As is so often the case with religious institutions and churches, even the clearly negative characteristics of the culture around them become a significant part of their life. Religious institutions often become like the world around them, they get co-opted, and so are not persecuted by the culture.

In line with cultural patterns, the divisiveness in the church in Corinth had to do with loyalty to a personality rather than fidelity to a doctrine. They saw Christian ministry through the lens of Greek culture. Those who became Christians brought that immorality and rampant rationalism into the church and seemingly had a hard time breaking away from the human philosophy and wisdom that so dominated their society.

One offshoot of their preoccupation with human wisdom, was a splintering of the congregation around the different apostles that visited Corinth, and around the different philosophies they had held prior to their conversion.

The thought that these Corinthians could find issues of division among the apostles who spoke as one regarding the gospel and spiritual matters, must have involved some major distortions and perversions of the apostles teachings.

Paul clearly recognized the devilish nature of human wisdom when it ventured into the spiritual realm. It has its place in the world; but when it's applied to ultimate truth, the things which deal with God, sin, man's destiny, salvation, transforming lives, morality and ethics, it is worthless. Contrary to what the adherents of human wisdom might have believed, Paul was emphatic that God could not be known by human faculties, senses or efforts and could in reality only be known by his own and particular revelation.

We must note that we are now dealing with the nature of God. God has a particular nature and therefore he acts in a certain way. God is the only one who has under his control the path that leads to righteousness and life and He is the source of all wisdom and truth.

Of necessity the problem of anything that originates with the world, such as the wisdom of the world, is that it does not have the power to take those who are perishing, those stuck on the path leading to death, away from that path.

Clearly, the world and its wisdom only involves partial truth and that limited understanding makes it quite impotent and unable to really solve the dreadful problems of the world.

Leaning on God, the true source of wisdom is the only way to possess the range of knowledge and power necessary to find and stay on the path of life. God is truly all in all, and outside of him there is nothing that can save.

Let it be understood clearly that God is qualitatively, so superior to man that even at his weakest point he is vastly above man, if we can conceive of such a thing in a being without any imperfection, but who is in every respect absolutely glorious. Man can never be in his class.

Given his nature, God's approach to the things of the world stands everything, all our standards and human principles on its head. God's ways are not our ways, but His ways are perfect and superior.

Starting at verse eighteen of chapter one, Paul begins to show the incomparable wisdom and problem solving techniques of God. He shows how God used what the Corinthians in their human wisdom would have regarded as the foolish things of the world, to achieve his purposes in what was superlative fashion.

His solution to the sins of the world had to satisfy all the demands of his sundry attributes, and God did this in a way that the human beings would never have thought of.

God's wisdom was seen in how He handled the problem of sin. The ignorance implicit in human wisdom would never be comfortable with God’s solution.

Therefore, the unwise pagans regarded the crucifixion of Jesus as foolishness, though this was central to Paul’s message of salvation from sins. The world calls the ‘cross’ foolishness, but those who had been redeemed from the death of sin and its ignorance, and had now believed, called the ‘cross’ the power and wisdom of God.

God’s plan of redemption through Jesus was beyond the understanding and over the heads of men of all stripes and so it was deemed foolish by many in their human wisdom. They could not understand the gospel in their natural state. (Eph.2:1-5). Quoting the Old Testament liberally, Paul showed that it had to be so. Man cannot find God on his own, it is God that saves.

Pointedly, the Apostle noted that the Corinthian Christians, who were saved and had been enabled to display the most spectacular gifts of the spirit, were themselves largely drawn from the lower rungs of society, with few of the upper-crust and academic philosopher types that they so esteemed. They were plain, ordinary people, and would not be as one writer puts it, automatic first-place finishers in any endeavour.

We note in this regard that generally Christians are not particularly impressive or mighty people, do not wield great power, do not generally sit on the boards of major corporations, are not generally considered to be stylish , fashionable, or in tune with the world.

