SARKIKOS: THE CONCEPT OF CARNALITY BY PASTOR GREG ELKAN.

_“And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ.”_ – 1Co 3:1 

The word “carnal” appears a handful of times in scripture; but not necessarily in the sense that the word is used today. The modern sense of “carnal” seems to be restricted to just sensual or sexual matters; nevertheless there’s more to carnality than sensuality, and not getting this fact can cause a misunderstanding of some salient biblical truths on the concept. 

The English word “carnal” is a derivative of the Latin term, _carnalis_ which means “of the flesh”. And is itself derived from another Latin word _carne_ which simply means “meat”. That original meaning can still be found in the name of a spicy American dish called _“chili con carne,”_ which literally means “chilli with meat”.

The Greek equivalent of _carnalis_ is _sarkikos. Sarkikos_ appears perhaps most famously in 1Co 3:1 where Paul says _“And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto CARNAL, (sarkisos) even as unto babes in Christ.”_ and also in 2Co 10:4 where Paul again writes, _“For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, (sarkikos) but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds.”_

From the above citations it is clear, then, that the biblical concept of carnality is not necessarily about sex or sensuality but about the tangible, physical realm; particularly when contrasted with the spiritual or eternal matters. 

That is why _“to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.”_ (Rom 8:6) and _“he that sows to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that sows to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.”_ (Gal 6:8)

Beloved, Joh 3:31 says, “He that comes from above is above all: (and) he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaks of the earth.”_ As a Believer, you are literally born from above, and thus your mindset, motivations, passions and operations must be from above. You are not carnal, you are spiritual; so make up your mind to have your external lifestyle reflect this internal (eternal) truth.

AMEN.

PASTOR GREG ELKAN.