’re healed through Christ (1 Pet. 2:24).

Because we live in this flesh, which always wants to oppose God, thoughts of acting carnal will always come up, but we don’t have to act on it. The more we allow ourselves to be led by the Holy Spirit and the more we know about what God provided through Christ, the easier it will be to act more spiritual in those situations instead of carnal.

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