Spiritual Power
1 Corinthians 1:18-2:5
For our culture the big event today is not church. It’s the Giants and the Patriots in what we call the Superbowl. Who knows how many words have been spent analyzing who has the wisest strategy to win? Which advertisers will create the best commercials and how much does one minute cost? I saw an article on how to make the best Superbowl snacks. I thought I would be a good snack tester, so please send me snack samples! The people of ancient Corinth would have understood. They were the regular host city for the Isthmian games, which were second only to the Olympics in size of crowd and importance. It was a massive carnival with vendors, advertisers, gambling and boasting over your team or athlete, prostitutes and scammers everywhere. Just like us today.
We are just starting a new series called Spiritual Wisdom in a Foolish World. Come back with me to ancient Corinth, to read a letter written to people dealing with materialism, sexuality and conflicting religions, to people full of pride, consumed with money and fun, the host city for their own version of the Superbowl. What they thought was wise, ends up being foolish. The problem was that too much of Corinth was in the church and we have a similar problem today. Paul takes us back to deep roots of our faith to show us how to live for Christ in a corrupt culture. He urges us to live Christ-like lives by the power of the Spirit as a unified church. And yet Paul’s instruction is always anchored in the prior action of God in Christ. Last week we looked at our spiritual identity. Today we will see our spiritual power.
Let’s go back and look at what was going on in Corinth. The Corinthians were full of themselves for different reasons. The Greeks were proud of their wisdom, their philosophy and artistic culture. The Romans were proud of their power, their empire as the reigning world superpower and their military machine. The Jews were proud of their heritage as the chosen people. The culture valued philosophical wisdom and political power along with money and fleshly pleasure.
Against these worldly values, the Apostle Paul presents the message of the cross with its very different values. Because for us the cross is a primary symbol of faith, it is hard to appreciate how utterly insane the message of a God who got himself crucified by his enemies must have seemed to the first-century Greek or Roman or Jewish person. We wear crosses around our neck as jewelry and put them on our walls for decoration. But back then the cross was an instrument for executing the death penalty on the worst criminals – it was the hangman’s noose, the electric chair. Imagine hanging an electric chair on your living room wall. To honor a cross and one who was executed on it, not surprisingly, looks foolish. The cross challenges values of personal gratification, whose currency is wealth, fame, and power. From a human perspective, God’s way looks foolish and weak, especially the crucifixion.
Our music sounds our values. This afternoon in Indianapolis at the Superbowl what songs are going to be blasting through the stadium? It would not surprise me to hear “We are the Champions.” We honor champions, the strong, the winners. In absolute contrast, the cross presents a totally opposing message, with very different values. To the world it looks weak and foolish. It is hardly a message for the ambitious, for those who want to win at any cost.
Open your Bibles to First Corinthians chapter one. Let’s open our eyes to see God’s spiritual wisdom and power. We are digging into the section that starts in chapter one verse eighteen and ends in chapter two verse five. The passage divides into three sections that correspond to the three points on your sermon outline: verses 18-25 look at the message; verses 26 to 31 the recipients and chapter two, verses one to five, the speaker, Paul. Once again we will see that Paul crafts his words carefully, using strong language. You will hear ironic sarcasm, such as God’s foolishness, and rhetorical questions designed to help us break out of our worldly thinking to see God’s deeper wisdom.
Last week our passage ended with verse seventeen in which Paul said he preaches, not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. This phrase sets up our passage today. The final word “power” sets up the themes of our passage today. Notice three words: “wisdom,” “eloquence,” and “cross.” In Greek the words Paul uses for eloquence and wisdom are logos and Sophia. Logos means word, message or truth; while sophia means wisdom. Now verse eighteen begins with the phrase, “For the message of the cross is foolishness.” The Greek word for “message” is also logos, so Paul turns our attention to the logos of the cross. This is the main topic of the passage. The logos of the cross opposes the logos of worldly wisdom. It is the logos of the cross that opens up a new way of being in the world, a new way of living, a deeper spiritual wisdom and power. It provides the basis for Christian identity. Please stand for the reading of God’s Word. As we read starting in chapter one, verse eighteen listen for the logos of the cross, the message of the cross.
