Dave's Diary

Daily Readings: 1 Corinthians 2 and Psalm 114

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.

Greek society and culture valued philosophy and wisdom very highly at the time of Paul’s ministry. We know from his ministry in Athens that Paul was more than capable of holding his own in the sphere of public philosophical debate (Acts 17:16-34). But despite his ability to present the Gospel in a way that referenced local culture, literature and wisdom, Paul seems to have realised after his short ministry in Athens that this approach yielded very little lasting fruit. The only fruit of this ministry in Athens, which had relied on human wisdom, was “Dionysius, a member of the council; there was also a woman named Damaris, and some other people” (Acts 17:34).

So, when he travelled from Athens to Corinth (Acts 18), Paul says that he consciously resolved to abandon all attempts to impress the Greeks with their own brand of wisdom in order to help them understand the Gospel. Instead, he resolved to trust completely in the simple and apparently foolish message of the Crucified Christ. This was a huge step of faith for him. He knew how the Greek mind worked, and that it would despise this message that salvation comes to us by virtue of Christ’s death and resurrection. After all, he had been ridiculed for this aspect of his message in Athens (17:32).

But, despite his “fear and trembling”, he kept his commitment only to preach the essential truth of the Gospel to the people in Corinth, and to rely on the Spirit’s power to convince his audiences, not the power of his own rhetorical wisdom. The outcome was a very fruitful ministry that led to many believers and to a Church of which he could write: “In (Christ) you have been enriched in every way – with all kinds of speech and with all knowledge – God thus confirming our testimony about Christ among you. Therefore, you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed.” (1:5-7)

Life application: Look for an opportunity to speak to one other person about Jesus, and explain to them in simple words how Jesus lived a perfect life, died for our sins on the Cross so that we could be forgiven, and then rose from the dead so that we could have abundant life in relationship with God forever. Share your own testimony of what He has done in your life. And leave the rest to the Holy Spirit.