The Weak And The Excellence Of Power Is Only In God

From: July 26 – August 1, 2011

TOPIC: “The Weak And The Excellence Of Power Is Only In God” 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 We should know that Paul had come to Corinth from Athens. There Paul had tried only once in his life to present the Gospel in an "acceptable” way for the philosophy of the Greek Athenians. There he had met with some of their philosophers. He had noticed that they were very religious because in one of their many altars the inscription read: "To the unknown God.” And from there he began to preach. Paul tried to speak in their language, but this brought little results. They mocked him and others said, "We will hear thee again about this matter." Then Paul decided to speak about the life of Jesus with simplicity and preach about the crucified Christ. In life and with people it all depends on how far we want to go with the message. Paul saw the need of these men and the apostle understood the difference between a ministry that is preached to the soul and the ministry which targets the human spirit through the power of God. What is directed to the soul is what amuses, what entertains or in general relates to the emotions of men. In turn, as for the spiritual ministry, this presents the truth of the Word of God in a way that glorifies Christ and reaches the heart and consciousness of the listener. Beloved, there's so much power when we listen to the preaching of the resuscitated Jesus! How would I do differently and condemn you talking to entertain your soul and take you to eternal damnation? God forbid me from such great evilness! There is no doubt that only the history and work of the life of Jesus, without embellishments, has an unparalleled power to move hearts. Remember that what really gets to us is what touches the heart and not the mind. Paul arrived at Corinth shy and nervous. Now Paul was not the great orator and philosopher of Athens. He knew that power did not come from his intelligence or his authority but from that beautiful and powerful death on the cross and the resurrection of our Lord. The apostle understood that the treasure of the Gospel was contained in itself, for he was only a vessel of clay, so that the excellence of the power would come from God and not from Paul. Paul was the example of our weakness, shyness and nervousness so we can show the power and greatness of God. He was the example of how God uses weak men to confuse the strong. Paul was a slave of Christ, and he understood that he was not going to reach them with philosophy, but by following Christ, obeying and doing things as God wanted him to do and speak. When one tries to hide the tremor, shyness and shame, it is to not show the weakness and not be great. We shouldn’t care about being great, but to come before God with results. But that is achieved when things are done with humility. How do you like to do things, with your greatness and dominating everything, or with humbleness thru the power of the gospel of the Lord who died and rose again? When we consider ourselves great it is because we have not made the Lord truly great. The preaching in Corinth was demonstrated by the Spirit and the power. There was no human wisdom to achieve anything there. We often speak to the soul of men, but it is for our own benefit and not for those who are listening. The word that Paul spoke did not allow them to expose any arguments against the apostle. The proof was in the lives that were changed, in the men and women delivered from all evil. Only the death of Jesus paid the price for the freedom of those who are slaves of sin. The power of God, the power that re-creates, that makes all things new, had begun to act in that corrupt society of Corinth. You and your loved ones can totally change your lives only with the death and resurrection of the Lord. May there be power in you by the overflow of the Holy Spirit! What is stopping you from having that power in your life? Could it be too much philosophy, as it happened to Paul at the beginning in Athens? If there is so much philosophy to attract men, then nothing will happen and they will return just as they came. It is the Spirit of God that uses the message of the resurrection to produce conviction of sin and conversion to God. The danger is when you insist in trying to change men thru human philosophies and not thru the power of God. Paul knew the great danger that existed for his listeners if they were interested only in him, in his own personality instead of the living God. When you decide to put in your eyes here on earth you will not know the power of God. Nowadays, men want to be the center of the eye; so they use a lot of promotions, television, publications, etc., as if they were the ones who could bless. Paul showed his inability to bless or save, he decided to guide them to trust in God only and not in the wisdom of men. This is the goal of this Church. It is better to hurt your ear before abiding on human wisdom. Men gather to listen, but they want to hear human wisdom. For such reason there is so much resistance from some to the message of Christ. A changed life is one that has returned to life by Christ.

For example, a drunk and evil man was saved. His incredulous friends said, "How can you believe in those miracles of the Bible, like the one where Jesus turned water into wine?" He replied: "If he turned water into wine or not, I don’t know, but I do know that I've seen him turn wine into furniture, clothing and healthy food. "This is the reality that Paul wanted the Corinthians to understand, what happens to every person when Jesus arrives thru the message of the crucifixion and resurrection. That is the power that changes lives. We must be wise to understand the power of God and never try to replace it with human philosophies which cannot do anything because they have no power in themselves. The power comes from God. Amen.