18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written:
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;
the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.”
20 Where is the wise person? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. 22 Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength. 1 Corinthians 1:18-25
God’s power. That’s what we are talking about today, spiritual power. In those days when this letter was written the most powerful forces were the cultural heritage of Greece and the political, military power of Rome. Who would have possibly guessed what the perspective of history allows us to see? That the most powerful force in first-century Corinth was neither the political power of Rome nor the cultural heritage of Greece, but the gospel of Jesus Christ. Yet what’s more influential today, Rome’s army, Greece’s art or a Jewish carpenter’s death? It is the message of the cross which is the divine meta-narrative telling a wiser and better story than any other story the world has to offer in its supposed wisdom. The logos of the cross, the message of the cross is that Christ crucified is the power and wisdom of God.
The Message: Christ crucified is the power and wisdom of God
In this case, “power” refers to the effectiveness of the cross to make God known to humankind, to accomplish salvation, to defeat evil, and to transform lives. Christ crucified is foolish and weak to the world.
The message is foolish and weak to the world
Follow with me line by line in the biblical text to see what God is saying to us. In verse eighteen there are two groups of people: those who are perishing and those who are being saved. They have opposing views of the logos of the cross. To the one it is foolishness and to the other it is power. Today it is common for people who are not genuine Christians to see Christianity as dumb or foolish. Or they may just say they don’t get it. My oldest son has told me that that he wants to believe, but it does not make sense to him. Another friend is an atheist not out of opposition to faith, but because that seems to make the most scientific sense. You may feel that way right now. You are listening to the sermon, but the cross of Christ does not make sense to you. Many feel that way. Keep listening.
Paul knew that his message of a condemned, crucified Savior was heard as ridiculous by the Jews who were waiting for a powerful Messiah to deliver them and as utter foolishness by Greek academics and Roman citizens. What human would ever have dreamed up such a preposterous, humiliating plan to save the world?
In verse nineteen Paul refers to Isaiah 29:14 where the prophet warns people not to think we can outwit God. In verse twenty he asks three rhetorical questions undermining the foolish wisdom of this world. In fact the Greek term sophia (“wisdom”) is found seventeen times in 1 Corinthians, sixteen of those in chapters 1-3. The point is not that wisdom is wrong, but where true wisdom is to be found. Far from anti-intellectual, Paul actually argues for a more intellectually viable approach, a spiritual wisdom that shows worldly wisdom to be foolish. Upon investigation, Christianity proves to be the most intellectually viable world-view of all.
As you look at the next couple of verses, twenty one and twenty two, you can see that the world cannot find God in its wisdom. In fact, from a traditional Jewish point of view, a crucified Messiah was an oxymoron, a contradiction in terms. The title “Christ” means “messiah” so Christ crucified is a contradiction in terms. You could have a Messiah or a crucifixion, but not both. Messiah meant power, splendor, triumph; crucifixion meant weakness, humiliation, defeat. . A crucified messiah would be a categorical mistake like “fried ice.” Jesus was executed as a state criminal, a scandal to Jew, Greek, and Roman alike.
And yet in verse twenty three we come to the center of Paul’s bold point: “but we preach Christ crucified.” In spite of how foolish or weak that message may be perceived by many in our culture, we preach Jesus Christ. That is my message too. I preach Christ crucified. That is the heart of Christ Fellowship. Without apology we preach Christ crucified. We stand on the logos of the cross. Because as verse twenty four puts the climax: Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. You want power and wisdom? They are not found where you might have thought. The logos of the cross is wiser and stronger than any other. The wisdom and power of this world cannot forgive sin. The wisdom and power of this world cannot raise life from the dead. The wisdom and power of this world cannot restore your relationship with the Lord.
