1 Coríntios 2
John MacArthur · Citado em PreceptAustin
1 Coríntios 2
MacArthur - Paul is saying "all human wisdom is passing away. It is empty, futile, and comes to naught." (ED: BELOVED, DOES THIS TEMPORAL FATE OF MAN'S WISDOM NOT MAKE YOU WANT TO FOCUS ON BECOMING WISE WITH THE ONLY WISDOM THAT ENDURES ETERNALLY? AND THE BEST WAY IS BY READING THE BIBLE, INSTEAD OF READING THE LATEST BEST SELLERS, WATCHING THE MOST POPULAR MOVIES, ETC, ETC - SEE 1 Peter 1:25+ "THE WORD OF THE LORD ENDURES FOREVER.” And this is the word which was preached to you.;"). Arnold on the rulers of this age - This means more than just the unsaved officials of Paul’s day (Jews and Romans) but must be expanded to the leaders of thought, the mind benders, the shapers of public opinion, the philosophers, sociologists, the politicians of any day. These brilliant minds know nothing of God’s wisdom. They do not understand this body of truth and that is why all their proposals, schemes and plans never really solve anything in the long run. Without God at the center of man’s thinking, the universe and life are a riddle, a maze and make no sense at all. We are the victims of a cosmic joke. This divine wisdom cannot be learned in the secular university. No philosopher speaking outside the Christian framework ever unfolds this truth. No psychologist or psychiatrist who is not instructed from the scripture knows anything about this divine wisdom. This truth can only be taught by Christians because it is spiritually understood. THOUGHT - Most of us believers are not wise, not mighty, not noble (1 Cor 1:26-27+), and so we might often feel inadequate in the presence of the powerful people like Warren Buffett or the brilliant minds like Carl Sagan or Albert Einstein or Bertrand Russell. And perhaps we become a bit dejected that we were not given all these attributes in this present life. Oh, yes, we know that our rewards and blessings are coming in the future. But this verse should undergird our confidence and faith in the present because while our IQ or bank account may be no match for these brilliant, wealthy, aristocratic men and women of our world, we have something they cannot even begin to fathom. We have access to the wisdom of God, something priceless which they do not possess and could not purchase! Their lofty wisdom is already in the process of fading away, while our wisdom in Christ will endure in this life and the life to come. So be encouraged beloved by your "spiritual IQ", your "brilliance" regarding the wisdom of God, for you surpass all of the rulers of this age! John add that "The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever." (1 John 2:17+) Vine - “The rulers of this world” are those whose policy is occupied solely with the affairs of this present world-period, during which mankind is in the darkness of alienation from God, and under “the prince of this world.” Note on rulers - Beginning with Marcion and continuing to Origen (Conzelmann 1975:61), many early writers thought this word (archōn [758, 807]) referred to demons, evil spirits who command the arena of human activity. This is related to the view that ancients believed the lights in the sky were super-spirits who orchestrated world affairs (still persisting in astrological charts today). Although Paul did use this word in the singular to refer to Satan, in line with other NT authors (Eph 2:2; cf. Matt 9:34; 12:24; John 14:30; 16:11), in this context the meaning is almost certainly human rulers since its repetition in 2:8 clearly refers to those governing bodies and individuals who presided over Jesus’ crucifixion (Cornerstone Bible Commentary) Wisdom (4678) see above on sophia Passing away (Bringing to end, doing away with, nullifying) (2673)(katargeo from kata = intensifies meaning + argeo = to be idle or inactive from argos = ineffective, idle, inactive from a = without + érgon = work) literally means to reduce to inactivity. The idea is to make the power or force of something ineffective and so to render powerless, reduced to inactivity, done away with, put out of use, causing them to be useless and ineffective. The wisdom of rulers will come to an end. The word often portrays things that are destroyed, as in 1 Cor 15:24, 26. Katargeo in the letters to Corinth - 1 Co. 1:28; 1 Co. 2:6; 1 Co. 6:13; 1 Co. 13:8; 1 Co. 13:10; 1 Co. 13:11; 1 Co. 15:24; 1 Co. 15:26; 2 Co. 3:7; 2 Co. 3:11; 2 Co. 3:13; 2 Co. 3:14. THE WISDOM OF THIS AGE - Philosophy admires the Life of Jesus, but would pass over the Death of Jesus. Philosophy believes in the Example of Jesus, but turn from the Redemption of Jesus. Philosophy doesn't object to the Cradle of Jesus, but it Vigorously opposes to the Cross of Jesus. 1 Corinthians 2:7 but we speak God's wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory;
