1 Corinthians 2:9

1 Corinthians 2:9 says, But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.   Paul made quite a statement here.  Paul said that there was no way for people to really understand all the things that God has already prepared for those that love Him.  We are not promised great riches here on earth, but we can rest assured in God's promise of an everlasting and abundant life through our faith in salvation through Christ.  Verse ten adds, But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.  Paul tells us that the only way to begin to understand God is through the Spirit of God.  We do not need to understand everything that heaven will be to understand the gift of salvation.  We are not told that the Spirit will reveal everything there is to know about God, because our finite minds could not comprehend it.  We, through the leadership of the Holy Spirit, should gain a greater knowledge of God every day.  We are told to grow in knowledge of God.  At the time of our salvation, we are as a newborn child, and we need to grow into mature Christians.  We cannot believe that since we are saved, born again into God's family, that we need not continue to learn more about God.  Verse eleven continues, For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Paul stated that the only way we can know the things of man is because we are born as humans.  The other animals cannot understand the things of man.  Likewise, we cannot begin to understand the things of God until we have received the Holy Spirit after our acceptance of Christ as our Savior and Lord.  Verse twelve states, Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.  As Paul stated then, we no longer live by the spirit of the world, but by the Spirit of God.  We have been changed into a new creature.  We can now freely understand the gifts that God has given us.  Until we accept Christ as our Savior and Lord, we may think the good things in life are something we earned, or that fate or luck gave them to us.  As followers of Christ, we know that all good things come from God.  Verse thirteen adds, Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.  Paul stated here that Christians have a new message, not guided by the teachings of this world, but by the teachings of God, or the spiritual things.  We are not called on to prove Christ historically, but to believe Christ today through faith.  Verse fourteen continues, But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.  We cannot know the things of God until we accept salvation through Christ and are filled with and led by the Holy Spirit.  We cannot find God nor understand God unless we come to Him in faith believing in Christ as the only way to salvation.  Verse fifteen says, But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.  If we are living under the Lordship of Christ, we are able to judge all things as to whether they are right or wrong, and at the same time no one can judge us.  Christ alone has the authority to judge our actions, because we are bought by His sacrifice and sustained by the Holy Spirit.  Verse sixteen adds, For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.  Paul first asks who can know the mind of the Lord, and then answers that believers can, because they have the mind of Christ.  All of our thoughts and actions should be determined by following what we know Christ would have us do.

1 Corinthians 2:1

1 Corinthians 2:1 says, And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God.  Paul was a very educated man, but he did not come to people with eloquent speech, proclaiming his power as he did when persecuting Christians, but instead came with the simple message of Christ.  As followers of Christ today, that is how we must come to people.  We cannot witness out of a feeling of superiority, but as humble servants of God.  We do not need eloquent words, only the simple message of Christ crucified, resurrected, and Lord.  Verse two adds, For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified. Today, people who are lost many times like to argue about God and why He does or doesn't do certain things, but our message must always be the simple truth of the gospel.  Verse three continues, And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.  Paul did not say that he was never afraid, but that even when he was afraid, he still came to them proclaiming the gospel. We are not called to be supermen, never knowing that we could place our lives in danger for the gospel, but we are called to place our fears in God's hands and to continue witnessing for Christ.  Elijah fled in fear after experiencing a great display of God's power, but when he heard God in a quiet voice, not in displays of power, he was revived in faith.  If we are suddenly overcome with fear, we need simply to listen for God's voice to strengthen us.  Through the Holy Spirit God is with us always so we have no need to fear. Verse four states, And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:  If we want to be effective witnesses, we need to demonstrate the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives.  As Paul said, enticing words are not enough. People could see the change in Paul's life, and they should be able to see it in ours.  Verse five Paul adds, That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.  Paul knew that the wisdom of men could lead people away from God, but that faith in God gave them the ability to overcome any doubts they had.  This remains true today.  We must follow God in faith even if the world calls us weak and foolish.  Verse six continues, Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought:  When Paul spoke of those who were perfect, he was speaking about those who viewed themselves that way.  Paul spoke to them with the wisdom of God, not the wisdom of man that they put their faith in.  We today must approach those that we witness to the same way.  We have the power of God with us.  Verse seven says, But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:  God's wisdom is indeed a mystery to those who do not know Him. Salvation through the death of Christ is a hidden mystery to those who do not see it through faith in God.  This was God's plan of salvation from the beginning.  Verse eight adds, Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.  Paul states that if the princes of the world, those in power, had known Who Christ was, they would not have crucified Him.  If people today understood Who Christ really is, they likewise would not reject His gift of salvation.  Unfortunately, worldly wisdom and power often come between people and the cross.