The message is wiser and stronger than any other
Using ironic sarcasm in verse twenty-five, Paul says the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength. The story of Christ’s execution as a criminal on a cross did not make sense to Jews nor did the idea of a suffering God fit Greek philosophical categories. The Gospel of Jesus Christ may not fit your categories. But surely we would expect God to have ways far beyond ours, a wisdom far deeper than what we would devise.
Using the oxymorons of God’s foolishness and God’s weakness, Paul points out that what is least clever or powerful from God still greatly surpasses the most stupendous achievement of humanity. Two basic idolatries shadow humanity: the demand for power and the search for wisdom. We want to figure out life on our own and stand on our own two feet without help from a god. We demand that God make sense in the way we think things ought to be done. We are blinded by our own pride. We cannot stand the thought of God doing things his way without our help, in ways we don’t understand.
The logos of the cross goes against competitive success-seeking self-fulfillment. It calls us to self-emptying, not self-exalting; to accept suffering and humility. The logos of the cross may appear to be weakness, but as verse twenty-one says, it is the power to save those who believe.
The message is the power to save those who believe
Remember how Paul began this section in verse eighteen: there are only two kinds of people in the world – those perishing and those being saved. It is the cross, Christ crucified, who has the power to save you. The way to access this salvation is to believe in Jesus Christ, that he was crucified for you. Your response to this message determines whether you are perishing or being saved. Christ is the wisdom and power of God to save you now and forever. If you have never trusted in Jesus Christ to save you, I urge you to do so. Later today we are going to celebrate communion which is a remembrance of Christ crucified. It is designed for those who have trusted in Christ. Trust in Christ right now and then take communion with more meaning than ever in your life.
From this first section on the message of Christ crucified, Paul turns in verse twenty-six to his second section where he looks at the Corinthians, the recipients of the message.
26 Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him. 30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.” 1 Corinthians 1:26-31
His point is that God gives spiritual power in Christ.
The Recipients: God gives you spiritual power in Christ
In verse twenty-six, Paul lovingly calls them brothers and sisters. In essence he says, brother and sisters, not many of you are super-intellects or really powerful people, but God called you in Christ. The truth today is that most of us are not wise or powerful.
Most are not wise or powerful
In the world of that time Paul was referring to the prominent and influential people. The big point is that God is not impressed with our resumes. He does not call us because he is so impressed with our credentials or because we are so smart or strong. In fact, more often God tends to call people who are weak in the world’s eyes. It is the poor who are on God’s heart in a special way. God calls people purely by his grace, not based on their status.
Through history God has used people such as David, the little shepherd boy out watching the sheep who no one thought would be king, a teenage girl named Mary and a fisherman named Peter. Every attempt to domesticate the gospel into a suburban, middle-class religion of success betrays the cross of Christ.
Look at verses twenty-seven and twenty-eight. God chose the foolish and weak to shame the wise and strong. The manger and the cross seem lowly and despised, yet it is the logos of the cross where we find true wisdom and real power. Those despised events at the manger and cross set loose in human history a power and a wisdom that makes Rome appear weak and Athens look foolish.
God chose the weak not to make them power-mongers, but to expose the bankruptcy of power-grabbing. The cross does not to help them move up the social ranks, but to convert human values.
When this principle is applied to the Corinthian situation, Paul’s point is that no leader can receive credit for the creation of any group in Corinth. There is no room for boasting when we have nothing to boast about. The ground is level at the foot of the cross.
But for those in every part of our world who feel deeply their own inadequacy, Paul gives great encouragement that God can use even you in powerful and mighty ways as you rely not on yourself but on his strength. For Christians, the categories “intelligent,” “influential,” and “high status” are replaced by “righteousness,” “holiness,” and “redemption” in Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 1:30; Thiselton 2000: 178). Consider the amazing truth packed into four words in verse thirty. Christ is our wisdom, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.