The Corinthians should have thought about the great distance along which God had taken them and the place of honour in which they stood; a place of glory and power beyond their wildest dreams.

They should have drawn a conclusion about the worthless nature of human wisdom from their own circumstances. Paul would now argue that through the humble conversion experience of the Corinthians, God had shown his power and that Christ crucified is the power and wisdom of God.

Note that God has to completely reorient the thinking of those who come to him. Those that have been brought to God have to be constantly reminded that it was God that brought them and that they themselves would have kept running away from God if the Spirit had not saved them.

Often it is only when people are experiencing failure, forced to acknowledge their own inadequacy, that the Spirit can finally bring them to repentance and faith. It is correct to say, that it is our failure, not our success, that brings us to Christ. This idea is very contrary to, and very offensive to the world. So Paul has to belabour this point, stressing the differences between how God and his people behave.

Human wisdom in spiritual matters is a product of men’s pride and manifestly sinful and is in fact a hindrance, to the true wisdom of God which leads to eternal life. The wisdom of God is inextricably linked to Jesus Christ and speaks to righteousness, redemption and sanctification.

In our lesson Paul will point to his own example as he recounted his time, attitude and deportment among the brethren relative to the Gospel. He will demonstrate that the gospel does not depend on human wisdom, or the philosophy of men for its success. Paul will make the points that true wisdom is not humanly discovered, and true wisdom is divinely revealed. The Corinthians will be reminded of the indispensable work of the Holy Spirit in the revelation of God in the lives of believers.

THE TEXT.

Verse 1. The Corinthians had come to view Paul as not impressive, exuding knowledge, in other words, not wise; he was a little too plain and his gospel preaching sounded too simple.

To them he lacked the charm and charisma to make them proud to have been associated with him.

Note this that these were people who Paul was responsible for bringing into the church, and who were just taken out of paganism. They had been ‘natural’ men, without knowledge of God in the world, outside of the covenant, having no hope and who had been just plain ignorant, controlled by the devil and the lusts of the flesh.

Clearly, Paula would not have approached these people as if they were ‘spiritual’, but as he later said, he had to treat them as ‘carnal’, otherwise called ‘babes in Christ’. They could not be fed with ‘meat’, but only with ‘milk’, due to their immaturity.

Given their ‘groupie’ mentality, they began to think of themselves as higher that they in fact were, and over enjoyed their new position, misinterpreting what God wanted of them, and they had begun to attach themselves to others, who better fitted their image of a spiritual leader.

Paul is about to remind the Corinthians that when he first came to Corinth, it was through his plain and simplistic message and methods that they received salvation. He had not employed the eloquence and oratorical extravagance that would bedazzle his audience and which would draw attention to himself. He did not seek to endear himself to the Corinthians with a display of that ‘wisdom’ that was sought out by the Greeks. Rather, for Paul it was the message not the man, when he came to them proclaiming the testimony of God. The testimony of God would be the gospel and accounts of the authenticating miracles and evidence of God’s character and plans; especially in regard to His great plan of redemption through Jesus Christ.

We know well enough that Paul could reason and debate with great persuasion, but after his experience in Athens, he was led by the spirit to come not as a philosopher or as a salesman, filled with self-reliance, but he came as one testifying, totally focused on the gospel of the crucified Messiah.

Verse 2-5. In these verses Paul revealed that when he went to Corinth, he resolved to adopt a particular posture regarding his evangelism. He would make no attempt to pander to the locals great attraction to rhetoric and erudition and would present the gospel in simple terms.

Matter of fact, Paul’s stance was the exact opposite of what the Corinthians found admirable in spiritual leaders. He conducted himself with great humility and showed that he was clearly a man who had no confidence in himself but was totally dependent on God.

Paul was particularly subdued in Corinth (fear and trembling…) and this should also be seen in the light of previous persecution he had endured in other places and certainly faced here. God however encouraged Paul to continue preaching and assured his safety (Acts 18:9-10).

