Equipping University

You may not be familiar with the term "carnal Christian" but you have surely heard the teaching behind the descriptive classification. The carnal Christian doctrine relies on a specific interpretation of the first four verses of the third chapter of Paul's letter to the Corinthians. In that chapter, Paul writes to a congregation about a specific situation in their life but tells his readers that he must speak to them on a lower level because they are carnal (KJV) or worldly (NIV). From this statement, Scofield and others after him teach that Paul recognized these Corinthian believers had settled into a state of carnality in which their desires, affections, and behaviors remain unchanged from their pre-conversion life.

Many believe that modern believers can do the same. According to this view, a truly born-again person can be completely indifferent to the work of the Holy Spirit in every area of their life for an extended period of time or even for the rest of their life. Paul's third chapter is therefore brought forth to declare that three kinds of people exist on the earth: the lost, the spiritual Christian, and the carnal Christian. However, because of the great love and grace of God, the unchanged and unaffected carnal Christian need not worry about his or her eternal soul.

According to the carnal Christian teaching, Paul later teaches in the same chapter that every believer will be held accountable before God for how they lived their individual lives. Each life will be exposed by the fire of God's judgment to reveal the quality of that life. This judgment is the ultimate in "good news/bad news." Paul says that if your life's work survives the fiery test from God, you will receive a reward in heaven. However, he goes on to write, "If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved" (3:15).

Have you heard this teaching? Do you believe it? Have you ordered your life around it? Is this what Paul intended to communicate to the Corinthians? If not, then where did this teaching come from? The Scofield Reference Bible is still available for purchase today but it is not nearly as popular today as it was half a century ago. So, how did the carnal Christian doctrine become so popular in today's modern evangelical churches? How does it remain so ingrained in the minds of evangelicals?

You may not be familiar with the term "carnal Christian" but you have surely heard the teaching behind the descriptive classification. The carnal Christian doctrine relies on a specific interpretation of the first four verses of the third chapter of Paul's letter to the Corinthians. In that chapter, Paul writes to a congregation about a specific situation in their life but tells his readers that he must speak to them on a lower level because they are carnal (KJV) or worldly (NIV). From this statement, Scofield and others after him teach that Paul recognized these Corinthian believers had settled into a state of carnality in which their desires, affections, and behaviors remain unchanged from their pre-conversion life.

Many believe that modern believers can do the same. According to this view, a truly born-again person can be completely indifferent to the work of the Holy Spirit in every area of their life for an extended period of time or even for the rest of their life. Paul's third chapter is therefore brought forth to declare that three kinds of people exist on the earth: the lost, the spiritual Christian, and the carnal Christian. However, because of the great love and grace of God, the unchanged and unaffected carnal Christian need not worry about his or her eternal soul.

According to the carnal Christian teaching, Paul later teaches in the same chapter that every believer will be held accountable before God for how they lived their individual lives. Each life will be exposed by the fire of God's judgment to reveal the quality of that life. This judgment is the ultimate in "good news/bad news." Paul says that if your life's work survives the fiery test from God, you will receive a reward in heaven. However, he goes on to write, "If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved" (3:15).

Have you heard this teaching? Do you believe it? Have you ordered your life around it? Is this what Paul intended to communicate to the Corinthians? If not, then where did this teaching come from? The Scofield Reference Bible is still available for purchase today but it is not nearly as popular today as it was half a century ago. So, how did the carnal Christian doctrine become so popular in today's modern evangelical churches? How does it remain so ingrained in the minds of evangelicals?

In this final section of the letter to the Hebrews, the author asks his readers to remember their former spiritual leaders and the great unchanging truths they taught them. He ends by exhorting them to respect and follow the leaders God has currently placed in their lives. In between, the writer lays out for the final time the great truth he has labored to make clear throughout this incredible book - Jesus is superior.