Lessons #59 and 60
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+ 1. It is best to use this note after you have listened to the lessons because there are +
+ comments given in the actual delivery not in the note. +
+ 2. The Bible abbreviations are as follows: CEV =Contemporary English version, +
+ CEB = Common English Bible, ESV= English Standard Version, +
+ GW = God’s Word Translation, ISV = International Standard Version, +
+ NAB=New English Bible, NASB= New American Standard Bible, +
+ NEB= New English Bible, NET = New English Translation, +
+ NLT = New Living Translations NJB = New Jerusalem Bible, +
+ NJV = New Jewish Bible, TEV = Today’s English Version. +
+AMP = Amplified Bible, UBS = United Bible Society +
+ 3. Notes have not been edited for grammatical errors. +
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Paul’s preaching involves speaking of spiritual things (1 Cor 2:13-16)
13 This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. 14 The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15 The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man’s judgment: 16“For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
A second statement is this: You are unspiritual if you reject communication of spiritual matters. This statement is based on what the apostle wrote in 1 Corinthians 2:14 that we will consider in detail. But before we consider the verse, we should recognize that verse 14 is linked to verse 13 in the sense of being another truth the apostle taught of the same general matter as he did in verse 13 regarding spiritual matters. The apostle adds in verse 14 a fact to what he stated in verse 13 although his statement of the fact in verse 14 involves something negative. However, his intention was not to make any contrast between the two verses. This explanation is demanded because of the Greek particle (de) used in the beginning of verse 14. This particle is often translated “but” to indicate contrast between clauses. But when a simple connective is desired, without contrast being clearly implied, it may be translated “and” and in certain occurrences it may be left untranslated. This later approach seemed to be one adopted by the translators of the NIV and most of our English versions since they did not translate it so that verse 14 in the NIV begins without a connective. A handful of English versions, such as the Authorized Version and the HCSB (Holman Christian Standard Bible), began the verse with the conjunction “but” which is a marker of clear contrast. The problem with this usage is that there is no clear indication of a contrast between verses 13 and 14. It is true the apostle states something negative regarding response to the word of God, but he did not state any positive response in verse 13. Instead, he made a statement about the characteristic of the communication of the word of God that indicates it is directed to spiritual persons in words that are spiritual. Therefore, although the word “but” is not wrong since that is a meaning of the Greek conjunction, it would not be appropriate to take verse 14 as a contrasting statement that warrants the use of the conjunction “but.” The translators of the CEV seems to have interpreted the Greek particle as a maker of explanation since they began verse 14 with the expression that’s why. This notwithstanding, if the Greek particle is to be translated, it may be necessary to indicate that the apostle in verse 14 provided another statement of facts regarding spiritual matters implying, he was continuing with the same thought regarding communication of spiritual matters. This may require that verse 14 begin with the word “now” as reflected in the revised edition of the NAB.
In any case, we indicated that the second statement of this section, derived from the apostle’s declaration necessary to expound the message of 1 Corinthians 2:13-16, is that you are unspiritual if you reject communication of spiritual matters. This statement is derived from the first sentence of verse 14 of the NIV The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God.
This first sentence reminds us that humans at any moment could be classified into two general categories. First, regarding all humanity, people could be described as believers or unbelievers. It is for this reason, for example, that the Holy Spirit gives the instruction regarding not being attached to unbelievers in 2 Corinthians 6:14–15:
14 Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? 15 What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever?
The instruction of this passage of 2 Corinthians 6 recognized the truth we have stated that at any given moment, humanity is divided into believers and unbelievers. Of course, we understand that unbelievers are those who at the moment of classification of people have not believed in Christ. They are also those who have been blinded by Satan as the Holy Spirit described through the pen of Apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 4:4:
The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
Furthermore, they are described as those who do not have the Holy Spirit or the Spirit of Christ, according to Romans 8:9:
You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.
Second, regarding believers, they also can be classified at a given moment into two general categories of spiritual or worldly. The spiritual, being those controlled by the Holy Spirit and the worldly, those not under the control of the Holy Spirit. This classification is implied in the declaration of Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 3:1:
Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly—mere infants in Christ.
The same classification is evident in the restoration ministry assigned to believers that are considered spiritual in Galatians 6:1:
Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.
