Are You A Carnal Christian? - 1 Corinthians 3

 The Church and Its Leaders

3 Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly—mere infants in Christ. 2 I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. 3 You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? 4 For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings?

Paul doesn't mince words with the Corinthians in this chapter.  Though he addresses them as brothers and sisters, or as family, he tells them they have not grown up.  They are still acting like children.  He says they are "worldly", which is also translated "fleshly", or "carnal".  Paul says they were not ready for any deeper teaching, because they weren't even applying the basics.  Then, Paul gives an example of their childishness.  He cites the example that they are picking their favorite personality and claiming allegiance to them rather than the gospel of Christ.  In this case it happens to be Paul himself, but it wouldn't matter who it was, it is still immature behavior.  We usually think of carnal or fleshly behavior as related to vices like drinking, drugs and sex; but here it manifests itself as jealously and quarreling over which leader they liked.

5 What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. 6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. 7 So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 8 The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. 9 For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.

Paul makes an important point.  Although we all have different roles in ministry and different personality types, we don't make anything grow by ourselves.  We can plant the seed and water it, but only God can make the seed grow.  The seed is the gospel and when someone hears and believes and is born again it is a work of the Spirit.  Just as God provides the miracle of natural birth, he does the same with spiritual birth. 

When we realize this we can put ego aside, because we realize it is not about us.  We are all workers, working for the same goal.  We play different roles, but the goal is the same.  Our goal is offer ourselves and our gifts to God so he multiply them through the church, the body of Christ.  If we got this right, there would be a lot less conflict in the church. 

"Some people are frustrated because they want to water when God has called them to plant, or they want to plant when God has called them to water. Others are frustrated because they want to make the increase happen, when only God can do that. Real fruitfulness in ministry happens when we are peacefully content with what God has called us to do." (Guzik)

Where has God called you to be a worker in the kingdom?  If you are Paul, who is an Apollos in your life?  God has made us each uniquely and has gifted each of us individually, but unless we can work together for God's glory and not our own, we labor in vain.