1 Coríntios 2
MacArthur - The crucifixion is proof that the rulers of this age did not have God’s wisdom. Had they understood it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. Neither the leaders of the Jews, to whom the gospel was a stumbling block, nor the leaders of the Gentiles, to whom it was foolishness, understood God’s divine wisdom. In their ignorance of God, their willing ignorance, they executed His Son. Paul’s own testimony demonstrates that ignorance (1 Tim. 1:12–13). That is the outcome of human wisdom. In the world’s eyes, Jesus was anything but glorious The Lord of glory - Only use of this description in the NT. The Lord of glory of course is Jesus Who was first given this great in Ps 24:10+ "Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, He is the King of glory. Selah." See also Acts 7:2+ ("The God of glory"); James 2:1; Ephesians 1:17).
1 Coríntios 2
MacArthur - That free quotation from Isaiah 64:4 and Isa 65:17 is often memorized. But it is also frequently misapplied. Paul is not referring to the wonders of heaven, but to the wisdom God has prepared for believers. His point is that the natural eyes, ears, and hearts of men cannot know or comprehend His wisdom. It is prepared only for those who love Him. Neither externally nor internally, objectively nor subjectively, can man discover God. His (ED: HE IS SPEAKING OF THE NATURAL MAN, UNREGENERATE MAN WHOSE) external searching is empirical (ED: based on, concerned with, or verifiable by observation or experience, pragmatic), experimental—represented by seeing and hearing. God’s truth is NOT observable by the eye or the ear, no matter how many sophisticated instruments we may use. We are just as helpless in trying to discover His truth subjectively, through our minds (heart). Rationalism cannot reason out God’s truth. Man’s two greatest human resources, empiricism and rationalism, (ED: a belief or theory that opinions and actions should be based on reason and knowledge rather than on religious belief) his observation and his reason, are equally USELESS in discovering divine truth. They will always, in fact, eventually turn men against divine truth. Ultimately they lead men to crucify Christ. But God’s truth, God’s plan, God’s wisdom, is NOT hidden from His children. (1 Corinthians MacArthur New Testament Commentary) (Bolding added)
1 Coríntios 2
MacArthur explains that "The we’s and the us of verses 12–13 do not refer to Christians in general but to Paul himself (and the apostles). God’s Word is for all believers, but was revealed only to the apostles and the other writers of Scripture. Only those men properly can be said to have been inspired." MacArthur Study Bible - The wisdom that saves, which man's wisdom can't know, is revealed to us by God. He makes it known by revelation, inspiration, and illumination. Revelation (1Co 2:10, 11) and inspiration (1Co 2:12, 13) were given to those who wrote the Bible; illumination (1Co 2:14-16) is given to all believers who seek to know and understand that divinely written truth. In each case, the Holy Spirit is the divine agent doing the work (cf. 2Pe 1:21). (MacArthur Study Bible) Paul Apple - see below for his interpretative outline of 1 Cor 2:10-16 - Revelation, Inspiration, Illumination Arnold - In context the "US" must refer to the Apostles. The wisdom of God was first revealed to the Apostles who in turn recorded it in scripture through the inspiration process. The truth is that God’s wisdom cannot be known by the mind, the senses, nor by study and research. It can only be known by revelation. If the Christian is to understand Christianity, it must come as the Holy Spirit enlightens and illumines him to the truth. The Father has sent the Holy Spirit who is commissioned to instruct us with the Word of God and lead us into the truth of God which will change our lives and expose us to the secret, hidden wisdom of God. When we begin to discover God’s wisdom, life is going to be more exciting and adventurous because as we begin to encounter God’s wisdom more and more we are set free to be the men and women God had designed us to be. (1 Corinthians 2:14-16 Understanding The Truth) R C H Lenski (comment on v10) - The emphatic ἡμῖν, “TO US,” does not refer to Christians in general but resumes the silent “we” of the two λαλοῦμεν, “we speak,” occurring in v. 6 and 7, namely the apostles who are commissioned to speak this wisdom and to make it known. MacDonald on to us - In other words, these truths foretold in the OT were made known to the apostles of the NT era. The US refers to the writers of the NT. It was by the Spirit of God that the apostles and prophets were enlightened (Believer’s Bible Commentary) Kenneth