Why am I emphasizing this classification of people on this planet, you may wonder? It is because of the first phrase in the Greek of 1 Corinthians 2:14 that the translators of the NIV rendered The man without the Spirit which is interpretative since the word “Spirit” is not attached to the word “man” in the Greek text. Literally, the Greek reads an unspiritual man. Thus, the question is whether the apostle is describing a believer or an unbeliever or both. Of course, depending on the English version that you have, you may not think that there is a problem here. For example, the NET or HCSB is explicit in their translation in that they began the verse with the phrase the unbeliever; in this case, there is no problem of thinking that there is the possibility the apostle may be thinking of either an unbeliever or a believer or both. But other English versions leave the question undecided. Take for example, the ISV began with the clause A person who isn’t spiritual while the REB begins with the phrase An unspiritual person. But who is the person that is not spiritual or that is unspiritual? The answer is not that simple, so we need to examine the Greek words used in the beginning of verse 14. We begin with the easy one of the use of the word “person” in many English versions instead of “man” in the NIV or in the literal translation we gave.
The word “man” in 1 Corinthians 2:14 is translated from a Greek word (anthrōpos) that may mean “a human being” without regard to gender, as Apostle Paul used it to describe the fate of evil doers in Romans 2:9:
There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile;
The word may mean a male person, that is, “a man” as Apostle Paul used it in relation to marriage instruction in 1 Corinthians 7:1:
Now for the matters you wrote about: It is good for a man not to marry.
The word may mean “a person, someone, one” although some English versions may use the word “man” in their translation of the Greek word in some passages as it is translated in Apostle Paul’s usage of the word in stating the spiritual law of sowing and reaping in Galatians 6:7:
Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.
It is true that the translators of the NIV used the word “man” in their translation of our Greek word but the sense of the word is “person” since the applicability of the spiritual law of sowing and reaping is not limited to male members of the humanity. The word in some contexts is used in idioms with several meanings. For example, it may mean “self” when it is used with a Greek adjective (palaios) that means “old” in describing a pattern of behavior as Apostle Paul used it to instruct believers to behave differently than they did as unbelievers in Ephesians 4:22:
You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;
The phrase your old self is literally the old man. Likewise, it may be used to describe the inner being of a person so may mean “being” as the apostle used it in Ephesians 3:16:
I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being,
The phrase inner being is literally inner man. In our passage of 1 Corinthians 2:14, the Greek word is used in the sense of “person” or “human being.”
The more difficult Greek word of 1 Corinthians 2:14 concerns the translation of the NIV without the Spirit. The phrase “without the Spirit” is not from two different Greek words but it is the way the translators of the NIV rendered a Greek word (psychikos) that outside the NT refers to what pertains to the soul but in the NT, it pertains to the life of the natural world and whatever belongs to it, in contrast to the realm of experience whose central characteristic is spirit. Thus, we can say that the Greek word is used of people who put emphasis on the physical rather than on the spiritual, and who depend on their natural instincts rather than on the help of God’s Spirit, hence it means “natural, unspiritual, worldly.” It is in the sense of “natural” that it is used to describe the present human body in 1 Corinthians 15:44:
it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.
It is with the meaning “unspiritual” that the word is used to describe the wisdom of this world in James 3:15:
Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil.
The word is used to describe false teachers in Jude 19:
These are the men who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit.
The clause who follow mere natural instincts of the NIV is more literally worldly men or natural men. Here we face similar problem to that of 1 Corinthians 2:14 because Jude meant men who are controlled by their natural desires. Those who are controlled by their natural desires could be unbelievers or believers not controlled by the Holy Spirit. We know by experience that believers do have natural desires that conflict with the Holy Spirit. It is for this reason that believers are exhorted to put them to death in Colossians 3:5:
Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.
That aside, Jude further described those in view as not having the Spirit. He could be describing either a believer not under the control of the Holy Spirit or an unbeliever who does not have the Holy Spirit. This is because the word “not” in Jude 19 is not from a negative Greek particle (ou) that is used to state that which is absolutely or categorically negative; instead, he used the Greek particle (mē) that leaves the door open to the possibility that those Jude described were those who have received the Holy Spirit at some point but were no longer controlled by Him. Thus, the Greek word that means “unspiritual, natural, worldly” may have been used by Jude to indicate a combination of believers and unbelievers, implying that some of the false teachers were unbelievers and other believers.
