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The perfect man -vs- the natural man…
- Paul’s example to the church… (5 things) vs. 1-5
- 1st – Paul came preaching with simplicity… vs. 1
- Paul was determined to come to Corinth teaching the simple message of the Gospel…
- He did not come with fancy speeches – or with the wisdom of men…
- Paul was not a fancy speaker – he stumbled over his words – II Corinthians 10:10
- But Paul’s words were not what brought salvation – it was God’s Word!
- 1st – Paul came preaching with simplicity… vs. 1
- Romans 1:16 – “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.”
- Power – dunamis – dynamite ~ explosive power of God to save sinners ~ Gospel!
- Better to share 2 words from the Bible – than 1000 of the wisest words of men!
- I think often we do not share the Gospel because we think we lack the right words
- Or we think that our lifestyle – actions – don’t line up with our message…
- But it is not our words or actions that bring people to heaven…
- The power of salvation – is the message – the simple truth of the Gospel!
- 2nd – Preaching Jesus… vs. 2
- Paul came to Corinth off of an unsuccessful trip to Athens (the capitol city of Greece)…
- Paul’s preaching there – amongst all Paul’s recorded work – seemed the least fruitful…
- Athens is the only city where we do not read of a church being established by Paul…
- Yet it was by far Paul’s most eloquent – intellectual – and impressive preaching…
- There was one things missing – Jesus (not mentioned once in the sermon on Mars Hill)
- Paul learned an invaluable lesson from his experience in Athens…
- Keep the message simple – keep the preaching all about Jesus!
- It is not fancy words – or eloquent teaching that brings men to salvation…
- Its just Jesus – preaching Jesus – make sure that the message is all about Jesus!
- The power of the Gospel is in the name of Jesus!
- 3rd – Preaching in weakness – fear – and trembling…
- Paul came to Corinth from Philippi – where he had been beaten and imprisoned…
- Having just been in Thessalonica and Berea – where he was chased out of town…
- And when he arrived in Corinth – he was in constant fear for his life…
- * Acts 18:9-10 – “One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision and told him, “Don’t be afraid! Speak out! Don’t be silent! For I am with you, and no one will harm you because many people here in this city belong to me.”
- Paul was not an impressive sight – he was a humbled and broken man – full of Jesus!
- II Corinthians 12:10-11 – “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness… For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
- Paul’s great strength – was that he did not depend on his strength – but Gods!
- A number of years ago I had the chance to attend a Billy Graham crusade…
- Billy Graham is an evangelist who has preached to over 250 million people!
- 110,000 people crammed into the stadium to hear him preach the Gospel of Jesus…
- What amazed me was how disorganized his message was – it was hard to follow…
- Suddenly with little warning – he asked anyone who wanted Jesus to come down…
- I watched as the stadium emptied onto the field – thousands responding to the call!
- When we think we can do something – we aren’t going to depend on God – weakness
- But when we think we cannot – we look to the Lord – and find true strength!
- God does not use the mighty – He does mighty works through the humble!
- Paul came to Corinth from Philippi – where he had been beaten and imprisoned…
- 4th – Not with persuasive words (human wisdom) – but in power and in the Spirit…
- Paul understood actions speak much louder than words!
- Someone can tell you they are right – but it is much more powerful to show you!
- Paul showed the church in Corinth Jesus through his actions…
- I Corinthians 11:1 – “Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.”
- If someone can talk you into following Jesus – someone else can talk you out…
- But to see a life dedicated to the Lord – to see Jesus transform a sinner’s life – powerful!
- 5th – So that the faith of those in Corinth would be based on God!
- The wisdom of this age – is constantly changing – it is an unstable foundation…
- When my father was a student – the earth was 1 billion years old – today is 20 billion
- My Dad is not 19 billion years old – but the ‘wisdom’ of men is always changing!
- * Ephesians 4:14 – “Then we will no longer be like children, forever changing our minds about what we believe because someone has told us something different or because someone has cleverly lied to us and made the lie sound like the truth.”
- If we’re depending on the wisdom of this age – we’ll be like a ship tossed in the wind
- Every new idea or ‘truth’ – that comes along will blow us in a new direction!