Christ is our wisdom: righteousness, holiness and redemption
Jesus Christ is the wisdom of God expressed in the Old Testament in creation and in wisdom literature such as the book of Proverbs. Three powerful metaphors express the outflow of the wisdom of Christ: a legal metaphor (righteousness), a religious metaphor (holiness) and a commercial metaphor (redemption). Each are different ways to speak of salvation. Righteousness refers to the state of having been acquitted and sharing Christ’s righteous character. When we are arraigned in God’s court, God the Father will not judge us on the basis of what we are, but as those who are guiltless in Christ Jesus. Holiness refers to the state in which we have only in Christ Jesus by the Spirit, and which allows us into the presence of God. Redemption refers to being bought, such as a slave redeemed from slavery; so it is the state of being delivered from sin and its penalty (Rom. 3:24–25; Eph. 1:7, 14; 4:30; Col. 1:14).
This is the power and wisdom of the cross. By its power we are righteous, holy and redeemed in Jesus Christ. Salvation in Christ is not a human self-help or self-improvement scheme, but a radical rescue which one cannot earn or buy, gained at the high price of Christ’s life. As a result no one can boast before God. We know there is a lot of sinful boasting in this world. There is going to be a lot of boasting today. Championship tee-shirts have already been printed for both the Patriots and the Giants, a trophy will be presented and people will be shouting in the streets and bars. In our passage, Paul talks about boasting and it is not all wrong. But there is one very appropriate boast. We are to boast in the Lord alone.
So we boast in the Lord alone
I love the simple quote in verse thirty-one. “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.” The Corinthians were guilty of considerable boasting on various levels, none of it noble. Boasting played a crucial role in Greco-Roman secular leadership. Paul is saying that if you really understand the logos of the cross, then you drop all boasting, except to boast in the Lord Jesus Christ. The Greek word for boasting includes the idea of trusting in something. Our confidence, our boast, is not in our strength or intellect, but in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. In this verse Paul is referencing the Old Testament prophet Jeremiah who says in Jeremiah chapter nine, verses twenty-three and twenty-four;
23 This is what the LORD says: “Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the strong boast of their strength or the rich boast of their riches, 24 but let the one who boasts boast about this: that they have the understanding to know me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,” declares the LORD. Jeremiah 9:23–24 (NIV)
Paul is telling us to boast in the Lord Jesus Christ crucified because he is true spiritual wisdom and power. Can you imagine if you were more proud of Christ crucified than of anything else in your life? Can you imagine if your focus and topic of conversation was about the logos of the cross more than anything else? What if you were more excited about Christ crucified than anything else? What if you bragged about Jesus being crucified?
From sharing about the message of the cross and the recipients of the message Paul shifts in the last paragraph of this passage to the speakers. He turns from the recipients, the Corinthians, to himself as another example of spiritual power in Christ crucified.
And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. 2 For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3 I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. 4 My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, 5 so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power. 1 Corinthians 2:1-5
His point is that we should preach Christ crucified in spiritual power.
The Speakers: Preach Christ crucified in spiritual power
Jesus said that we as believers in him are to be his ambassadors. We are to be the ones who bear witness to his powerful life-changing message. We are the ones who are to share the message of the cross. So we can learn from Paul’s example. Paul says he did not come with eloquence or human wisdom. His point is that he does not rely on them. When you share the message of Christ, don’t rely on fancy words or philosophy.
Don’t rely on fancy words and philosophy
Now Paul is very intelligent and speaks well, but that is not where his confidence lies. God has the power to change lives. We should never try to sell Jesus or manipulate someone into faith. Paul never tries to put on a show to get people to trust in Christ. Dio Chrysostom (born ca. A.D. 40) visited the city of Corinth and wrote a first-hand account of what he saw at the Isthmian Games, their Superbowl. “Crowds of wretched sophists around Poseidon’s temple shouting and reviling one another, and their disciples, as they were called, fighting with one another [think football fans], many writers reading aloud their stupid works [picture media], many poets reciting their poems while others applauded them [think bloggers], many jugglers showing their tricks, many fortune-tellers interpreting fortunes [think gambling odds], lawyers innumerable perverting judgment, and peddlers to a few peddling whatever they happened to have [imagine advertisers].”
