Introduction
“However, the spiritual didn’t come first. The natural precedes the spiritual.” (1 Corinthians 15:4) TPT
Let’s take a look at what this means. We’ll begin with birth. We are born a natural man. A child is a natural man who inherited Adam’s sinful nature due to the fall. This newborn child has not sinned, as we think of as sin, but has inherited Adam’s sinful nature as a proponent of sin. The Catholic Church describes this as “Original Sin” from which we must be delivered by water baptism (sprinkling – theological problems here).
“Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned” — (Romans 5:12) ESV
From birth, we must fight against this nature and become more spiritual. All a newborn wants is: me, me, me. Feed me, keep me warm, hold me, clean me, etc. This is not bad for a newborn. It’s survival. But, it is the natural side of the child and this, through time will change if the child comes to Christ through the working of the Holy Spirit. With many, however, this sinful nature becomes stronger and never changes. It is still me, me, me; now call “self”. This change, for a child of God, is accomplished through the restorative power of the Cross. The natural mind moves toward the spiritual mind, the mind of Christ. “Self” must die, just as Christ sacrificed His life and died on the cross we must sacrifice our life and die to this sinful nature.
“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 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.” (Romans 12:1 – 2) ESV
“Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 1:13) ESV
Definitions
I put definitions here because you must understand the way I use these words to understand my text. There may be many definitions for these words that lead to a different direction. These are mine.
Natural
I use the term “natural” as the opposite of “spiritual”. It is neither negative nor positive depending on its intended source. It can relate to Nature itself or, that which comes naturally, without effort. It most often refers to that which can be seen except for wind, air, etc. Now I could add the “Carnal” man to this list of definitions but for this paper, I am including the carnal with the natural.
Spiritual
The opposite of “natural” but not to be considered more godlike but of the spirit whether good or evil, God or Satan. That which is spiritually induced whether by the Holy Spirit or heavenly powers and principalities – demons, occult, witchcraft, etc.. The unseen world as opposed to the seen or natural world.
Terms such as love, hate, good, and evil can be applied to both the natural world and the spiritual world.
When I refer to that which is of God I will capitalize as in Holy “Spirit” or Nature. Other references will be lowercase.
Where Does Natural Come From
In most cases, natural things are the things we are born into. This world, although made by the Spirit, became natural by the fall of mankind. Reborn, if you will, but in a bad way. When God created the universe it was Natural in the Spiritual sense but became natural in the fallen world sense.
In “The Fall” all of creation became natural (small cap). This may seem good to some. We talk about Nature as being natural. We talk about the naturopathic way of life which is a way of living that includes the foods we eat and the medicines we take as taken from Nature that are not tampered with by additives, pesticides, etc. It is a way of harmony with Nature that is taught to bring about peaceful well-being to both body and soul. We forget that this world we live in came about as a result of sin, the fall. Namely, sin that is overlooked and thought to be Natural is not natural at all. What was in harmony became disharmony. Mankind broke his relationship with God, the earth, atmosphere, stars, all of creation in general, and even his kind.
Clarification: Some would say that the world that exists is not natural at all and only that which is born of the Spirit of God is Natural. From what I said above I agree however for more clarification read my paper on “Perception” by clicking here.
Often we look at nature and wonder at its beauty. The mountain, hills, trees, animals, and even smells have their beauty in which we become immersed and even transfixed. We (I) have often prayed, aloud, to the trees, mountains, and animals telling them to “wake up and see the glory of God” and worship their creator as I worship Him. The scriptures say that this natural world cries out for the spiritual just as we do.
“The entire universe is standing on tiptoe, yearning to see the unveiling of God’s glorious sons and daughters! For against its will, the universe itself has had to endure the empty futility resulting from the consequences of human sin. But now, with eager expectation, all creation longs for freedom from its slavery to decay and to experience with us the wonderful freedom coming to God’s children. To this day we are aware of the universal agony and groaning of creation, as if it were in the contractions of labor for childbirth. ” (Romans 8:19-22) TPT
We must remember that what we call nature is alive just as we are alive. If this were not so how could Romans 8 above exist? And why would Jesus Himself say,
“…Listen to me. If my followers were silenced, the very stones would break forth with praises!” (Luke 19:40) TPT
If this is all true, and we all know it is; think of how much more beautiful Nature will be when it is “born again” and its natural birth and becomes Spiritual.
