Spiritual Carnality

For you are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s. – 1Co 6:20

We meditated previously about the oxymoronic concept of “Carnal Spirituality”; today, we’ll focus on the obverse – and positive – aspect of it: “Spiritual Carnality”.

 

The English word “carnal” is a derivative of the Latin carn which meant “flesh” or “meat”. It retains the later sense in Spanish food names like carne asada (“roast meat”), olla de carne,  (beef stew, literally “pot of meat”), and the spicy Texan dish, chili con carne (literally “chili with meat”).

So, though 1Cor 3 makes us associate “carnality” with spiritual immaturity, its primary denotation is “physicality” – the state of being ‘meat’ or ‘flesh’.

Spiritual Carnality, therefore, is living the Christian life with the consciousness that the physical body is an integral part of who we are. (“Spiritual” here takes the 1Cor 3 denotation of “mature”).

It’s the acknowledgement that the Body is a gift given to us by God and not a curse imposed on us by the Devil (Gen 2:7; Col 2:17). It’s treating the Body with respect as God’s holy temple and not degrading or abusing it. It’s keeping it sacred, rested, and healthy – always available to do the Lord’s work whenever and wherever He needs it.

This current body may be transient, but spiritual carnality makes us appreciate that how we treat it, and what we do with it, has far long-lasting repercussions.

“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that everyone may be recompensed for the things done in his body, according to what he has done, whether it be good or bad.” – 2Co 5:10.

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN