Wednesday, 9 April 2014
…that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.1 Corinthians 2:5
In the preceding verse Paul spoke of his speech and preaching. When he came to those at Corinth, it wasn’t with “persuasive words of human wisdom.” Instead he came with a “demonstration of the Spirit and of power.” Now in this verse he explains why – it was for the benefit of his audience. If he came preaching with eloquence and the wisdom of men, they would have been swayed to him and to a message which was devoid of the gospel. But in order to show that his words were to glorify God, he kept them directed to the message of Jesus.
When we hear a message and are swayed by it, we place our faith in it. If we hear a great presentation about the newest product that will help us lose weight, we are bound to put our faith in what we’ve heard and buy the product. If we hear a politician with an ear-tickling message of wealth and prosperity, we may put our faith in him and cast our vote for him.
Whatever the presentation, if it is smooth and properly targeted, we may exercise our faith in what has been said and accept the premise. People do it with products, people, and even religions – all regardless of whether the message is true or not. This is the reason why Paul wrote these words in Galatians 1:6-9 –
“I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.”
In his words to the Galatians, he uses the term “we or an angel from heaven.” Paul was an apostle. Should another apostle come with another message, it is to be rejected. Only the message of the true gospel is acceptable. This is important because even today many claim to be apostles, and yet their message isn’t directed to Jesus. The Bible is written and we are accountable to compare what we hear with the words which have been written.
Angels are considered authoritative speakers who carry heavenly messages. Both Islam and Mormonism claim their message was received by angels. And yet both of them proclaim a message other than the one recorded in the Bible and therefore they cannot be of God. Unfortunately, many are swept up into these false religions because they don’t check with the Bible.
Only through the one true message of Jesus Christ can we avoid falling into a pit of false religion. In the gospel, however, is found the true “power of God.” When the message is received, the believer is sealed with the Holy Spirit and the soul is converted to everlasting life. Paul speaks of this again in 2 Corinthians 4:7 –
“But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.”
Life Application: Test all things and hold fast to what is good. Stand firmly on the truth of the Bible and in the gospel of Jesus Christ alone.
Lord, there are so many people who claim they have seen a vision, heard from an angel, or been taken to heaven and given a tour of glory. But me,,, I have Your word. That is sufficient for me. I know that if I keep my eyes directed to its words, my mind contemplating its truths, and my heart directed to Jesus, whom it proclaims, that I will be in good shape. Keep me from being misdirected from the truth of Your word. Amen.