“The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together, and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder’s den. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:6 – 9) ESV
“For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind. –The wolf and the lamb shall graze together; the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain,” says the Lord. (Isaiah 65:17, 25)
Where Does Spiritual Come From?
If by definition the natural is all that we see about us that initially was created by God but became corrupt by the fall, then that which is spiritual must be that which remains. Spiritual must be that which is out of the realm of the natural, out of the realm of this world, and unworldly. This may be good or evil, as being generated by God or by Satan. It is at this crossroads that mankind must make a choice. It becomes a Spiritual crisis in our lives. This choice must be individually made. The scriptures show us that because of one man, Adam, we have all fallen; but, because of one man, Christ, we all have a chance at redemption.
“For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:17) ESV
“What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.” (1 Corinthians 15: 42-44) ESV
How?
Now a newborn baby is born into grave danger. Everyone that a newborn baby comes into contact with teaches this child something. (See my paper on “Everyone is a Teacher”, click here.) Most of this teaching comes from the natural world, a world not giving thought to Jesus Christ Crucified or His Word. We all must learn and teach our own what the good book teaches. We must teach the difference between the Natural and the natural.
“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1: 1-8) ESV
“Personality is the characteristic mark of the inner spiritual man, just as individuality is the characteristic of the outer, natural man.” (Oswald Chambers – OC)
All cliches I grew up with such as: “He raised himself by his bootstraps.” “He is a self-made man”. “He did it his way.”; is often expressed as a good thing. However, whether good or bad, they point to the outer, natural man. Character, however, which is exhibited through one’s personality is an attribute of the spiritual “inner” man.
How is a character developed? Character is developed throughout our lives by the encounters we experience especially that of suffering, trials, and tribulation. Our response to these things as well as each other, under various circumstances, will develop a positive or negative character depending on what we have been taught and what we exercise through our will. A good character is displayed by righteous reactions and a bad character by self-indulged reactions.
“…we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope,” (Romans 5:2,3) ESV
We see suffering as bad but God can turn it into good if we allow Him. The natural man always looks for healing but the Spiritual man looks for character. As an example, we see that the Character of Joseph, in the Book of Genesis, was developed through what he suffered.
“As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.” (Genesis 50:20)
Now this “spiritual man” can be either good or evil; genuine or counterfeit. It is a question of whether or not you have the spiritual mind of man (there are all kinds of spirits but only one is Holy), which is evil, or the Spiritual mind of Christ.
“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. The spiritual person judges all things but is himself to be judged by no one. “For who has understood the mind of the Lord to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.” (! Corinthians 2: 14-16) ESV
To have the mind of Christ you must know the mind of Christ. Fortunately, we have a handbook, the Bible, which guides us in the way we should go. Reading the Bible, studying it, and meditating upon it is a long tedious, arduous, time-consuming task that should begin shortly after birth and end when life ends. What is natural to us must become Spiritual.
“And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.” (Deuteronomy 6, 7) ESV
“So Jesus answered them, “My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me. If anyone’s will is to do God’s will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my authority. The one who speaks on his authority seeks his glory (the natural), but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true (the Spiritual), and in him, there is no falsehood.” (John 7:16-18) ESV
Although technically the obligation of the Hebrews to teach the Torah rests upon the father, the most effective education is often done by the mother. The bottom line is that this is our responsibility. The individual man, not the Church, is to carry on this teaching. The Church is a collection of believers who share the same thoughts and who gather together to share these thoughts as a form of camaraderie. However, the Church is not the mind of Christ. Although the Church should have the mind of Christ, history shows us this is not always true. We are the Church and we are to have to mind of Christ. This is opposed to Catholic doctrine which teaches that the Church has the mind of Christ, the Pope being the victor of Christ or Christ on earth, and teaches its constituents to follow him as well as Him.
Conclusion
In the end, it seems as though we are left with the natural and the Natural; the spiritual and the Spiritual. Herein conflicts begin, but in God’s plan, the natural can lead to the strengthening of the Spiritual through the development of character. Through the natural, we come to recognize the creation of God as being good and beautiful in this age but with unbelievable expectations of what we will be and see in the age to come. The natural is not to be ignored as totally unholy. It is designed by God as a means of redemption pointing to the Cross.
Enough Said
Thy Words were found, and I did eat them, and Thy Word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by Thy name, O LORD God of hosts. (Jeremiah 15:16)