1 Corinthians 1:25

1 Corinthians 1:25 states, Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.  Paul stated what we must always understand, and that is even what we might consider as the foolishness and weaknesses of God is still so much more wisdom and strength than we will ever have.  We might question why God used the crucifixion of Christ on the cross to bring salvation to the world, but we can never question the wisdom and power of God displayed there.  We today hear about scientists discovering something new that will help us understand the world and how man came into existence, but as followers of Christ are we already know the answer.  God created and sustains the universe.  Some people say that this explanation is just too simple, and that people have to be foolish to believe it.  I personally think that someone has to be more foolish to believe that big explosion in the existing world brought about the order in the universe.  I have never seen where an accidental explosion brought about anything but disorder and destruction.  Verse twenty-six adds, For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called:  Paul told the early believers in Christ that they could see that not many of the strong and mighty men after the flesh were called.  I believe that since Paul was speaking to Christians, he meant that not many of the strong and wise after the flesh had accepted the call to salvation.  We know that God calls all people to salvation, but often their status in the world prevents some from believing in salvation through the cross, which is the only way to find salvation.  Verse twenty-seven continues, But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;  I believe what Paul was declaring here is that God uses what the world thinks of as foolish and weak to accomplish His will so that there can be no doubt that He is the One at work.  If we had to have great knowledge and be in power to find God, then most of the world would miss out, from one aspect or the other.  God makes salvation easy to obtain so that all may come to Him.  Verse twenty-eight states, And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: There could be little more base than death on the cross, yet God chose this method to bring salvation to the world.  In death, it becomes as though we are not, or that we no longer exist, in the eyes of the world, but we know as followers of Christ that death is but a transformation.  Verse twenty-nine adds, That no flesh should glory in his presence.  There is no way for us to glory, to feel that we have earned salvation, in the presence of God.  We did not gain salvation by our wisdom and strength, but solely by the mercy of God.  Verse thirty says, But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:  Paul again states the only way to salvation is through Christ.  Christ is everything we need to be restored to a right relationship with God, and faith in Him is the only way we may be restored.  Verse thirty-one concludes, That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.  In Christ alone can we glory.  If we begin to glory in anything other than Christ, we need to repent and return to obedience of God.  The Holy Spirit will always guide and correct us if we only listen.

1 Corinthians 1:19

1 Corinthians 1:19 states, For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.  I believe Paul was stating that we can never come to God thorough the wisdom of the world, but the world's wisdom is what will ultimately fail.  There are many very intelligent people in the world today who not only do not believe in God but attempt to discredit His very existence.  One day, though, all their wisdom will be destroyed, but the God that they denied will still be God.  Verse twenty adds, Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?  Paul was asking a question that should have been answered that those who would not accept the salvation of Christ were nowhere spiritually.  All their wisdom and teachings amounted to nothing.  There is only one way to salvation, and that is through faith Christ, which is so simple that even a child can understand it.  Verse twenty-one continues, For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.  We can never find God through the wisdom of the world, and I believe that the more a person accepts the wisdom of the world the harder it becomes to accept the gospel.  Paul stated that it was by the foolishness of preaching that God chose to reach the world.  God has unlimited methods to bring about salvation, but He chose accepting Christ as Savior and Lord through faith.  This is nothing complex, so to many in the world it is foolish for this reason.  Many people do not want to admit that salvation is not something that they can obtain by their own abilities. Verse twenty-two states, For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:  The Jews in Paul's day were looking for a sign that the Messiah was here, and missed the sign when it came.  They were not looking for a suffering Servant but a conquering King, so they missed the sign of the cross. The Greeks were seeking wisdom, and the cross seemed foolishness to them as a way to victory over the world.  Verse twenty-three declares, But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;  Unfortunately, this remains true today.  For the Jew today, Christ is still a stumbling block, and for the unsaved of the world, salvation through a crucified Savior is still foolishness.  Verse twenty-four adds, But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.  Paul declared that to those who accepted salvation through Christ that Christ was the power and wisdom of God.  This is a truth that we as followers of Christ can never doubt.  Christ's crucifixion revealed both the power and wisdom of God.  It represents the power because sin and spiritual death were defeated for all time.  It represents the wisdom of God since it represents the only way to salvation and is based only on faith in that fact.

1 Corinthians 1:10

1 Corinthians 1:10 says, Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.  Paul was asking those who made up the church at Corinth to be united through their faith in Christ.  We are to be the same way today.  Some people can almost become so proud of their church, their local body of believers, that they feel that they are superior to other bodies of believers.  We must never feel superior nor inferior to any group of believers, but we must all be united through Christ.  Verse eleven adds, For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you.  Church problems are nothing new but began almost from the time the church was formed.  Paul said it had come to his attention that there were contentions among the members of the church at Corinth.  Paul did not just help establish churches and forget them.  He remained in prayer and concerned for them.  We should have that same concern for not only our local church, but for churches everywhere.  There is no room for contention in the body of Christ, which is what we as believers are.  Verse twelve continues, Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.  Some of the believers were claiming to be more important because of the person who baptized them.  When they began to do this, they were missing a key concept of salvation, and that is that we are all equal at the cross.  The way we came to salvation is not what is important.  The only important thing is that we came to salvation through the sacrifice of Christ on the cross.  Verse thirteen asks, Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?  The first question was whether or not Christ was divided.  I believe this was asking if Christ was a greater Savior for some than for others, making them greater in the eyes of God and their fellow believers.  Paul asked if they were being baptized because he had saved them.  The answer was that only through Christ could there be salvation and that no one was more saved than another.  Verse fourteen adds, I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius;  Paul was thankful that he had baptized very few, and in the next verse he gives the reason.  Verse fifteen continues, Lest any should say that I had baptized in mine own name. 

