Paul begins the third chapter of 1 Corinthians with a father’s lament and an apostle’s rebuke. The Corinthian believers, though endowed with the Spirit, remained stunted in their growth. They were infants still grasping for the milk of the Word when they should have been feasting on the meat of divine wisdom.
In the previous chapter, Paul had laid out a foundational truth: the deep things of God are not grasped by intellect alone, but by those who walk in step with the Spirit.
Yet here was the tragedy: they had the mind of Christ, but their minds were still entangled with the world! Gifted, yet immature. Privileged, yet petty. They had knowledge, but no wisdom. An inheritance in Christ, yet the behaviour of spiritual beggars.
It is a pitiful picture. One can almost hear the sigh in Paul’s words, much like our Lord’s exasperated cry:
"How long shall I suffer you?" (Mark 9:19).
There he was, ready to unfold deeper mysteries, but they were still bickering, still fleshly, still unready. He had to hold back and continue feeding them not with the robust fare of spiritual depth, but with the gentle sustenance fit for babes. Their spiritual teeth were too soft to chew the solid truths of God. They stumbled over the same petty obstacles:
the little foxes that spoil the vine (Song of Solomon 2:15).
Do you realise that possession of the Spirit does not automatically translate to being "spiritual"?.
Salvation is instantaneous, but growth is a process - a long, often painful process of yielding, refining, building, and renewing. Paul puts it plainly: "Be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Romans 12:2).
True spirituality is not measured by eloquence, not by the ability to parrot Christian rhetoric, but by a life transformed.
Apostle James echoes this sentiment. Religion that is "pure and undefiled before God" (James 1:27) is not in professions of faith alone, but in a life of substance. One marked by integrity, humility, and genuine love. Yet how many today settle for the appearance of spirituality while resisting the substance of transformation? How many are fluent in theological debate but strangers to true obedience?
The Spirit convicts, but He will not force. He nudges, but He will not wrestle us into submission.
"Quench not the Spirit" (1 Thessalonians 5:19).
Paul diagnoses the issue with striking clarity:
"For ye are yet carnal" (1 Corinthians 3:3).
This was not a gentle observation but a cutting indictment. Their behavior betrayed their spiritual condition. Where there should have been unity, there was strife. Where there should have been peace, there was division. Their allegiance had shifted from Christ to mere men.
This was no minor issue. Carnality is not neutral ground; it is enmity against God (Romans 8:7). The Corinthians were spiritual in name but worldly in nature. Their thinking was shaped not by the Word of God, but by the wisdom of the age. They boasted in their teachers rather than in Christ. They measured spirituality by affiliation rather than by transformation.
And is it not the same today? How many churches are filled with professing believers whose conduct is indistinguishable from the world? How many measure faith by how eloquently one speaks, how emotionally one worships, or how much one knows, while neglecting the true hallmarks of maturity:
Love. Humility. Obedience.
Paul cuts through the pretense: "Are ye not carnal, and walk as men?" (1 Corinthians 3:3).
One of the primary symptoms of their carnality was division. Some declared, "I am of Paul," others, "I am of Apollos." Their focus had shifted from Christ to His servants. And what was the result? Factionalism, partisanship, strife.
This spirit has not vanished. The Church today is splintered along denominational lines, theological camps, personality-driven movements. Some follow a particular pastor (or Papa or G.O.) with near-blind devotion. They take his word as gospel. Others cling to a theological school of thought, being more concerned with defending their tradition than with seeking truth.
Paul rebukes this mentality. He strips away the illusion of human greatness:
"Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed?" (1 Corinthians 3:5).
The work of salvation and sanctification is God’s alone. Ministers plant, others water, but it is God who gives the increase.
This truth humbles both the preacher and the hearer. The preacher must never exalt himself, for he is but an instrument. And the hearer must never place his faith in the instrument rather than in the One who wields it.
"Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith" (Hebrews 12:2).
Paul’s rebuke is not merely to chastise but to call them higher. The Christian life is not static - it is a journey of continuous growth. The writer of Hebrews issues a similar rebuke:
"For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat" (Hebrews 5:12).
They had been in the faith long enough to have matured, but they were still in spiritual infancy.
Growth is not optional - it is a divine mandate.
Peter puts it simply: "As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby" (1 Peter 2:2).
But here is the challenge: growth requires more than knowledge. It demands surrender. It is not enough to accumulate information; transformation must follow. Too many today are content with learning but resist changing. They enjoy hearing the Word but do not apply it. They love theology but shun obedience.
This is why many remain stunted. This is why spiritual gifts abound, yet maturity is scarce. This is why churches are filled with division, pride, spiritual stagnation.
The measure of maturity is not how much we know, but how much we resemble Christ.
Paul’s message remains as relevant today as it was in Corinth. The Church is filled with believers who are gifted but immature, knowledgeable but untransformed. Spiritual maturity is not measured by eloquence or theological depth but by a life that reflects Christ. True faith bears fruit. True discipleship submits to the refining work of the Holy Spirit. True allegiance belongs to Christ alone, not to human leaders.
Paul’s exhortation calls us to examine our hearts. Are we growing in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18)? Are we still stumbling over basic truths, or have we yielded to the Spirit’s transforming work?
The call is clear: press on to maturity. Do not settle for spiritual infancy. Do not remain in a cycle of immaturity and division. For the world is watching, and if our lives bear no witness to the power of the gospel, then we have failed both in our assurance and in our witness.
"That ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing" (James 1:4).
May we heed Paul’s words. May we grow. May we reflect Christ.
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