Based on our consideration of the Greek words used at the beginning of 1 Corinthians 2:14, we can say that the clause in the NIV The man without the Spirit refers to unbelievers with application to believers. This interpretation enables full application of what the apostle said regarding the kind of person he described.
The person the apostle had in mind is one that rejects spiritual truths as in the next verbal phrase of 1 Corinthians 2:14 does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God. This verbal phrase is an expanded translation of the literal Greek that reads accepts not the things of the Spirit of God.
The word “accept” is translated from a Greek word (dechomai) that may mean “to take, receive” in the sense of receiving something offered or transmitted by another as the word is used by Apostle Paul in acknowledging the gift the Philippians sent to him, as recorded in Philippians 4:18:
I have received full payment and even more; I am amply supplied, now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God.
The word may mean to take something in hand, that is, “to grasp”, as the word is used by Apostle Paul in his instruction regarding believers equipping themselves with the defensive weapon of helmet that refers to assurance of their salvation as part of the spiritual warfare in Ephesians 6:17:
Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
The word may mean to be receptive of someone hence “to welcome, receive” as Apostle Paul used the word to remind the Galatians of their reception of him when he first preached the gospel to them in Galatians 4:14:
Even though my illness was a trial to you, you did not treat me with contempt or scorn. Instead, you welcomed me as if I were an angel of God, as if I were Christ Jesus himself.
The word may mean “to tolerate, put up with,” as this is the sense Apostle Paul used it ironically to encourage the Corinthians to tolerate him as they would with a fool, as we read in 2 Corinthians 11:16:
I repeat: Let no one take me for a fool. But if you do, then receive me just as you would a fool, so that I may do a little boasting.
The word may mean “to be receptive of, be open to, approve, accept” as an indication of approval or conviction about the truth of something, as it is used to describe the proper response to the word of God in James 1:21:
Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.
In some context, the meaning “to accept” is tantamount to “to believe” as that is the sense Apostle Paul used it in 2 Corinthians 11:4:
For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough.
The word “accepted” has the sense of “believed” as the Corinthians believed the gospel message they heard from the apostle. It is in this sense of accepting something as true or as an indication of conviction about the truthfulness of something that our Greek word is used by Apostle Paul in our passage of 1 Corinthians 2:14. However, because the word is used with a strong negative in the Greek (ou) translated “not” in our verse, the idea is that a person described as “unspiritual” will absolutely not accept what is described in the verse we are considering. We mean when a person is “unspiritual” that person cannot accept what is described in our verse.
The thing not accepted by the person described as “unspiritual” or in the words of the NIV man without the Spirit is given in the NIV in the clause the things that come from the Spirit of God or more literally the things of the Spirit of God. The context demands we understand the literal phrase as referring to spiritual truths mentioned in the previous verse, that is, 1 Corinthians 2:13. The truths are referred as spiritual truths because they are delivered to the church by the Holy Spirit. By the way, the Greek syntax the apostle used in the literal phrase of the Spirit of God demands we understand the apostle is referring to God the Holy Spirit. This is because when the apostle wrote the Greek word translated “of the Spirit” it creates ambiguity since the Greek word (pneuma) translated “Spirit” may mean “spirit” in the sense of an independent noncorporeal being, in contrast to a being that can be perceived by the physical senses. Thus, in this sense it can refer to evil spirits, as in Luke 9:42:
Even while the boy was coming, the demon threw him to the ground in a convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the evil spirit, healed the boy and gave him back to his father.
Thus, to remove any ambiguity, the apostle added a Greek word that literally translates “of God.” In adding this second Greek word, the apostle meant to convey that he was not referring to any spirit but to God, hence he leaves no doubt he meant truths that are given by God the Holy Spirit. However, we should be careful to recognize that God’s truths while primarily contained in the Scripture may also be communicated through events since the Scripture is clear that God communicates either verbally or through events, as stated in Job 33:14–20:
14 For God does speak—now one way, now another—though man may not perceive it. 15In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls on men as they slumber in their beds, 16 he may speak in their ears and terrify them with warnings, 17to turn man from wrongdoing and keep him from pride, 18to preserve his soul from the pit, his life from perishing by the sword. 19Or a man may be chastened on a bed of pain with constant distress in his bones, 20so that his very being finds food repulsive and his soul loathes the choicest meal.