Paul didn't want anyone to think that he was baptizing people in his own name.  The act of baptism itself was what was symbolic of the death, burial and resurrection of Christ, not the one who was performing the baptism.  Verse sixteen says, And I baptized also the household of Stephanas: besides, I know not whether I baptized any other.  I believe Paul was simply continuing to emphasize that it was unimportant who baptized those who were followers of Christ.  Paul himself did not want anyone to claim that they were better because he had baptized them.  Verse seventeen adds, For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. Paul said his calling was to preach the gospel, and even in that he was not called to convince people with eloquent words, but simply with the message of the cross.  This is still our message and purpose today. We are to lead people to a knowledge of salvation through the cross, and who we may have been baptized by is not to be a point of pride or contention.  Verse eighteen continues, For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.  The gospel indeed sounds foolish to those who refuse to believe it, but to believers it is the power of God. God calls us to salvation and unity through Christ, so no one has a reason to feel superior or inferior to any other Christian.

1 Corinthians 1:1

1 Corinthians 1:1 says, Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,  As always, Paul identifies himself to those he is writing to .  We do not know much about Sosthenes, except he was with Paul and accepted by Paul as a brother in Christ.  When we read things today that are written about God, we need to make certain that we know who it is that is writing them.  Not everyone who writes about Who God is and what He wants from us is a born-again believer in Christ.  Paul said he was called to be an apostle, and we need to be sure that if we are reading things written about God that they are written by someone who is God's servant through a call and acceptance of Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.  If what is presented is not consistent with the teachings of the Bible, we need to avoid it.  That would include what I write.  If anything that I say goes against the teachings of the Bible be certain that what I write is wrong.  Verse two adds, Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:  Paul's letter had a specific group that it was addressed to, but it had a universal message.  Paul wrote to the church at Corinth, those who were sanctified in Christ Jesus.  This is what the church always was and always will be, and that is a group of sinners saved by grace.  Paul expanded his audience to include all who called upon Jesus as Savior and Lord in every place.  That would include us today as followers of Christ.  Verse three continues, Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. There is only one way that we can find peace, and that is through the grace of God.  When we are living under the Lordship of Christ, we can really know peace, no matter what may be going on around us.  Verse four states, I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ; Paul was always thankful for his fellow believers.  This should be our attitude as well.  We should always lift each other up in prayer and never let little disagreements come between us.  We are to be united in our love for Christ.  Verse five adds, That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge;  Paul's prayer was that they would be enriched in everything by their salvation and the lordship of Christ.  We today should always be enriched by our relationship with Christ.  This does not mean materially enriched, but spiritually enriched.  Verse six continues, Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you: Paul prayed that their salvation might be confirmed. Salvation is more than just saying the right words.  Salvation brings a change of heart that should be confirmed in our lives always.  Verse seven says, So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ:  Paul prayed that the followers of Christ around him would use their spiritual gifts.  When all believers use the spiritual gifts that God has given them, then the gospel can be spread effectively.  We are called to be at work for God while we await the return of Christ.  Verse eight adds, Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. Christ, when He returns, will confirm us for all time, and if we are following Him obediently, He confirms us daily.  Again, this does not mean that one day we are God's and the next day lost to Him, but that we can be effective or ineffective in our witness for Him.  Verse nine continues, God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.  We can always rely on God to be faithful to us.  We have an everlasting fellowship with God through Christ.  This alone should cause us to rejoice every day.

Joel Review

We need to review what Joel has to say to us today, because as always, if we do not see the relevance of God's written word to us, we are missing the importance of it.  First, we can never rely on the powers of this world to protect us.  No matter how powerful we may be as a nation this is not where our security lies.  As followers of Christ, our security comes from God alone.  Also, we need to acknowledge that God does not need military power to destroy a nation.  He used insects in Joel's day, and He can use anything today to accomplish His purpose.  I read a few years ago about a man who said that he now believed that the world could end because with nuclear weapons man for the first time had the ability to accomplish it.  He missed the point though.  The ability to destroy or sustain the world does not rest with man, but with God.  We need to acknowledge that when those who call themselves God's rebel against Him, He will allow punishment to come upon them.  We must also acknowledge that we can only be God's through a covenant relationship with Him.  For us today, that covenant relationship comes through Christ alone.  If we claim to be God's people through any other means, then we are deceiving ourselves.  We can also be certain that if we are really followers of Christ, God secures us to Him forever.  Just as salvation is not of our own merit, neither does everlasting security come from our own actions.  We have God's promise that nothing can separate us from Him once we are born again into His kingdom.  If we stray from His will, though we may lose the joy of our salvation, we do not lose our salvation.  God waits ready to restore that joy as soon as we repent and return to Him.  This should make us a rejoicing people.  We are God's forever.