Undoubtedly Paul had an awareness of his own limitations, knowing that the salvation and sanctification of men could only be accomplished by the miraculous intervention of God.

One can also view Paul's behaviour as a response to the great temptation he must have faced after his experience in Athens. He must have looked at these educated men, these philosophers, thought about his great level of education, the things that he had done and his style of arguments, all those things that he now counted as nothing. Before his conversion he would have enjoyed debating these men, showing off his knowledge and applying his human wisdom and style to gain the upper hand.

But he trembled as he realized that he could not go back to that old way of life, but now had to rely totally on the power of the Spirit to bring them to faith.

It must be clearly understood that when one, in teaching or preaching aims at stirring up emotion, providing entertainment, or showing off impressive personality traits, there might be great response, but this response does not necessarily mean that that person has produced results for the kingdom.

Paul’s plan was that the conversion of the Corinthians could in no way be attributed to any other cause other than the manifest work of God. In light of Paul’s personage and style among them, the Corinthians could hardly give any credit to human wisdom for their salvation.

Note that Paul came to Corinth in weakness, fear, and much trembling, so that the power of God might be demonstrated. His weakness was not an obstacle to the display of God’s power but the means through which God’s power was seen. God’s power is manifested through human weakness, (2Cor. 12).

Weakness then becomes a badge of honor for the believer in Christ and its existence allows divine power to work without any obstacles. We know how important weakness’ is, for in this regard, Jesus, when he was on earth, did not use his unlimited power, but lived as a man under the power of the Holy Spirit.

Understanding this is most important, for there should be no emphasis or consideration given to our ‘great’ or ‘impressive’ abilities. There is really no room for selfish individualism. The so-called ‘weaker’ members of the body of Christ are indispensable members of the body. The body can never function without all these so-called ‘weaker’ brethren, just as the human body really depends on the ‘weaker’ or hidden internal organs.

Those that think that they are the ‘stronger’ members of the body of Christ, who are specially anointed, are really fooling themselves, for they cannot by themselves protect or even support the body. There is mutual interdependence of every member of the body of Christ. Ever believer must understand the reality that all human beings are finite and are dependent on God. So Paul stresses this when he tells us that he is weak and unable to take any credit for his successes or his achievements. In fact, Paul is quite insistent in several passages that the servants of God, including himself, are quite weak but consecrated vessels. May we learn to follow the way of Paul, and not depend in ministry on our human ability, our impressive appearance and our style of speaking, acting and the impressively use of language.

Verse 6. After discussing the personal mindset, methods and message that he exercised when he first visited Corinth, Paul begins to speak for the Apostles as a group at this point and speaks of ‘we’ instead of ‘I’. A clear indication there were no divisions among the apostles themselves.

Paul begins to clarify his earlier characterization of the gospel as foolishness and here he says that the Apostles indeed do preach wisdom. He hastens to add that theirs’ was not the wisdom of the world nor that of the rich, powerful or ruling classes, but they were speaking wisdom among those who were Christians. Their wisdom was outside the boundaries of the wisdom and the philosophies of that time or any time. The other wisdom comes to naught regardless of it’s origin and implies that the wisdom of which Paul speaks is eternal and therefore from God.

There is a sharp distinction between the Christian believer and the non-believer, for the Christian believer has a vast wealth of wisdom available to him that is definitely not available to those who are not believers. The goal is for the believer to grow and become mature or ‘perfect’, so that they could move away from being ‘babes in Christ’ and able to understand the wisdom of which Paul is speaking. But note that even the ‘babes in Christ’ can understand the things of God to some extent, while in contrast, the rulers of the age, the princes, the intellectuals and philosophers, cannot understand this wisdom at all.

