What is Carnal Mindedness and Why Is It Deadly

Roaming Through Romans

According to the Greek dictionary, carnality means to have the nature and characteristics of the flesh (or more simply, it means “fleshly”). What, then, is the flesh? Sometimes it refers to the whole material part of man (1 Corinthians 15:39; Hebrews 5:7), and based on this meaning, carnal sometimes relates to material things like money (Romans 15:27) or to the opposite of our weapons of spiritual warfare (2 Corinthians 10:4). But the word flesh also has a metaphorical sense when it refers to our disposition to sin and to oppose or omit God in our lives. The flesh is characterized by works that include lusts and passions (Galatians 5:19–24; 1 John 2:16); it can enslave (Romans 7:25); and in it is nothing good (Romans 7:18). Based on this meaning of the word flesh, to be carnal means to be characterized by things that belong to the unsaved life (Ephesians 2:3). 1  The Apostle Paul addresses carnal mindedness particularly in Romans chapter eight. Let’s take a look.

Are You After the Flesh or Following the Spirit?

Roaming through Romans

Romans chapter eight has several ‘who or what’ we have ‘in Christ’ positional statements. The entire chapter includes what Jesus has done for us as well as information we need to access His finished work through the vital ministry of the Holy Spirit. In today’s post we are going to look particularly at verse five in relation to what it says about flesh versus spirit.

How to Conquer An Ungodly Habit

One unknown gentleman said, ‘A bad habit is like a comfortable bed—easy to get into but hard to get out of.’1 Are you a believer in Jesus and yet struggle with habits which weigh you down and dilute your testimony? There is a answer to the dilemma (Gal.1:4).  The habit may be difficult to overcome but not impossible. All things are possible to one who believes (Mk. 9:23). Here are areas to look at and some things which you can implement from the Bible to overthrow the negative which has gripped your life.

#042: Why is The Throne of God Power Central? [Podcast]

“I have never met a person who took a test without wanting to know what to study. Nor have I met a soldier who was willing to go into battle without his gun. Also, I have never met a pilot who wanted to lose power while still in the air. But I have met Christians who were perfectly willing to live their lives without God’s power” 1. Living a Christian life without God’s power is as ludicrous as trying to drive a car without gas. Knowing about and seeing examples of spiritual power aids the believer in His walk. You can, then, have confidence in the strength of the Lord on your behalf.

Listen to the Audio

Click to Listen | Right Click to Download | Subscribe in iTunes

Why is The Throne of God Power Central?

“I have never met a person who took a test without wanting to know what to study. Nor have I met a soldier who was willing to go into battle without his gun. Also, I have never met a pilot who wanted to lose power while still in the air. But I have met Christians who were perfectly willing to live their lives without God’s power” 1. Living a Christian life without God’s power is as ludicrous as trying to drive a car without gas. Knowing about and seeing examples of spiritual power aids the believer in His walk. You can, then, have confidence in the strength of the Lord on your behalf.

Jesus the Door: Understanding and Knowing Jesus by His Names

In the Gospel of John there are seven ‘I am’ statements that Jesus made concerning Himself. There is much to learn about Jesus just by studying these names. Jesus said, ‘I am the Bread of Life’; ‘I am the Good Shepherd’; ‘I am the Resurrection and the Life’; ‘I am the Light of the World’; ‘I am the Way, the Truth and the Life’; ‘I am the True Vine’; and the subject of this post ‘I am the Door’.

Being Filled with the Spirit

There are three characteristics that are evident in a person that is full of the Spirit. They speak in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, singing to the Lord; they give thanks always and for everything; they submit to one another out of respect for Jesus. If this is the criteria for being filled, then I want to submit to you that mainly half-empty people are doing the work of God in the earth. Now if the work of God has gotten as far as it has with half-empty people – what would happen if we all were filled and stayed full?

Lessons in Hearing God

There are multiple ways to be led by the Spirit of God. Here are two ways you might ponder in this area of being led by the Lord in your everyday life. Area one, by the Spirit of God directly; area two, by interpreting situations in the light of the love of God. With that being said, there are some valuable lessons that one can learn in this arena of hearing the Lord. Some of these lessons may help accelerate the learning curve. Consider the following.

Making a Quality Decision to Enjoy Life

What kind of life did Jesus come to bring us? A sad life? A depressed life? A barely rake by, scrape by life? Is that what a Christian is supposed to be? No, God gave us things to enjoy (1Tim. 6:17). Mark, this down sanguine personalities are not the only ones that are supposed to be enjoying life! Certain personality types have a harder time chilling out than other personality types. The key to it is for all of us to learn to enjoy the normal everyday situations of life. Here are some further thoughts on making a quality decision to enjoy life.