- In stead we need to be founded on the Rock – Matthew 7:24-25
- The storms and winds of life can come and go – and we will not be moved…
- Because we are founded on the immovable Rock of Jesus Christ!
- The wisdom of this age – is constantly changing – it is an unstable foundation…
We understood the mysteries/truths of God – and bring unity to His church!
Understanding the plan of God… (5 things) vs. 6-16
1st – Revealed to those who are perfect… vs. 6
To those who are perfect/complete – the mystery of God is revealed…
Sounds intimidating – we all realize we are not perfect – but don’t misunderstand…
The word perfect – teleios – comes from the same root word as – tetestai…
John 19:30 – “Jesus said, ‘It is finished!’ And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.”
Meaning those who are in Jesus Christ – forgiven – are perfect in the eyes of God!
The work of salvation was completed a the cross – nothing else needed to be done…
When Jesus said – it is finished – He meant it!
All we have to do is believe in the ‘finished’ work of Jesus – we are complete/perfect
2nd – The mystery of the cross… vs. 7-8
A mystery not in the sense of something unknown – but something revealed…
* Colossian 1:26 – “The mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints.”
The mystery of God – that from the beginning He planned to die for the sins of men!
The Lamb of God was slain before the foundations of the World– Revelation 13:8
God knows all things – He sees the end from the beginning…
God knew that by creating man – it would mean He had to die – Isaiah 53:5
If you knew that making a decision would cost you your life – would you still
* Romans 5:8 – “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
How much does God love us – He created us knowing it would cost Him His life!
The mystery of the cross – is the revelation of God’s GREAT Love for you and me!
If the rulers of this world had known – they would never have crucified Christ…
When Jesus was put on the cross – satan & evil rejoiced – they thought they’d won…
They had managed to crucify Christ – they had killed God…
What they did not understand – but would learn in 3 short days – it was their defeat!
It was there on the cross Jesus crushed satan / sin / and death!
I Corinthians 15:55-57 – “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory? The sting of death is sin… But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
3rd – The incredible plan of God for those who Love Him… vs. 9
Eye had not seen – ear has not heard – no one has even imagined what God has planned!
Paul tells us in II Corinthians 12:4 – he was taken up into heaven…
And the things he saw – could not be put into words – it would be a crime to try!
Heaven isn’t the most amazing place we could imagine – it is beyond our imagination!
In fact it’ll take ages – literally 1000s of years – in heaven for God to reveal it all to us!
* Ephesians 2:7 -“In the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”
4th – Revealed to us by the Spirit – who knows the deep things of God… vs. 10-13
Just like no one knows what is in the heart of a man…
You have no idea what is in my heart – I do not know what is in yours…
The only one who knows for sure what is in your heart – is you!
In the same way – no one knows the heart of God – except for the Spirit of God…
Because the Holy Spirit is God – He knows the heart of God – the ‘deep things’
We have received the Spirit from God – so we might also know…
There is no way we could understand the mystery of cross on our own…
There is no way we could envision the incredible riches God has planned for us…
But the Holy Spirit can – and He then opens up our understanding – so we can too!
He is our teacher – He is the one who reveals the ‘deep things’ of God to us!
* John 14:26 – “The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.”
These things we speak – but not in men’s wisdom…
Then we share with others – what the Holy Spirit has revealed to us…
Not our wisdom – not our words – we share what God has shown us!
Don’t forget the context – Paul here is talking about the division within the church…
When men share their wisdom – then it causes division – problems…
But when we share the things of the Spirit – there is unity in the church!
5th – The natural man does not understand… vs. 14-16
The natural man – who does not know Jesus – is not perfect/complete…
He causes division in the church because he does not understand…
He doesn’t understand the things of the Spirit – because he does not have the Spirit…
In fact they are foolish to him – and he cannot know them!
Do you ever wonder why people seem to miss obvious truth
It seems so obvious to us Jesus is the answer – how could anyone miss it
God died so we could live – in order to live we must die
We are strong when we are weak – foolishness to the world!
We do not understand because we are so smart – it is God’s spirit inside of us!
Because we are firmly founded on Jesus – and have the Spirit of God!
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