Church For the Rest of Us (3)

1 Cor. 2:6 - 3:4

“God’s hidden wisdom in a mystery … ” (1 Corinthians 2:7, HCSB)

In some circles it is polite to ask, ‘Where did you go to school?’ meaning what college or university did you attend?

One of my all-time favorite answers given by more than a few people I’ve known - ‘I graduated from the school of hard knocks.’

Where did you come to know Jesus? Who was preaching? What was the choir singing? What church were you attending? Or perhaps you weren’t in church, or you weren’t listening to a Bible teacher of preacher. Maybe no one sang.

More to the point:

Who mentored you as you developed as a believer?

What pastor/teacher did you rely on to guide and direct you? Would you recommend that pastor/teacher to others?

Who helped you learn to unlock God’s truth?

Listen to Paul as he continues to try and help these believers:

READ PASSAGE

An Eternal Wisdom - from eternity to eternity

Since at least the time of Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea, responsible for sentencing Jesus Christ to death by crucifixion, people have been asking, ‘What is truth?’

If you follow social media at all you probably have read or heard of some Christians who are ‘deconstructing.’

Here is one explanation:

[Deconstruction] has come to generally mean “a critical dismantling of tradition and traditional modes of thought.”

In other words, “deconstruction” has become a kind of shorthand term that, in addition to critically questioning traditional ways of thinking,

[it] also implies a refusal to recognize as authorities those who see themselves (or are perceived to see themselves) as ones who “claim to speak from a privileged perspective” about what truth is.

In the Christian world, this translates to critically questioning traditional modes of Christian belief,

and often refusing to recognize as authorities those perceived as occupying privileged Christian institutional positions who “supposedly speak for God.”

https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/what-does-deconstruction-even-mean

All this to say, the message of the cross, which was all Paul spoke about, is wisdom, but it is wrapped in a mystery.

As Paul spoke to philosophers in Athens they heard his message as foolish babbling - (Acts 17:18).

Yet it is wisdom . One Bible Dictionary offers this definition:

The New Bible Dictionary, Third Edition I. In the Old Testament

the art of being successful, of forming the correct plan to gain the desired results. Its seat is the heart, the centre of moral and intellectual decision

God’s wisdom is clearly different from wisdom as used in the world around us. It is not like the wisdom of Paul’s era or our own.

Rather the wisdom God offers is “hidden in a mystery...”

Paul is not saying that God’s wisdom is hidden or impossible to discern. What he is saying, though, is that God’s wisdom is radically different from what the world acknowledges.

Just this week in the Washington Post an editorial writer posted this ‘received wisdom:’

Everything began, cosmologists currently think, with a bang — the Big Bang; if it does not deserve to be a proper noun, what does? — 13.7 billion years ago.

All the material in the universe, including us, is — literally — stardust … , meaning residues of the explosion.

The light gathered by Webb’s mirrors expands our knowledge of how stars form.

And perish: This is not going to end well.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/01/28/astonishing-james-webb-space-telescope/

In God’s wisdom we learn

Genesis 1:1 HCSB

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

What God in His wisdom reveals about creation - the origin and destiny of the universe - hinges on His spoken and revealed word.

To our world, this is a mystery. But to those who have received the Holy Spirit, well, the mystery is revealed.

Wisdom Revealed by the Holy Spirit

You and I will never out argue a nonbeliever. Paul never relied on sophisticated arguments and rhetorical flourishes to persuade people to place their faith in Jesus.

Once, prior to Paul being sent off to Caesar’s court he spoke to Herod Agrippa, a ruler recognized by Roman authorities. Agrippa’s response:

Acts 26:28 HCSB

Then Agrippa said to Paul, “Are you going to persuade me to become a Christian so easily?”

Paul’s answer is important:

Acts 26:29 HCSB

“I wish before God,” replied Paul, “that whether easily or with difficulty, not only you but all who listen to me today might become as I am—except for these chains.”

Some translations have ‘I pray’ that Herod would respond.

Paul acknowledged that the wisdom of God cannot be attained by education as the world does education.