Paul wants to emphasize that he will not under any circumstances join the “carnival” described by Chrysostom. He will not show off his rhetorical skills to entertain his readers. Paul is not providing an excuse for sloppy preaching; rather he is refusing to engage in self-display to win applause from a crowd. He will not stoop to theatrical effect to impress people. Instead Paul says he resolved to know nothing but Christ crucified. As we share the message of Christ we too should resolve to focus on Christ crucified.
Resolve to focus on Christ Crucified
The cross is central. “To know nothing” does not mean that Paul left all other knowledge aside, but rather that he had Christ crucified as his singular focus. Paul is not anti-intellectual, but he does oppose intellectual pride. He did not come to them as a know-it-all or compose speeches fishing for admiration. On the contrary, the cross molded his entire message and his whole approach. He came with a power much greater than that of fancy words. He speaks with the Spirit’s power. When we share the message of Christ, we too should speak with the Spirit’s power.
Speak with the Spirit’s power
The real power does not lie in the person speaking or in the presentation, but in the work of the Spirit. The main demonstration of the Spirit’s power is transformed lives. God has changed their lives. Paul knows how Jesus Christ has radically changed his life. So he resists the desire to succeed and the need for approval to instead boldly and lovingly share Jesus Christ and him crucified, the logos of the cross. The power of the Gospel has changed lives. I wonder how many people here have had their lives changed by the power of Jesus Christ. Think back on your life. Have you seen the Spirit of God change your life? If Jesus Christ has powerfully changed your life, would you raise your hand? Keep them up. That’s the power of the cross. You see faith in Jesus Christ is based not on how entertaining, informative, or compelling the speaker is, but on the power of God transforming the hearts of hearers. So you can confidently share the message of the cross knowing the power is not in you or in your presentation, but in the Spirit who transforms lives through Jesus Christ.
When I think of someone who is boldly speaking about Jesus in the Spirit’s power, I think of Tim Tebow. Whatever you may think of him, he is unashamed of the gospel of Jesus, no matter what anyone says. Are you? Today many of you will be with people watching the Superbowl. Sometime during the four hours, will you consider talking about something other than football?
My heart for Christ Fellowship is that we boast in Jesus Christ crucified. As a church we are proud of Jesus, nothing more, nothing less, nothing else. We boast in Jesus Christ crucified. He is our wisdom. He is our power. He is our confidence. He is our Savior. We boast in Christ!
Footnotes:
Fee, Gordon D. The New International Commentary on the New Testament: The First Epistle The Corinthians. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1987, Pp 76
Chafin, Kenneth L. Mastering The New Testament: A Book by Book Commentary by Today’s Great Bible Teachers. 1, 2, Corinthians. Thomas Nelson, Inc., Publishers, United States, 1979, Pp 41
Witherington III, Ben. Conflict & Community in Corinth: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary on 1 and 2 Corinthians. Wm B. Eermans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1995, Pp 109
Fee, Gordon D. The New International Commentary on the New Testament: The First Epistle The Corinthians. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1987, Pp 75
Fee, Gordon D. The New International Commentary on the New Testament: The First Epistle The Corinthians. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1987, Pp 75
Blomberg, Craig L. The 1 Corinthians NIV Application Commentary: From biblical text…to contemporary life Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI 1994, Pp 53
Baily, Kenneth E. Paul Through Mediterranean Eyes: Cultural Studies in 1 Corinthians. InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL 2011, Pp 84
Blomberg, Craig L. The 1 Corinthians NIV Application Commentary: From biblical text…to contemporary life Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI 1994, Pp 61
Baily, Kenneth E. Paul Through Mediterranean Eyes: Cultural Studies in 1 Corinthians. InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL 2011, Pp 86
Blomberg, Craig L. The 1 Corinthians NIV Application Commentary: From biblical text…to contemporary life Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI 1994, Pp 54
Baily, Kenneth E. Paul Through Mediterranean Eyes: Cultural Studies in 1 Corinthians. InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL 2011, Pp 77