Verse 7. The Apostles preach the gospel which is in fact the wise plan of God for the salvation of men in Jesus Christ. Here Paul states clearly that they are not speaking the wisdom that is of this world's systems or philosophers; rather, they are speaking the wisdom of God. Paul is talking about a supernatural, divine wisdom. The world looks at God's wisdom as foolishness, but believers understand that wisdom. The world cannot understand God's wisdom, because it is outside the boundaries of the natural man's capabilities. The word "mystery" in this context doesn't mean something that is occultic, clandestine, or puzzling. It's not referring to finding the way through a maze in the quest for the wisdom of God. It means a secret which is impossible for man to penetrate, but which God has chosen to reveal. This is a sacred secret’, and so can only be known by revelation. The word points to the impossibility of man knowing God's secret. Paul is not suggesting that their preaching is mysterious or can’t be understood, but rather that their teaching had up until that time been hidden.

The salvation of men through Jesus Christ was devised by God from eternity past and would issue into the glory of those God choose to save.

Verse 8. Here Paul gives a convincing illustration of the fact that God’s plan of salvation through Jesus was hidden to the unsaved. He cites the actions of the Roman and Jewish authorities in their failure to recognize who Jesus was and murdering Him.

The fact is, high Roman authorities and Jews schooled in the Old Testament together crucified Jesus. Paul’s point is that the Jewish and Roman leaders didn't know God, for if they had, `they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. The world cannot know God by their own reason or wisdom. This shows how far off human wisdom was from the truth.

Note, that there is some debate as to whether or not the demonic forces which incited and which lay behind the human opposition that led Jesus to the cross, was not themselves exhibiting a significant absent of ‘wisdom’, not being sufficiently aware of and understanding the plan of God. They were the authors of their own defeat. Satan and the demons, in the view of some modern scholarship, were so blinded by their hostility to their Creator, this Jesus of Nazareth who stood before them, that they would not even act in their own interest.

The lesson in all this, do not trust humans who do not have the wisdom of God, and do not trust the demons, for neither do they have the ‘wisdom of God’ which alone leads to life.

Note, the phrase "the Lord of glory" is more proof that Jesus is God. The word "glory" encompasses all of the attributes of God.

Verse 9. Paul explains why the natural man or his worldly wisdom cannot know God. This is a partial quote of Isaiah 64:4 and is not a reference to what heaven is like.

The force of this passage seems to be however that God's love for his children, the elect, is immeasurable. This stresses God's or Christ's love for us, and is certainly in line with Jewish thinking.

We are the body of Christ, the bride of Christ the children of Christ, and as such we are most precious in his sight.

The fullness of God's wisdom and his plans for those who are saved, are so glorious and lofty, that man cannot really understand them. What we have been given is just a minute taste.

Paul makes the quote to prove that Christians have true wisdom and that they have views of truth and of the plan of salvation, which has been denied to the unsaved and which those who crucified the Lord Jesus did not possess. He is not merely describing the happiness of Christians but their views of the wisdom of the plan of salvation.

But even then the apostle makes it clear that, even saved man will spend eternity ‘oohing’ and ‘aahing’ at the infinitely creative and glorious mind of God as he demonstrates His love for us.

The plan of salvation however, even what has been revealed, cannot be known by empirical means-what one sees or hears, nor can it be known by some thought process-rationalism. The blindness that inflicts men who are dead in their sins is such, that no amount of worldly wisdom is going to provide a break through in understanding for them.

The wisdom of this world is “empirical wisdom,” based upon that which can be seen and heard and touched. The wisdom of God is otherwise. It is not seen by the naked eye, it cannot be heard with the ears, it cannot be fathomed by the natural mind. It surpasses even man’s imagination.

Verse 10-11. Here we are presented with the greatness of the gospel, the good news. The mind of God and the plan that comes from this mind is so absolutely astounding and beyond the comprehension of finite creatures, that only the Holy Spirit can tell us about the plan of God created in his wisdom.

This is the well accepted philosophical premise, that like can only be known by like.

How then can mere mortals know of a God who cannot be seen and whose provisions are beyond human thought. Here Paul speaks first for the Apostles who through their inspired writings have communicated these truths to all who are true believers of God.

