Carnal versus Spiritual
Many brothers and sisters refer to the contemporary church as spiritual Israel as opposed to literal Israel. The idea is that the promises made to the Biblical Kingdom of Israel which they call literal - now applies to the modern church, which although is not an actual kingdom with political structure and dominion of land. In other words, the modern church be the recipients of the fulfillments of these promises. Spiritual Israel, they argue, is not united by land and politics but by a Spiritual bond, hence Spiritual Israel. This arguments, however, has terrible flaws. One of which is that not all of the Kingdom of Israel were Israel (Romans 9:6); only those who live by faith were Israel. This is still true today. Only those who live by faith are Israel. To say that the modern church at large is Israel is a lie, since we know that many do not live by faith.
Now, the word literal can mean real, but the opposite of literal is figurative, fictional or symbolic, not spiritual. The collective of modern believers is not fictional or symbolic; it is as real as it was in the past. It is however, a spiritual collective; always have been and always will be. In the Bible the opposite of spiritual is carnal. The word carnal refers to things of the flesh. Carnal are those who do not live by faith. Carnal Israel would have been those who although subjects of the territorial domain of the Kingdom of Israel they did not live by faith. It is still true today.
One of the most evident characteristic of carnal believers is contention and division (1 Corinthians 2). We see this in the disciples. They were always arguing about who would be the greatest in the kingdom (Mark 9:34). The Corinthians Church is another example. Paul tackles every contention they have in 1 Corinthians. This was not new. Even in the infancy of the Kingdom of Israel carnality showed it ugly face. Joseph's brothers were carnal. Joseph and his father were Spiritual. Contrasting Joseph with the his other brothers Ellen White says,
"There was one, however, of a widely different character—the elder son of Rachel, Joseph, whose rare personal beauty seemed but to reflect an inward beauty of mind and heart. Pure, active, and joyous, the lad gave evidence also of moral earnestness and firmness. He listened to his father's instructions, and loved to obey God. "—Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 209.
Paul says the carnal is always at war with the Spiritual (Roman 8: 6-8). So, as disconcerting as it sounds, it should be no surprise that Joseph's brothers hated Joseph; even to the point of wanting to kill him (Genesis 37: 18). The Bile says that he who hates in his heart is a murderer (1 John 3:15). Ellen White describes the incident when they saw Joseph coming toward them. Notice the contrast between Joseph and the brothers,
"Joseph, unsuspicious of what was to befall him, approached his brethren with gladness of heart to greet them after his long, wearisome journey. His brothers rudely repulsed him. He told them his errand, but they answered him not. Joseph was alarmed at their angry looks. . . . They accused him of hypocrisy. As they gave utterance to their envious feelings, Satan controlled their minds, and they had no sense of pity, and no feelings of love for their brother. They stripped him of his coat of many colors that he wore, which was a token of his father's love, and which had excited their envious feelings."—Ellen G. White, The Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 1, pp. 128, 129.
The Church of the day conspired to kill, abducted and sold as a slave own of their own. To cover their crime they lied and deceived their father – the church pastor. We are not beyond doing what these brethren did. We, in fact, do it in our hearts. Given the right circumstance and opportunity we would do the same or worse. The Holy Spirit is trying to show us what we are capable of, before it turns into action. It would behoove us to heed now. Ignoring Him now will only make things worse for us and others.
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Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com