1 Coríntios 2
MacArthur- The natural man cannot know or understand the things of the Spirit of God because they can only be spiritually appraised. Spiritual is in opposition to natural, and thus refers to the inner capacity of the redeemed to grasp God’s truth. God’s Word is spiritually evaluated, spiritually discerned, spiritually understood—and the natural man is spiritually dead. The psalmist understood the need for God’s illumination of His Word. He prayed, “Open my eyes, that I may behold wonderful things from Thy law” (Ps. 119:18). He did not need the Lord’s help to read His Word, but he knew he needed His help to understand it. Martin Luther said, “The Bible cannot be understood simply by study or talent; you must count only on the influence of the Holy Spirit.” John
1 Coríntios 2
MacArthur - The believer has a resident Truth Teacher to enlighten him about all the things of God about which he needs to know. “As for you,” John wrote, “the anointing which you received from Him abides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you; but as His anointing teaches you about all things, and is true and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you abide in Him” (1 John 2:27+). The Holy Spirit takes God’s Word, the Word which He has revealed and inspired, and illuminates it for those in whom He dwells. Unlike God’s revelation and inspiration, which were given to the biblical writers, His illumination is for all Christians. We all can rightly appraise the Word when we rely on the Giver of the Word. Pritchard - The term “spiritual” does not refer to a special class of Christians. Sometimes we hear certain believers called “spiritual” as if they were “super-Christians.” That’s definitely not what Paul means here. To be “spiritual” means to have the Holy Spirit in your life. If you are a Christian at all, the Holy Spirit indwells your body. So the “spiritual” equals “the saved” or “the believer” or “the born again.”....Those who are spiritual understand God’s truth because the Spirit lives in them. That’s the implication of the phrase—”the spiritual man makes judgments about all things.” (NIV) The verb “makes judgments” translates a word (anakrino) that means to appraise something. In the art world, there are certain people who are full time art appraisers. They can look at a painting and say, “That’s a forgery. It’s worthless.” Or “That’s worth $5,000 at auction.” Or “That’s a Rembrandt. It will fetch at least $7 million.”.....Paul says that because we have the Holy Spirit, we can properly appraise the real value of things. Yet he himself is appraised by no one - Stevenson explains that "The world looks at the spiritual man and cannot correctly discern why he is different. To all outward indications, he appears to be the same. He looks the same. His facial characteristics are the same. He has the same intellect. He has the same natural ability.It takes another spiritual man to understand a spiritual man. Just as it is impossible for the world to understand the message of the cross, so also it is impossible for the world to understand the people of the cross." John
1 Coríntios 2:10-16
MacArthur - TOO LITTLE THOUGHT For “who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ. 1 CORINTHIANS 2:16 Some people assume worry is the result of too much thinking. But in reality it’s the result of too little thinking in the right direction. When we were saved, we received a new mind or way of thinking. Now our human thought patterns are injected with divine and supernatural ones. The apostle Paul said, “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Rom. 8:5–6). Because of the Spirit of God in our lives, we think on a spiritual level, not a fleshly one. Paul also said, “Of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption” (1 Cor. 1:30). Since God imparts His wisdom to us, we can think the deep thoughts of the eternal God. (Truth for Today) Max Lucado - Changed to His Likeness - February 22 We Christians actually do have within us a portion of the very thoughts and mind of Christ. 