God can be known intimately because He has chosen to disclose His innermost thoughts and being to men by means of His Spirit working through the apostles, resulting in the New Testament Scriptures. To reject the apostles and their teaching as the “wisdom of God” is to reject God, for they are the only ones through whom God has chosen to disclose Himself. To reject the apostles’ teaching is thus to reject the God who disclosed Himself to men through them.

The Holy Spirit is the agent of God’s revelation to his people. Revealed here is to disclose something that was previously hidden or to unveil something that was veiled. God has made Himself known to us through the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit that discloses God's truth to us, (John 15:26).

Here is proof that the natural man is incapable of discovering the truths of God. Also the apostles were inspired by the Holy Spirit and that all Christians are the subjects of the teaching of the Holy Spirit.

Searcheth.. is to search accurately and diligently so as to fully understand. But the phrase is not to be understood as the Spirit searching to uncover something. The idea is that the Spirit’s knowledge is profound, entire and thorough, such as is usually the result of a close and accurate search.

Note, there is no limit to or limitation on the Spirit’s understanding or knowledge. He has a thorough and intimate knowledge of the hidden counsels or purposes of God and of all his plans and purposes.

This verse speaks to the omniscience of the Holy Spirit and to the fact that he is God.

The union and intimacy of the Godhead is seen here. No one can know what is in the deep recesses of another persons mind except the spirit of that person. Paul is saying here that the thing that knows a man best is that man's own spirit. Similarly, the Holy Spirit knows the deep recesses of God just as a man's spirit knows the deep recesses of that man like no one else does.

Now let us look at the implications for us. If we have the mind of Christ, we do have access to much more information about the deep things of God than we are displaying.

We have been told that God is inscrutable, but we are also advised that the purpose and will of God, though these are eternal, divine mysteries, will be made known to us by God, as he reveals his manifold wisdom.

It is therefore important for us to study the word of God and to know as much as can be known, to seek the guidance of the Spirit as we search all through the things of God.

If we do not take advantage of what God has offered to us, we would certainly be falling short of his grace and depriving ourselves of great benefits.

Verse 12. Paul could be meaning this verse as a rebuke to the Corinthian believers and all those with similar behaviours.

This could however be viewed in a limited way as another statement for the inspiration of Scripture and Paul speaks for the Apostles and other writers of Scripture. It was to them that God gave his revelation and they recorded that revelation for the blessing of all Christians.

Similarity, the promise of John 14:26 can be regarded as not a promise to all believers but to those who would write the New Testament. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

But however it is viewed, all Christians have received the Spirit of God. Christians are under the teaching and influence of the Holy Spirit and not the philosophies and learning that were so admired in Greece. The Spirit illuminates our minds that we might understand and appreciate the mercies and favours of God.

For Paul the Holy Spirit was promised in the Old Testament as an unmistakable mark of the time of salvation, and so now the Spirit worked powerfully in the world, not only working in the life of Jesus the Messiah, but also bringing the initial act of faith to believers, confirming them and establishing them in the body of Christ.

…freely given to us.. These would include the blessings of redemption; the forgiveness of sin, justification, sanctification and the hope of eternal life. These are matters over which the Christian can have assurance as these wonderful blessings are confirmed to us by the Holy Spirit.

Verse 13. They preach concerning the matters mentioned in verse twelve, in the very language and style dictated by the Holy Spirit. Some understand this to mean that the specific words used by the Apostles were imparted by the Holy Spirit. The Apostles writings and teachings were delivered in a detailed manner, not just to doctrines but down to the very words. …spiritual…there are many thoughts concerning the meaning of this phrase, a popular one is that it speaks to the harmony and consistency between the Old and New Testaments.

Naturally there would be a marked difference from the flowery and dramatic talk one might expect from the orators of that day who constantly courted followers.

