Lesson #04

1 CORINTHIANS
Lesson #04
MAN IN GOD’S IMAGE: Introduction to 1Cor 3

• Memory Verse: Gen 1:27

• In order to understand Paul’s distinctions concerning the different spiritual levels of man, we first need to go back to Genesis and God’s creation of man and what happened when Adam and Eve sinned.

• Read Gen 1:26
• What does it mean that we were created in God’s image?
• Both God and man have a personal will.
• Both God and man are spiritual beings.
• God created man as a spiritual being so that He could have fellowship with man.
• Read Joh 4:24
• Both God and man have a moral consciousness.
• Man is able to make judgments of right and wrong of which animals do not have this capacity.
• Both God and man have intellect, reason, and emotion.
• Both God and man have dominion.
• God gave man dominion over creation from the beginning.
• Both God and man are capable of unconditional love.
• Both God and man have the power of intelligent speech (Jam 1:26 Jam 3:2-13 Pro 18:21)
• Both God and man have three parts (1The 5:23)
• God is 3 persons in one, which we call the Holy Trinity: God, the Father; Jesus, the Son; and God, the Holy Spirit.
• Man has 3 parts: body, soul, and spirit.
• The Body:

• We all know and can identify the body of man. It is how we recognize each other on this earth.
• The physical body is the center of the consciousness of the senses.
• The body was created (molded) from the dust of the ground like a potter would mould clay (Gen 2:7) There are 14 chemicals from the ground of which the human body consists.
• The physical body is uniquely tied to the soul and spirit of man. (Jam 2:26)
• The evidence of this link between body and soul can be observed in a lie detector test where physical responses are measured by an instrument to determine what is happening in man’s mind.
• The evidence of this link is also observable in psychosomatic illnesses where stress, guilt, etc. can make man physically sick.
• The physical body is that part of man which physically dies, but will be transformed into a new incorruptible body at the rapture of the church if that person has received Jesus Christ into his heart. (1Cor 15:42-52)
• The Soul

: (Gen 2:7 Pro 23:7 Psa 103:1-2)

• Read Gen 2:7
• The word, life, in the Hebrew language is plural to indicate that God gave man physical life and spiritual life at creation.
• What is the soul of man?
• The soul is the center of self-consciousness.
• The soul is the part of man that lives forever. (Mat 10:28)
• The ego and personality are what makes each person a unique one of a kind.
• The soul contains 3 aspects:
• The mind = intellect, reason, and memory.
• The will = free choice (Psa 24:4 Eph 6:6)
• The emotion = love, hate, etc. (Psa 86:4)
• The soul consists of 3 levels:
• A conscious awareness (Phi 4:8-9)
• A sub-conscious level which contains a memory bank of information.
• An unconscious level which is a sum total of every experience.
• The Spirit:

• Man’s spirit is ruah in Hebrew and pneuma in Greek. These words mean = breath or life.
• Man’s spirit is the center of the consciousness of God.
• It is the part of us that makes us aware deep within that there is a God out there somewhere.
• Man’s spirit enables him to comprehend God (Luk 1:47 Mat 26:41)
• Man’s spirit consists of:
• His conscience.
• His creativity (1Cor 16:18)
• His insight (Joh 13:21)
• His motivation (Act 17:16 Act 18:25)
• His sensitivity (Mar 2:8 Joh 11:33)
• The spirit of man is that part of him that receives Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit of God when he is born again. (Rom 8:16 Gal 6:18)
• The spirit of man is that part which lives forever. (Luk 8:55)
• Man before and after the fall:
• Before the sin of Adam and Eve, the nature of man was different from man’s nature after the fall. This is a very important distinction in understanding the New Testament and especially 1 Corinthians.
• Man Before the Fall of Adam

: (Gen 1:27 Joh 4:24 Gen 2:7)

• Before the sin of Adam and Eve, man had a close personal relationship with God. Therefore man’s spirit was the predominant part of man’s being. The next dominant part was man’s soul. Man’s body was the least important.
• How do we know this?
• Adam and Eve were naked but they were not conscious of it nor ashamed until after the sin. (Gen 2:25)
• Therefore, in order of awareness and supremacy man’s being consisted of:
• Spirit
• Soul
• Body
• Man After the Fall of Adam

: (Gen 2:16-17)

• After the sin of Adam and Eve, man’s fellowship with God was broken because sin separates man from God. He now had a personal relationship with Satan.
• As a result, man’s spirit became less aware of God and was no longer the most dominant part of man’s being. Instead, man’s spirit became the least important part of man. Instead, the physical body with its desires and needs became the most important part of man.
• The spirit of man that once was the highest part of man’s complex nature, no longer dominated man’s nature after the fall into sin. It fell below the level of the soul, so that now it is difficult to discern the difference between the soul and the spirit. (Heb 4:12). The body and the soul now dominate man.
• Now in order of awareness and supremacy, man’s being consists of:
• Body
• Soul
• Spirit

• How does this understanding of the nature of man relate to 1Cor 1-3?
• In 1Cor 2 Paul began to introduce us to the natural man and the spiritual man.
• The natural man is the non-believer who primarily relates to the world by means of the five senses of his body (seeing, hearing, tasting, touching, smelling) and secondarily by means of his soul which makes him self-centered in his decisions and motivations.
• The natural man has no real interest in or awareness of the reality of God because his spirit is shriveled to insignificance in his decision-making process.
• The natural man makes his decisions based on what seems to be right in his own eyes. (Pro 14:12)
• Therefore, all his decisions are soul based with selfish motives even though they may seem to be good.
• The spiritual man is the believer in Jesus Christ whose spirit has been regenerated by the Holy Spirit who now lives within the spirit of that man. His spirit is now alive to God by means of the Holy Spirit. Therefore the spiritual man makes his decisions guided by the Holy Spirit and his faith because he now has the mind of Christ. (1Cor 2:16)
• Therefore, all his decisions are spirit based with motives of following Christ and doing God’s will.
• In 1Cor 3 Paul will introduce us to the carnal man who is a believer in Jesus Christ, but who makes his decisions by means of his soul.
• In other words, he makes decisions based on his feelings, his faulty, human reasoning, and his sight. (what seems right to man Pro 14:12)
• Therefore, the carnal man is born again but makes his decisions in the same way as the natural man.

 

HOMEWORK
1CORINTHIANS 3
This is a self-study. Please do not send homework answers to the teacher forcorrection.

• Application of 1Cor 3 Introduction
• As you think about how man’s nature changed after the fall into sin, what do you think happens when you sin today?
• Praise God for His forgiveness that he extends to us through the blood of Jesus Christ.
• Read 1Cor 3:1-15
• What is the definition of a carnal Christian?
• Identify the following:
• The building:
• The owner of the building:
• The one who builds the building:
• The building materials:
• The test of the building:
• Read 1Cor 3:16-23
• Identify the temple:

• Memory Verse: 1Cor 3:11