Were the carnal Corinthians still free in Christ despite their problems?
Yes. Even while carnal and troubled, the Corinthians were still enjoying Christian liberty, because their standing did not rest on Paul's coercion or authority. Their freedom came from the Gospel of Grace, and Paul appealed to them not to let Judaizers destroy their faith or entangle them again in bondage.
Les explains that Paul was not the progenitor of a religion or a grand guru holding a whip over them. Therefore, even the carnal Corinthians with all their problems were not where they were because Paul forced them there, nor what they were because he stood over them with a heavy whip. Les emphasizes that they were still enjoying Christian liberty, though many so-called Christians today have no concept of what liberty in the Gospel of Grace amounts to. He connects this to Galatians 5:1, where Paul appeals to the Galatian believers, much like he does to the Corinthians, not to let the Judaizers destroy their faith. Paul says to stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.