1 CORINTHIANS 2:16 TLB The distance between our hearts and [Jesus’ heart] seems so immense. How could we ever hope to have the heart of Jesus? Ready for a surprise? You already do.… If you are in Christ, you already have the heart of Christ. One of the supreme yet unrealized promises of God is simply this: if you have given your life to Jesus, Jesus has given himself to you. He has made your heart his home. It would be hard to say it more succinctly than Paul does: “Christ lives in me” (Gal. 2:20 MSG).… He has moved in and unpacked his bags and is ready to change you “into his likeness from one degree of glory to another” (2 Cor. 3:18 RSV). Just Like Jesus (Grace for the Moment) God Loveth Adverbs - Philip Yancey - But we have the mind of Christ. —1 Corinthians 2:16 - The Puritans wisely sought to connect all of life to its source in God, bringing the two worlds together rather than dividing them into sacred and secular. They had a saying, “God loveth adverbs; and careth not how good, but how well.” Adverbs describe verbs—our words of action and activity. The proverb implies that God cares more about the spirit in which we live than the concrete results. Pleasing God doesn’t mean that we must busy ourselves with a new set of “spiritual” activities. As the Puritans said, whether cleaning house or preaching sermons, shoeing horses or translating the Bible, any human activity may constitute an offering to God. We spend much time immersed in the mundane. “But we have the mind of Christ,” Paul reminds us (1 Cor. 2:16). That truth is to guide everything we do. Caring for an elderly parent. Cleaning up after a child. Sitting on a porch with a neighbor. Fielding a customer’s complaint. Filling out patient charts at a nurses’ station. Sitting in traffic. Sawing lumber. Reporting tips. Shopping for groceries. In the common round of duty Lift thy heart in praise; For the Lord hath surely promised Strength for all thy days. Tovey The world crowns success; God crowns faithfulness! Whom Do We Sound Like? - Mart De Haan - We have the mind of Christ. —1 Corinthians 2:16 - French scientists have succeeded in causing chickens to sound like quail. Researchers took tissue from the part of the Japanese quail brain thought to control the bird’s call, and they implanted it in the brains of five chicken embryos. The experiment worked. Researchers say the hatched chicks sounded like quail. Here’s a far greater miracle: God has “implanted” the mind of Christ in those who have accepted His Son as their Savior. First Corinthians 2:12 tells us that the Spirit of God has taken up residence in us. In some mysterious way we now have a capacity for divine wisdom that no scholarly degree or natural experience could ever provide. Having the mind of Christ enables us to see life increasingly from God’s perspective. This doesn’t mean that we can think on God’s level and instruct Him (v.16). But it does mean that we have a new capacity to think and talk and act more and more like Christ Himself. May the mind of Christ my Savior Live in me from day to day; By His love and power controlling All I do and say. —Wilkinson To think and talk like Christ, you must walk with Christ.
1 Coríntios 2:10-16
MacArthur explains that "God’s Word is for all believers, but was revealed only to the apostles and the other writers of Scripture. Only those men properly can be said to have been inspired. The promise of John 14:26 (“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit … will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you”) is for the benefit of all believers, but (Ed: Special revelation) was given only to the apostles. Paul and the other writers of Scripture did not record their own ideas and interpretations. They recorded what God gave them and only what He gave them." Received (2983)(lambano) means to take, to receive in whatever manner. Not (ou) signifies absolute (not relative) negation! Not the spirit of the world - The spirit of the world has been interpreted several ways as worldly wisdom (Pratt), worldly reasoning (Hodge), demonic spirits (e.g., Paul describes "the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience" in Eph 2:2+ the least likely interpretation). While clearly the way the lost world thinks is influenced by Satan and his emissaries, the immediate context would seem to be favor the idea of worldly wisdom. Wuest paraphrases it as "the spirit of the world system."
