“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.” [1]
Paul’s arrival in Corinth is described in Acts 18. He came and met a Christian couple named Aquila and Priscilla, who were tentmakers by trade, like Paul. He ministered in Corinth for more than a year and a half, supporting himself by tent making.
Paul didn’t come as a philosopher or a salesman. He emphasized Jesus Christ and Him crucified. He was an ambassador, not a salesman. He didn’t cater to what his audience wanted. [A]
“That your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” [2]
Preaching strategies centered on the wisdom of men – around emotion, entertainment and human personality – may yield response, but fail to bring people to Christ. What you draw them with is what you draw them to. If someone can be persuaded into the kingdom by human wisdom, they can also be persuaded out of the kingdom by human wisdom. [B]
“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered 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.” [3]
God reveals His thoughts to us via His Spirit. We must have a relationship with Him to have the benefits of knowing who He is and what He knows.
“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.” [4]
The ancient Greek word for natural man is “psuchikos.” It describes the materialist, who lives as if there were nothing beyond this physical life. This is the kind of life common to all animals. Life on this level is without spiritual insight. [C]
This brings us back to Christ. If a person or group of people reject Christ and Him crucified, there is no use trying to teach them about God. They want us to create a back door or another way to God, and there is no other way to the Father, or to be filled with the Holy Spirit, than to embrace Jesus Christ and to confess Him as Lord and Savior.
“Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Son Jesus Christ and thank You for Your Holy Spirit. Please lead us to those whose hearts You have prepared to embrace and confess Jesus Christ. For it is in His Name that we pray. Amen.”
[1] 1 Corinthians 2:1-2
[2] 1 Corinthians 2:5
[3] 1 Corinthians 2:9-10
[4] 1 Corinthians 2:14
[ABC] Comments derived from the Enduring Word Commentary
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