Verse 14. Here is the other side of the coin. The natural man, that is the one who is not indwelt by the Holy Spirit, cannot understand the things of the Spirit of God (the Scriptures). God the Holy Spirit communicated the “deep things of God” to the apostles, who by the Spirit’s inspiration, recorded them as Scripture. The Scriptures are thus the things of the Spirit of God, those matters that the Spirit has originated and conveyed.

It follows then that the natural man, that is, one devoid of the Spirit of God, cannot grasp, comprehend or understand the things of the Spirit. He has no spiritual insight. No wonder the things of God seems foolish to the unbeliever. They cannot fathom anything that falls within the realm of the Spirit, for these things are perceived by the aid of the Holy Spirit enlightening the mind and influencing the heart.

The natural man is one governed by sensual passions, animal appetites, natural desires and who is indifferent if not hostile to the Spirit of God. The presence of the indwelling Holy Spirit is the crucial difference between the ‘natural’ and ‘spiritual’ man. True wisdom cannot be grasped by those who are unsaved, by those who do not have the Spirit of God dwelling within them, illuminating the truth of the Scriptures so they can know the deep things of God.

Verse 15. …is spiritual means as opposed to the ‘natural man’ of verse fourteen and refers to his discernment of those truths to which the ‘natural man’ is blind and ignorant. The all things here are those revealed to the Apostles by the Holy Spirit and which are under discussion

It is the presence and guidance of the Holy Spirit that enables the ‘saved’ to evaluate and appraise all things (1 John 2:27) including the behavior and beliefs of the unsaved. They on the other hand have no understanding of Christians and are mystified by our lifestyle, which is in fact a spiritual walk and thus beyond their scope.

Verse 16. The unbeliever is oblivious to the mind of God, and in his ignorance and arrogance he dismisses the things of God as foolish. The believer on the other hand can say we have the mind of Christ. This is most particular to the Apostles as they alone can speak the mind of Christ or more generally, of all the saints who possess the Holy Spirit and the Scriptures. It is through the Scriptures and the Holy Spirit that the “mind of Christ” is conveyed to the saints.

No one can know the mind of the Lord apart from the ministry of the Holy Spirit revealing the Word of God through the apostles and in illuminating the Scriptures to the individual believer.

CONCLUSION

God worked through Paul’s weakness and simplicity to display his wisdom and power. In a place like Corinth it had to be admitted that only God could convince and convert the Corinthians and their faith must therefore be in God

Regarded as foolishness according to human wisdom, the Spirit of God used the weakness of the gospel to transform incorrigible pagans into saints. All those involved in evangelism as all Christians should be, must be aware of the power of the gospel in the hands of the Holy Spirit. “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:16). Paul would have us know that man, with his human reason, cannot know God. God has to reveal Himself to man. God has revealed Himself by the Holy Spirit: through revelation, inspiration, and illumination. When a person becomes a Christian, the Holy Spirit illuminates God's revelation, so that he might understand it. Because the Spirit of God dwells in us, He is our Teacher and we know the truth. The purpose of every minister should be like that of Paul, to preach Christ and him crucified only. If Paul trembled at Corinth in view of dangers and difficulties; if he was conscious of his own weakness and limitations, then we should also learn to be humble.

It must be noted that they are those who often claim to have special spiritual insight or revelation that other Christians do not have. This is a form of spiritual elitism.

But note that it is God’s wisdom that he has given by revelation that is to be the standard.

If we think that we have the mind of Christ we must in every way show it. We cannot say that we are not like the natural man who has no spiritual insight, and yet think like natural men, refusing to spiritually discern things.

These are practical issues, and often believers evade the practical meaning of wisdom. This should not be so.

Servants of God are servants of wisdom. Any behavior that violates the principles of wisdom outlined by the Apostle, is in contradiction to the desires of God. We need to focus on the example of Jesus, and on the example of his apostles. Anything we do must demonstrate the power of the Spirit and our faith must rest on his power alone and not on human wisdom.