Chapter # 8 Paragraph # 1 Study # 6
July 3, 2007
Lincolnton, N.C.
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1769 Translation:
6 For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.
8 So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.
9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
1901 ASV Translation:
6 For the mind of the flesh is death; but the mind of the Spirit is life and peace:
7 because the mind of the flesh is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can it be:
8 and they that are in the flesh cannot please God.
9 But ye are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you. But if any man hath not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
- I. The Stark Contrast of the Alternatives.
- A. The issue(s) of the "carnal mind".
- 1. The continuing use of the "phroneo" word group.
- a. Peter's overt, and relatively immediate, rejection of Jesus' prediction of His death and resurrection is said to have arisen because he "savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men" (Matthew 16:23; Mark 8:33). This is the basis for Paul's exhortation in Colossians 3:2 that we "set our affection" on things above and not on the things of the earth.
- b. Paul summons believers to be very careful regarding the attitudes they take toward one another in respect to "sobriety" and "God's measuring of faith to each person" (Romans 12:3). In 12:16 he goes on to say that believers are to have "the same mind" toward each other and that means to not "mind" high things but, rather, 'men of low estate'. This ability arises from "the God of patience and consolation" (15:5).
- c. In 14:6 he says that men have freedom to make up their own "minds" about whether to observe the Sabbath because every choice is to be made "to the Lord" in any case.
- 2. The fundamental focus: "I will be as God".
- 3. The secondary foci...
- a. "You will be my slave".
- b. "You will be my 'provider'".
- B. The issue(s) of the "Spiritual mind".
- 1. The fundamental focus: "The Servant-God will be enthroned above the heavens".
- 2. The secondary foci...
- a. He is the Provider of all things to all men.
- b. What He provides will be used under His direction.
- C. The inevitable results.
- 1. Death.
- a. This is absolutely inevitable as a 'result'. The "problem" with the reality is that it takes a certain amount of time to manifest the more recognizable degrees to which it will go.
- b. The meaning of "death" is illustrated at every turn (maggots feasting on rotting meat; rage and hatred spewing out of people's mouths; totally blind arrogance that simply assumes "I know better than you").
- c. The mechanism of "death" is conflict.
- 2. Life and peace.
- a. This is also absolutely inevitable as a 'result'. The same "problem" exists as with "death" -- the realization does not "set in" until late in the process over time.
- b. The meaning of life is also illustrated in experience, but to a significantly lower level of visibility because Sin is running rampant in the world and the visible evidence of life is harder to discern.
- c. The mechanism of "Life" is peace.