1 Coríntios 2:10-16
MacArthur - USING SPIRITUAL GIFTS “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things freely given to us by God.” 1 Cor 2:12 To be effective, spiritual gifts must be used in the power of the Holy Spirit, not in the power of the flesh. One of the constant battles all believers face is to avoid ministering their spiritual gifts in the power of the flesh. Even those of us who are called to be preachers (prophets) need to subject our spirits to other mature believers (1 Cor. 14:32). As a pastor, I am not spiritual just because I stand behind a pulpit and preach. Paul instructs us, “Let two or three prophets speak, and let others pass judgment” (1 Cor. 14:29). Those who teach God’s Word are not infallible; therefore, they must allow other qualified believers to verify the truth of what they proclaim. Whenever Christians rely on their own strength, wisdom, and desire to minister, whatever they accomplish is a mockery and a waste. But whenever they minister by the Spirit’s power, the result is pleasing to God and has lasting value (“gold, silver, precious stones…. If any man’s work which he has built upon it remains, he shall receive a reward,” 1 Cor. 3:12, 14). Essentially, all a believer needs to pray is, “Spirit of God, use me,” and divine energy will activate and flow through his or her ministry to fellow believers and unbelievers. You can use your spiritual gift effectively by faithfully following three basic steps: Pray—continually confess and turn from your sins (1 John 1:9) and ask God to use you in the Holy Spirit’s power. Yield yourself—always determine to live according to God’s will, not the world’s (Rom. 6:16; 12:1–2). Be filled with the Spirit—let the Spirit control all of your thoughts, decisions, words, and actions. Commit everything to Him, and He will minister through you. Suggestions for Prayer: Confess any and all times lately that you have counted on your human ability rather than on the Spirit’s power to minister to others. ✧ Pray that this week God would give you a clear opportunity to exercise your spiritual gift for His glory. For Further Study: Read 1 Samuel 15:1–23. In what way did King Saul use his own insight rather than follow God’s command? ✧ What can be the consequence of such disobedience (vv. 22–23; see also 1 Sam. 13:8–14)? (Strength for Today) Charles Stanley - FAITH VERSUS REASON SCRIPTURE READING: 1 CORINTHIANS 2:12 KEY VERSE: 1 CORINTHIANS 2:12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. The wisdom of God was to make the way of salvation easy and simple. True to His Word, He has confounded the wise. Many “intellectuals” consider the Cross foolishness, but they should consider God’s wisdom for a moment. If you were God, separated from the people you created because of their sin, what would be the easiest method by which you could restore them to your eternal forgiveness and fellowship? Would it be a hard and fast list of certain physical or intellectual requirements? Wouldn’t that cheapen the salvation and build no lasting covenant or meaningful relationship? No, the simplest way was for God to send His own Son in the form of a sinless Man to serve as a sacrifice for sin. The best and simplest plan would call for man’s salvation to therefore be attained in one word. Just one word. Faith. Is it not immeasurable wisdom that forges a salvation plan so simple that even a five-year-old can grasp it? But the wisdom of the true God befuddles the wisdom of the world. He sacrificed His Son as a free gift to all who would believe in Him. “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God” (1 Corinthians 2:12). Lord, the message of the gospel is so clear and so puzzling to the human mind. I embrace it in its simplicity and pray for Your wisdom that I might increase in faith. (Pathways to His Presence) Spurgeon's Morning and Evening devotional applies the principle of 1Cor 2:12 - Dear reader, have you received the spirit which is of God, wrought by the Holy Ghost in your soul? The necessity of the work of the Holy Spirit in the heart may be clearly seen from this fact, that all which has been done by God the Father, and by God the Son, must be ineffectual to us, unless the Spirit shall reveal these things to our souls. What effect does the doctrine of election have upon any man until the Spirit of God enters into him? Election is a dead letter in my consciousness until the Spirit of God calls me out of darkness into marvelous light. Then through my calling, I see my election, and knowing myself to be called of God, I know myself to have been chosen in the eternal purpose. A covenant was made with the Lord Jesus Christ, by his Father; but what avails that covenant to us until the Holy Spirit brings us its blessings, and opens our hearts to receive them? There hang the blessings on the nail—Christ Jesus; but being short of stature, we cannot reach them; the Spirit of God takes them down and hands them to us, and thus they become actually ours. Covenant blessings