The only access any of us have to God’s wisdom is via the indwelling Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is not some ‘ephemeral’ feeling that animates or excites us. He is a real person, a real person in the Trinity. He has specific assignments and responsibilities.

What is important in this context is simply this:

God’s wisdom is not attained by study or by any human efforts. the wisdom of God is revealed, not discovered!

As Paul clearly explains, those who are not yet believers/followers of Jesus cannot discover these truths. They are given only via the Holy Spirit as He works in the heart and mind of the believer.

Because of the indwelling Holy Spirit believers have a wisdom that is not of this world. Believers have a wisdom that reflects nothing less than the mind of Christ.

And knowing that Jesus is the fullness of God revealed to us, having access to His mind is having access to the mind of God.

Self-Centered vs Spirit Led

Paul identifies the believers in Corinth using three similar words.

1 Corinthians 2:14 (HCSB)

But the unbeliever does not welcome what comes from God’s Spirit, because it is foolishness to him; he is not able to understand it since it is evaluated spiritually.

The word ‘unbeliever’ specifically refers to one who is ‘entirely human’ or ‘natural.’[

1 Corinthians 3:1 (HCSB)

Brothers, I was not able to speak to you as spiritual people but as people of the flesh, as babies in Christ.

Paul speaks to people as those who are motivated strictly by their human drives, with no reference to the spiritual at all.

1 Corinthians 3:3 (HCSB)

because you are still fleshly. For since there is envy and strife among you, are you not fleshly and living like unbelievers?

Here Paul is identifying these as believers - that is those who have received the Holy Spirit - but are trying to live a ‘Christian’ life in their own sufficiency.

One commentator has written,

The First Epistle to the Corinthians (c. The Inapplicability of the Term “Spiritual” in the Face of Infantile Status-Seeking (3:1–4))

...what is at issue is the anomaly of Christians who are nominally or in principle focused on Christ but in practice and in stance still focused on the interests of the self.Is it really possible for an individual to be ‘born again’ and yet more focused on their own interests, ignoring the presence of the Holy Spirit?

Paul is carefully building his case that he summarizes in 1 Corinthians 3:18

1 Corinthians 3:18 HCSB

No one should deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks he is wise in this age, he must become foolish so that he can become wise.

Reflect and Respond

What diet are you following?

No, not Keto, or Paleo, intermittent fasting, or zero carbs… or whatever the current diet of the day might be.

What are you feeding on spiritually?

One suggestion is to take what one author describes as

the five-day challenge. For five days, track the number of minutes you spend taking in media, including social media, and compare it with the amount of Scripture you take in.

“As a follower of Christ in an era of so much information, I’ve got to be really intentional that the Word of God is shaping my thoughts so that it shapes my life.”

https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2018/october-web-only/fake-news-christian-media-rethink.html

Coming the church may expose you to as much as 2 hours of Bible intake per week…how does that compare to your intake of time in front of the TV or computer screen?

How are your relationships inside the church family?

As we have seen, Paul was writing to a church that practiced and even encouraged division -

1 Corinthians 3:4 HCSB

For whenever someone says, “I’m with Paul,” and another, “I’m with Apollos,” are you not unspiritual people?

I can’t imagine people holding to the different leaders getting along very well, can you?

Is there an atmosphere of love among the folks here? Do you work at learning to love one another - even those who are unloveable?

How engaged are you in using your spiritual gifts?

Paul was not writing to believers in Corinth because he thought they were unsaved! As a matter of fact, none of Paul’s letters were written specifically unbelievers! They were written to churches - gatherings of believers. As we saw in 1 Cor 3:1 Paul identified those in Corinth as ‘infants’ in Christ.

It occurs to me that those believers who are engaged in studying God’s Word, praying for and with others, and finding ways to serve their community rarely have time to parade for their favorite Bible teacher or preacher.

Certainly we have preferences and there is nothing wrong with them.

If you find yourself with lots of empty time on your hands, call me…or look on the help wanted board in back of the auditorium...

Only you know if you are growing in Christ...

What choices can you make today to insure you are growing in Christ?

What gifts do you believe God has given you…and are you willing to exercise them?