The fact that God communicates to humans in one of two ways as stated in the passage of Job lends support to our interpretation that the “unspiritual” or in the words of the NIV man without the Spirit should be interpreted generally to include unbelievers and believers. There is no dispute that an unbeliever does not accept the preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ, but such a person certainly does not accept that God communicates through events that are painful. But unbelievers are not alone in not accepting the truth that God communicates to us through events, especially ones that bring suffering and pain. We are saying that there are many Christians who do not accept this. Such individuals at the time they reject that truth are unspiritual in the sense that the Holy Spirit is not directing them. For when a person is controlled by the Holy Spirit that person would not reject truth communicated by God either verbally or through events. Those who are controlled by the Spirit will at the instant of being presented with events, that say, are painful will immediately accept that such are God’s communication to humans. They do not argue based on human reasoning but accept God’s assertion that He is the ultimate cause of all things as implied in Ecclesiastes 7:14:
When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider: God has made the one
as well as the other. Therefore, a man cannot discover anything about his future.
It is our assertion that when a believer is not spiritual such a person will not accept God’s communication through events or even through verbal communication. Let me illustrate this assertion with examples from the Scripture. Peter did not accept Jesus’ communication about His coming death on the cross, as implied in Matthew 16:21–22:
21 From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life. 22 Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!”
Why did Peter not accept what Jesus said about His death so that he began to rebuke the Lord Jesus? I submit to you that it is because at that instant he was unspiritual. Of course, we understand that the Holy Spirit was not resident in any believer during the earthly ministry of the Lord Jesus as we can gather from John 7:39:
By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.
Although it is true that the Holy Spirt did not reside in the apostles during the earthly ministry of our Lord, but He had special relationship with the disciples that He would have controlled them in a manner that is not stated but implied in the Scripture. I mean that the Lord implied this special influence of the Holy Spirit when He communicated to His disciples that the Spirit was with them in John 14:17:
the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.
This declaration of the Lord Jesus indicates that the disciples experienced a special presence of the Holy Spirit who they will have a fuller experience with when He indwells them as per the promise of the Lord sending Him to the church. That aside, we contend that Peter was not spiritual because He had no controlling influence of the Holy Spirit at the time he did not accept what the Lord Jesus stated about His death on the cross. It is because of this we declare that the reason Peter did not accept our Lord’s prediction about His death is he was unspiritual, that is, not controlled by the Holy Spirit. This interpretation is confirmed by the fact that the Lord implied that Satan was in control of Peter in His rebuke to Peter that indeed is addressed to Satan in Matthew 16:23:
Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”
Anyway, this incident proves the point that an unspiritual believer would not accept God’s truth that is either communicated verbally or through events.
Another event that supports our assertion that an unspiritual believer will not accept God’s communication through events is the criticism many of the believers in the early church brought against Peter for going to Cornelius house, as stated in Acts 11:2–3:
2 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him 3 and said, “You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them.”
It is true that the text does not say that these believers were unspiritual at this point, but they were. We say this because their criticism is based on human standard and so involved a kind of hatred of the Gentiles. Whenever there is hatred in a believer there is, no doubt, that such a person is not spiritual so that the Holy Spirit through Apostle John describes such an individual as being in darkness in 1 John 2:9:
Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness.
Anyway, as Peter explained what transpired in Cornelius house, these believers recovered from their unspiritual state to being spiritual, leading to their change of mind and so their praising God. Nonetheless, the point is that it is because they initially were unspiritual that they did not accept Peter’s visit to Cornelius’ house as God’s communicating to them that their understanding of God’s dealing with Gentiles was wrong.
We have argued that although primarily unbelievers are those who are unspiritual that do not understand and so do not accept God’s truth communicated either verbally or through events but believers who are unspiritual suffer the same fate. The implication is that to truly accept God’s truth requires that a believer be spiritual. It is when a believer is spiritual that the person understands and accepts God’s truth. In fact, it is when a believer is spiritual that such a person will receive the benefit of the ministry of Holy Spirit regarding teaching of truth, as stated in 1 John 2:27:
As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.