in themselves are like the manna in the skies, far out of mortal reach, but the Spirit of God opens the windows of heaven and scatters the living bread around the camp of the spiritual Israel. Christ’s finished work is like wine stored in the wine-vat; through unbelief we can neither draw nor drink. The Holy Spirit dips our vessel into this precious wine, and then we drink; but without the Spirit we are as truly dead in sin as though the Father never had elected, and though the Son had never bought us with his blood. The Holy Spirit is absolutely necessary to our well-being. Let us walk lovingly towards him and tremble at the thought of grieving him. Oswald Chambers - Experience or revelation We have received … the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. 1 Cor. 2:12. Reality is Redemption, not my experience of Redemption; but Redemption has no meaning for me until it speaks the language of my conscious life. When I am born again, the Spirit of God takes me right out of myself and my experiences, and identifies me with Jesus Christ. If I am left with my experiences, my experiences have not been produced by Redemption. The proof that they are produced by Redemption is that I am led out of myself all the time; I no longer pay any attention to my experiences as the ground of Reality, but only to the Reality which produced the experiences. My experiences are not worth anything unless they keep me at the Source, Jesus Christ. If you try to dam up the Holy Spirit in you to produce subjective experiences, you will find that He will burst all bounds and take you back again to the historic Christ. Never nourish an experience which has not God as its Source, and faith in God as its result. If you do, your experience is anti-Christian, no matter what visions you may have had. Is Jesus Christ Lord of your experiences, or do you try to lord it over Him? Is any experience dearer to you than your Lord? He must be Lord over you, and you must not pay attention to any experience over which He is not Lord. There comes a time when God will make you impatient with your own experience—‘I do not care what I experience; I am sure of Him.’ Be ruthless with yourself if you are given to talking about the experiences you have had. Faith that is sure of itself is not faith; faith that is sure of God is the only faith there is. (My Utmost for His Highest) Oswald Chambers applies the principle of 1Cor 2:12 - Experience or revelation - Reality is Redemption, not my experience of Redemption; but Redemption has no meaning for me until it speaks the language of my conscious life. When I am born again, the Spirit of God takes me right out of myself and my experiences, and identifies me with Jesus Christ. If I am left with my experiences, my experiences have not been produced by Redemption. The proof that they are produced by Redemption is that I am led out of myself all the time; I no longer pay any attention to my experiences as the ground of Reality, but only to the Reality which produced the experiences. My experiences are not worth anything unless they keep me at the Source, Jesus Christ. If you try to dam up the Holy Spirit in you to produce subjective experiences, you will find that He will burst all bounds and take you back again to the historic Christ. Never nourish an experience which has not God as its Source, and faith in God as its result. If you do, your experience is anti-Christian, no matter what visions you may have had. Is Jesus Christ Lord of your experiences, or do you try to lord it over Him? Is any experience dearer to you than your Lord? He must be Lord over you, and you must not pay attention to any experience over which He is not Lord. There comes a time when God will make you impatient with your own experience—‘I do not care what I experience; I am sure of Him.’ Be ruthless with yourself if you are given to talking about the experiences you have had. Faith that is sure of itself is not faith; faith that is sure of God is the only faith there is. (My Utmost for His Highest) C H Spurgeon's Introduction to his sermon (click for full sermon) Grace for Grace - 1 Corinthians 2:12 THE course of our fallen race has been a succession of failures. Whenever there has been an apparent rise, it has been followed by a real fall. Into ever-increasing darkness the human mind seems resolved to plunge itself in its struggles after a false light. When men have been fools, they have danced in a delirium of sin; when they have been sober, they have given themselves up to a phantom wisdom of their own, which has revealed their folly more than ever. It is a sad story, the story of mankind! Read it in the light of God’s Word, and it will bring tears from your very heart. The only hope for man was that God should interpose; and he has interposed, as though he began a new creation, or wrought a resurrection out of the kingdom of death. God has come into human history, and here the bright lights begin. Where God is at work in grace, abounding sin is