Grace Christian Fellowship: Christian Teachings from 1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians 2 "Spirit and Power"

And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. (1 Corinthians 2:1-5)

Last week we learned a spiritual principle, "The foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men." The apostle Paul followed this principle when he preached to the Corinthians. The Greeks were a people who loved wisdom. The greatest speakers in the world would travel between the cities and entertain the crowds with drama, philosophy and debate. Since Corinth was one of the great cities of the time they were used to receiving the top talent. The big names all came through Corinth and the audience had discerning tastes. I don’t think Paul was a bad speaker. From his writings and from the results of his ministry we can tell that Paul could hold his own in front of a crowd. But this was a different league than the smaller towns that he had been to before. This was the big time. Imagine someone like me being invited up on stage in Las Vegas. Sure I can sing in front of church or on a small stage, but here there are thousands and I am scheduled to appear between Frank Sinatra and Elvis. (Somebody told me that they are both still alive in Vegas). Paul was outclassed by the competition and would surely be laughed out of town. Earlier at Athens, the other major center of Greek culture the people had only politely listened when he spoke to them of the gospel on Mars Hill. Corinth would be the same thing all over again.

It is natural for us to want to play to our strengths. But our strengths often get in the way of God’s strength. There is no doubt that Paul was one of the wisest men who ever lived. And yet in this city of smooth-talkers Paul decided that he would have to rely on something much more powerful than his own ability to persuade. On purpose, Paul gave himself a handicap. On purpose, Paul tied one hand behind his back. On purpose, Paul decided that he would not mention his vast knowledge of the Bible, Jewish law and Greek culture. He would not speak with them about anything except Jesus Christ and His crucifixion. Paul decided that He would just tell the story and trust the Holy Spirit to move in people’s hearts.

So Paul told the story before these jaded Corinthians who had heard everything. They had seen every religious nut and con-man and weren’t about to be tricked by this bald-headed little Jew. Paul started by telling them that God loved them so much that He sent His only Son to this earth to save them. About that time a heckler would call out something obscene but Paul would press forward and tell how Jesus was born into this world to the poorest of people, without even a place to stay. Some would be calling out "Next, next – get this guy out of here" But others would say, "No, no, let’s hear what he’s got to say." As the story continued with Jesus growing up not to be a prince or a hero but only a simple carpenter, again the crowd would grow restless. "When is the good part?" "Shh, I’m trying to hear." Paul told them of the miracles, but more importantly who Jesus did miracles for. Not the rich who could pay him but the poor and blind, the beggars and lepers and outcasts. Paul told them of His goodness, but that it was the kind of goodness that sat down with prostitutes and sinners and invited them into the kingdom of God. And then Paul told them how He died. How the rich and the powerful and the self-righteous accused Him of crimes that He did not commit. How they mocked Him and whipped Him and nailed Him to a cross. And how Jesus did not argue with them, did not call His followers to avenge Him, did not even curse them but instead called out to the Father, "Forgive them for they do not know what they do." By the time the people heard Paul say, "And Jesus died," you could have heard a pin drop. But there was more to the story. Three days later God raised His Son Jesus from the dead and He lives to save you and me. As Paul finished there were a number of people who crowded forward to speak with him. "How can we be saved? How can we learn more about this Jesus? Can He still heal and do miracles today?" The Holy Spirit had moved in their hearts in a powerful way. To each one Paul explained the simple truth that if you choose to put your faith in Jesus then you can have a personal relationship with Him. He will create in you a new heart, a fresh start and He’ll be with you forever.

To many then it looked like foolishness, these worldly Corinthians acting like children, praying to God to forgive them and putting their trust in Jesus Christ. To many today it still looks like foolishness. We too live in a time when everybody seeks the truth and yet just like Corinth of old there are far too many professional talkers trying to sell us something else. How can we know what is really true? The world tells us to put our trust in reason. Unfortunately, it is not possible to be smarter than everybody else. Sooner or later someone will come along who is smarter and they will make a fool of you. They will give you 10 great reasons why what you believe is false and you won’t have any argument for them. Is what you believe based on someone’s wonderful explanation? If so, you have a very weak faith. Paul said that his words were in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.

How do you know that it is true? Walk by faith! In fear and trembling take one more step and trust God. Take each word that Jesus said and put it to the test. Jesus said "Do not resist an evil person" Instead turn the other cheek, give them the shirt off your back, go the extra mile. Jesus said, "Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you." Jesus said do your good deeds in secret so only God gets the glory, lay up treasures in heaven and not on earth and to seek first the kingdom of God and not to worry about tomorrow. All of this seems like foolishness but put it to the test. Watch and see God demonstrate His power! Jesus said, "Ask and it will be given to you, Seek and you will find, Knock and the door will be opened." Pray through the things that you are lacking in your life. Call out to God in your wanderings, knock on those locked doors that are forever frustrating you. Watch and see God demonstrate His power! I believe that every word in this Bible is true. I ask God for what He has promised and I fully expect to receive. I pray and I fully expect an answer. My faith is not built on a careful set of doctrines. My faith is built on nothing less than Jesus, the Son of God, alive today!

However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written: "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him." But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. For "who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?" But we have the mind of Christ. (1 Corinthians 1:6-16)

Let me teach you a new spiritual principle today. You can expect far more from God than you think! What are you expecting of God today? Are you expecting Him to keep the world nice and orderly for you? Give you your daily bread and help you to feel good about yourself? Perhaps you might think that He will give you peace about your situation and help you sleep better tonight? I’ve got news for you. God has far more than that in mind. He wants to LOVE you! Extravagantly, magnificently, love you. In fact He wants to do far more for you than you can ask or even think. Think of a child receiving a trust fund of thousands and trying to explain it to him when up until now he has only counted money in small coins. The boy might ask, "Daddy, how many quarters will that be?" Or think of someone who has never used a computer sitting down to discover the internet and asking the instructor, "So what is it, anyway?"

So, what is this wisdom that Paul is talking about here? It is that incredibly huge love of God revealed to us by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is our guide to show us the things that God has prepared for us. During my trip to Oregon I was lucky to get a chance to take a hike on the newly built woodland trails around my town. It was beautiful to walk through the forests that I explored as a boy and find them so well taken care of and preserved. What was even better is that I walked with the man who did all the work of making the trails. Larry, used to be my teacher in the 5th grade and he has devoted a lot of his time to protecting those forests. As I walked with him, he pointed out things that I never knew before. Even though I had spent countless hours playing in the same forests as a child, Larry’s experienced eyes caught things that I never would have on my own. We often walk through our lives blind to what God has prepared for us. But when we pray, the Spirit reveals those things to us. It is like searching for Easter eggs with a small child. They can be right in front of them but they still don’t see it. So you gently steer them closer and closer until they have the joy of discovering it all by themselves. Each new discovery is one more thing that you can expect from God. One more thing that you can trust Him for in your life.

These powerful gifts that God wants to give you are hidden behind what looks to be weak and foolish. The Spirit is calling you to lay down your own strength that you have been depending on and discover the incredible strength that can only be found when we are weak. The Spirit is calling you to be a fool for Christ so that Christ can wise through you. The Spirit is calling you to believe that what Jesus says is true and trust Him to do His miracles today.

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