Be that as it may, the Holy Spirit gives us three reasons an unspiritual person would not accept truths conveyed by the Holy Spirit. We are certain that 1 Corinthians 2:14 contains reasons an unspiritual person does not accept truths communicated by the Holy Spirit because of the use of two Greek conjunctions in the last half of the verse. The first conjunction is “for” that is translated from a Greek word (gar) with several usages. For example, it may be used as a marker of explanation in which case it may be translated “for, you see.” But in our passage, it is used as a marker of reason. The second conjunction is “because” that is translated from a Greek word (hoti) that has several usages. For example, it may be used as a marker of explanation and so translated “that, namely.” In our passage, it is used as a marker of cause or reason so means “because.” These two conjunctions give us the confidence that the Holy Spirit supplied three reasons an unspiritual person does not accept truths communicated by the Holy Spirit.
A first reason an unspiritual person does not accept truth communicated by the Holy Spirit is that such truths make no sense or sound ridiculous to the individual. It is this reason that is given in the clause for they are foolishness to him. The word “foolishness” is translated from a Greek word (mōria) that means “foolishness.” In our passage, the sense of the word is that of “ridiculous thought,” that is, a wildly mistaken or unfounded opinion or idea. An unbeliever, for example, thinks the whole concept of someone dying on the cross for him/her is something strange or a thought that cannot make sense as the apostle had already described in 1 Corinthians 1:18:
For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
Believers who are unspiritual also think that certain truths in the Scripture, such as God being the ultimate cause of all things on this planet, do not make sense.
A second reason an unspiritual person does not accept truths communicated by the Holy Spirit through the apostles or writers of our Scripture is that such an individual is incapable of apprehending them. It is this reason that is given in the next clause of 1 Corinthians 2:14 and he cannot understand them. The word “understand” is translated from a Greek verb (ginōskō) that may mean “to perceive, notice, realize” as it is used to describe Jesus’ perception of evil thought of the Pharisees, who wanted to entrap Him, as recorded in Matthew 22:18:
But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, “You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me?
“Knowing” here has the sense of being aware of something. Thus, Jesus could perceive the thoughts of the people because of His nature. The word may mean “to recognize, acknowledge” as it is used in John 1:10:
He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.
The word may mean “to know”, that is, to arrive at knowledge of something or someone. It is in the sense of arriving at knowledge of something that Apostle Paul used it to describe how the law made him aware of what sin is in Romans 7:7:
What shall we say, then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, “Do not covet.”
The Greek word may mean to have come to the knowledge of something or someone hence means “to have come to know, know.” Apostle Paul used it in the sense of to have come to know something about the grace of God by the Corinthians in 2 Corinthians 8:9:
For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.
The Greek word may mean to grasp the significance or meaning of something, hence “to, understand, comprehend” as it is used in Apostle Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians to comprehend the significance of Christ’s love in Ephesians 3:19:
and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
To know God’s love is not merely to have information regarding its existence but to grasp or to comprehend its significance. The word may mean “to learn (of), ascertain, find out,” that is, to acquire information through some means. Hence, it is in the sense of “to find out” or “to learn” something about individuals that Apostle Paul used it to state one of his reasons for sending Tychicus to the Colossians, was for them to learn about his and his team’s condition, as we read in Colossians 4:8:
I am sending him to you for the express purpose that you may know about our circumstances and that he may encourage your hearts.
The Greek word may mean to know a person not merely as having heard of the individual but of a personal relationship, as it is used to describe that those who know God in a personal way obey apostolic teachings in 1 John 4:6:
We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 2:14, it is used in the sense of to grasp or get the significance or the meaning of something, that is, “to understand, comprehend.” The comprehension involved is not a matter of human intelligence. A person may be very intelligent but fails to perceive revealed truth of God.
A third reason an unspiritual person does not accept truths communicated by the Holy Spirit is it requires the enablement of the Holy Spirit to properly evaluate what one hears. It is this reason that is given in the last clause of 1 Corinthians 2:14 because they are spiritually discerned.