conquered, hope begins, and good becomes perceptible. This better state is always markedly the effect of a break in the natural course of things, a supernatural product which would never have been seen in this poor world had it been let alone. See yonder avalanche rushing down the steep mountain-side; such is humanity left to itself. Lo, God in Christ Jesus throws himself in the way; he so interposes as to be crushed beneath the descending rocks. But, beloved, he rises from the dreadful burial; he stops the avalanche in its terrible career; he hurls back the tremendous mass, and changes the whole aspect of history. In this divine interposition, of which the Bible gives us the best record, to which, I trust, our experience has added a happy appendix, we behold and adore the almighty grace of God. In the interposition of omnipotent grace, we note that the Lord so works as to preserve his own glory. He takes care that no flesh shall glory in his presence. He might have used the power of the great, but he has not; he might have instructed man by man’s own wisdom, but he has not; he might have declared his gospel with the excellency of human speech, but he has not. He has taken for his tools, not the armour of a king, but the sling of a shepherd; and he has placed his treasure of truth, not in the golden vase of talent, but in the earthen vessels of lowly minds. He has not made men speak for him under the spell of genius, but as they have been moved by his Holy Spirit. The Lord of hosts will save men, but he will not give men a yard of space for boasting; he will grant them a salvation, which shall humble them in the dust and lead them to know that he is God, and beside him there is none else. “The Lord of hosts hath purposed it, to stain the pride of all glory, and to bring into contempt all the honourable of the earth.” God’s gracious interposition reveals his sovereignty, his wisdom, his power, his love, his grace; but it reveals nothing in men which can admit a boastful thought. The Lord our God has worked in a way parallel with his central interposition, which is seen at the cross, where Jesus unveiled Jehovah’s way of revealing power in weakness. It is in such a connection that Paul says, “I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.” He knew that there was nothing else to know. The plan of the cross is to conquer death by death, to remove sin by the endurance of the penalty, to work mightily by suffering terribly, to glorify himself by shame. The gibbet whereon Christ died was the abyss of reproach and the climax of suffering; but it was also the focus of God’s interposing grace. He there glorified himself in connection, not with honour and power, but with shame and death. The great self-sacrifice of God is the great victory of grace. Beloved, it is most sweet to think that all the ways of God to men are in harmony with this way of the cross, and that the cross is the pattern of the Lord’s constant method of accomplishing his designs of grace rather by weakness than by strength, by suffering rather than by the splendour of his majesty. Let me also add, that this way which God has taken, by which he saves men and glorifies himself, is entirely suitable to the condition of those whom he saves. If salvation had been by human excellence I could never have been saved. If the plan of salvation had required that in which a man might rightly glory, how could it have come to sinners without strength or goodness? Such a gospel would have been no gospel to us, for it would have been far out of our reach. God’s plans are workable plans, suitable to the weakness of our fallen race. In Christ he comes to the wounded man where he is, and does not ask him, in his fainting condition, to come a certain part of the way. Grace does not begin half-way down the alphabet, but it is the Alpha of our hope. It is my delightful task, though in much weakness, to set forth the exceeding freeness of the grace of God, and thus to set before you an open door, that you who have never entered may boldly do so; and that you who have already entered may sit within, and sing to the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made you “accepted in the Beloved.” My text speaks of the gifts of God freely given to us, and of the way by which we may receive them, and come to know their excellence and value: in all these three things it shows us that everything is of grace—it is given of grace, it is received through grace, it is understood by grace. “Grace reigns,” and grace alone. This morning I shall speak, first, of the things which are freely given to us of God; secondly, of the power to receive them, which is also given, since it is spoken of as “received”; and, thirdly, of the knowledge of them, which is also given through the Spirit. When we have set forth these three things we shall have ranged through a wide domain of sovereign grace. High-Tech Communication - Joe Stowell - When it comes to communication, our world is becoming increasingly