"EVEN NOW!!"

1 Corinthians 2:14-16 to 1 Corinthians 3:1-3         (ESV)
"14 The "natural person" does not accept the things of the SPIRIT of GOD, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.
15 The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one.
16 "For who has understood the mind of the LORD so as to instruct him?" But we have the mind of CHRIST.

1 But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ.
2 I fed you with milk, not solid food, for YOU WERE NOT READY FOR IT. And EVEN NOW you are not yet ready,
3 for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not OF THE FLESH and BEHAVING only in a HUMAN WAY"?



There are a myriad of views and opinions on how we should live our lives.  The Holy Bible gives us the Standard by which we SHOULD live. The opinions of some have to be accepted for what they are, opinions!  You can judge a person against a human standard and they can look pretty decent.  But when the same person is judged against the Spirit of GOD, they fail to measure up.  No human has the capability of living a life that is "GOOD ENOUGH" to get them into Heaven.  Romans 3:23 says "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."

We must continually regenerate our minds to be more like CHRIST.  Romans 12:2 "DO NOT  be conformed to this world, but be TRANSFORMED by the RENEWAL of YOUR MIND, that by testing you may discern what is the will of GOD, what is GOOD and ACCEPTABLE and PERFECT."  I am not perfect, your pastor is not perfect, the President of the United States is not perfect, the Pope of the Catholic Church is not perfect, and no one else is perfect.  The only way we can achieve that which is "GOOD and ACCEPTABLE and PERFECT" is to surrender to allowing the SPIRIT of GOD live through our lives.

The Apostle Paul was telling the church at Corinth that he could not even address them as spiritual people.  Evidently they were so spiritually immature that they were not ready for solid food.  They were still having to be fed milk!  Paul wrote that "EVEN NOW" they were behaving in a human manner, in other words, they were NOT spiritual beings, their fleshly desires were still controlling their lives!

How many times do I allow my fleshly desires to manifest themselves in my life?  Rather than act in a way that would glorify and edify the Body of CHRIST, I fall back into a selfish, worldly position where I do what I think is best for me.  "EVEN NOW" I find myself lacking in my Spiritual life.  "EVEN NOW" my actions are not what I desire for them to be.  My prayer is that the HOLY SPIRIT will continue to mature me until I am used for HIS glory "EVEN NOW"!!