When we hear an information communicated to us, to accept or reject it requires we should critically examine or judge that information. This evaluation of the information is usually based on our capacity to reason out how true the information is. The manner we do this is that we will normally evaluate what we heard based on something that we already know but we could be wrong if what we base our evaluation is wrong. Take for example, if a person has been taught that there are certain individuals they should avoid or hate but then that individual hears the information that says we should love all persons without distinction. The moment a person hears this information, the individual would evaluate it based on the past teaching the person received, say, from a parent. Immediately, the individual will evaluate that information and reach the conclusion that such teaching is not true. This person would be wrong because the individual’s conclusion is contrary to the Scripture. The Scripture provides us an example of this kind of thing when the philosophers who in their reasoning ability thought it strange that there is such a thing as resurrection of the dead, as we read in Acts 17:18:
A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to dispute with him. Some of them asked, “What is this babbler trying to say?” Others remarked, “He seems to be advocating foreign gods.” They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.
These philosophers have received education that would not allow them to accept the concept of resurrection. Thus, when they heard Apostle Paul preach the concept of resurrection, they immediately evaluated what he said based on their training and so rejected what they heard. So, you get the idea that the first thing we do with information to determine if we will accept it is to evaluate or examine it critically, often based our knowledge base.
We use the word “examine” or “evaluate” because of the word “discerned” used in the clause of 1 Corinthians 2:14 because they are spiritually discerned. The word “discerned” is translated from a Greek word (anakrinō) that may mean to “examine, question” in the sense of engagement in careful study of an issue or question as the word is used to describe the Bereans who examined the Scripture carefully to see if what Apostle Paul said was true, as recorded in Acts 17:11:
Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.
The word may mean to conduct a judicial hearing hence “to hear a case.” This is the sense of the word when the lawyer Tertullus presented the accusation of the Jews against Paul before Governor Felix, as recorded in Acts 24:8:
By examining him yourself you will be able to learn the truth about all these charges we are bringing against him.”
The word “examining” refers to judicial hearing of the case presented against Paul. The word may mean to make a judgment based on careful and detailed information or even to examine with a view to find fault hence means “to judge carefully, to call to account, to discern.” It in this sense that the word is used by the apostle to describe the effect of prophesying in a local worship on a sinner who comes into the worship but has his sinful conduct exposed as implied in1 Corinthians 14:24:
But if an unbeliever or someone who does not understand comes in while everybody is prophesying, he will be convinced by all that he is a sinner and will be judged by all,
It is in the sense of forming a critical opinion of something by examination or scrutiny, that is, to evaluate or to judge or discern that the word is used in 1 Corinthians 2:14.
To discern or evaluate critically something heard depends on our intellectual ability which is affected by the kind of education we have received. Thus, the manner involved in our examination of information we receive is that we go through a process of thought where our ability to make correct judgment comes into effect. Often, it is our upbringing or environment that affects the judgment we reach. This, in part explains, for example, why two individuals given the same facts concerning an event reach different conclusions. Of course, those with the same training usually reach the same conclusions regarding the events. This means that our human minds receive help from an outside influence, say education, in attaining a decision. This being the case, when a person hears spiritual truth then the manner of evaluating what one heard should involve the influence of the Holy Spirit. It is for this reason that we have the clause of 1 Corinthians 2:14 because they are spiritually discerned.
The word “spiritually” is translated from a Greek adverb (pneumatikōs) that may mean “in keeping with the Spirit” or “from the Spirit.” Thus, in our passage, it has the sense of a manner characterized by the Holy Spirit with focus on the abilities or endowments given by the Spirit. Hence, the third reason a person who is unspiritual would not accept spiritual truths is because the person lacks the ability to evaluate spiritual matter correctly since the person is devoid of the enablement of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit must enable a person before the individual will evaluate correctly a given information so to accept it. A good illustration of this truth is Lydia who heard the preaching of the gospel along with others, but she received enablement of the Holy Spirit, so she was able to evaluate correctly and accept the message she heard, as stated in Acts 16:14:
One of those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message.
No one can understand the gospel message or any truth without receiving the enablement of the Holy Spirit. This truth is implied in Lord Jesus giving understanding in 1 John 5:20:
We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true—even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.
In any event, a third reason an unspiritual person does not accept truths communicated by the Holy Spirit is it requires the enablement of the Holy Spirit to properly evaluate what one hears. Thus, whenever you do not accept any truth of the word of God, it is because you are unspiritual.
07/20/18