Title: Power And Spirit
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Blog Entry: 1 Cor 2:1-5 1 And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony [ a ] of God. 2 For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. 3 I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. 4 And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human [ b ] wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. There is a verse in the midst of these verses that we are all familiar with, that often is taught a particular way. It is: 2 For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. When this passage is taught, teachers often camp out on this verse and espouse that, all we need to know is Jesus Christ and Him crucified!!!!!! Is that really all we need to know? While that truth is very important to know, is that really what Paul is saying? The answer is no!!!!! The previous verses were in regards to the Corinthian's conversion and how it wasn't because of their greatness that they were saved. Their conversion had nothing to do with man's wisdom or power, but Gods power through the person Of Jesus Christ. This is continuation of that thought. The Corinthian's had an unhealthy view of their leaders and just to make sure they weren't doing the same with Paul he wrote: 1 And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony [ a ] of God. And verse 3,4&5 3 I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. 4 And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human [ b ] wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. See Paul is saying that all Glory should go to Jesus Christ and that all he did was preach the Gospel to them!!!! It wasn't by his great oratory skills or his great wisdom that they were saved but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power!!!!!!v4. We come to Christ through the Gospel of Christ!!!!!!! The Gospel is the power of God! As Rom 1:16-17 declares. The Gospel is the starting point of our relationship with Christ. God's desire is for people to grow in Christ and to move on to maturity. Don't let anybody tell you that all you need to know is Christ and Him crucified!! That is not all God wants you to know!!!!! In verse 6 Paul says: 1 Cor 1:6 6 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. Friends, there is much more to come!!!!! The more mature you are, the more you will be like Christ!!!!! The more like Christ you are, the more fruit will be produced for His Glory!!!!!!
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