high-tech. The popularity of things like Twitter and Facebook might cause some to think the Bible is too old-school. The tech-savvy people of our world might feel deterred because there are no sounds and no nifty graphics in the Bible. But the truth is, there’s more high-tech power in God’s Word than in any cutting-edge communication tool our world will ever know. It’s not uncommon for a pastor to be told, “When you said that in your message, it was just what I needed.” Somehow during the sermon, God spoke to the person’s heart with a message tailor-made for him or her. If you’ve ever read the Bible and sensed God speaking directly to you, you know what I’m talking about. God has hard-wired you with His Spirit, who illumines your mind to understand His Word. Imagine getting a “text message” directly from the Creator of the universe telling you exactly what you need at exactly the right time. No matter how high-tech this world gets, you’ll never experience a more powerful mode of communication! Give me the insight, Lord, As I hear Your Word today, So I will truly understand Your message and Your way. —Monroe The Bible may be old, but its truths are always new. Blurred Vision - Herbert Vander Lugt (Read: Exodus 32:1-20) We have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God. —1 Corinthians 2:12 - Although I’m closer to 80 than 70, I still want to think of myself as “a modern man.” So I keep up with the news, read current books, and use up-to-date sources when I research a subject. But more important, I want to be thoroughly biblical and Christian in all my thoughts and actions. Because of this, some people who don’t like my convictions see me as being narrow-minded. One temptation we face as believers is to adapt our views to our culture so that we will not be seen as out of touch with the modern world. When we give in to this tendency, however, we find ourselves compromising what we know is right. We find ways to justify immoral behavior that society finds acceptable. We may say that we still believe in the Bible, but we reinterpret its clear meaning on moral and spiritual issues and try to make it say what we want it to say. Exodus 32 describes how the Israelites allowed their sinful desires to blur their spiritual vision. They wanted to be like their pagan neighbors, so they made an idol and had a sensual worship service. This angered both Moses and the Lord, and resulted in severe judgment. If I would win the plaudits of the world, Then I must lose the presence of my Lord; I cannot please the godless by my works And still enjoy the blessings of His Word. —Smith Don't let the world squeeze you into its mold. 1 Corinthians 2:13 which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words: Note that several versions interpret the Greek differently than the NAS Greek - a kai laloumen (PAI) ouk en didaktois anthropines sophias logois all' en didaktois pneumatos, pneumatikois pneumatika sugkrinontes. (PAP) Amplified - And we are setting these truths forth in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the [Holy] Spirit, combining and interpreting spiritual truths with spiritual language [to those who possess the Holy Spirit].
1 Coríntios 2:10-16
MacArthur illustrates need for illumination in initial conversion - In the natural realm, darkness can be a debilitating and frightening thing. The story is told of a missionary who was on board ship one dark night when suddenly he was awakened by the frantic cry of “Man overboard!” Immediately he arose from his bunk, grabbed the portable lamp from its bracket, and held it at the window of his cabin. He couldn’t see anything, but the next morning he was told that the flash of his lamp through the porthole emitted just enough light to enable those on deck to see the missing man clinging to a rope. They rescued him seconds before his strength would have given out. The light had shone just in time to save the man’s life. In the spiritual realm, darkness is even more devastating because it represents sin with all its disastrous consequences… Unbelievers are characterized as children of darkness. They are enslaved to Satan, the prince of darkness, who blinds their minds so they don’t see the light of Christ’s glorious gospel (2 Cor. 4:4). They love darkness and reject light because they don’t want their evil deeds to be exposed (John 3:19–20). Christians, however, have been called “out of darkness into [God’s] marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9). That refers to God’s taking the initiative to save us. As an unredeemed sinner, you could never have turned from darkness on your own because you had neither the ability nor the desire to do so. God had to grant you saving grace and the illumination of His Spirit so you could recognize truth and respond accordingly. That blessed privilege is known only to Christians. What a joy it is to not only recognize God’s truth but also to walk in it daily! (Drawing Near—Daily Readings for a Deeper Faith) ILLUMINATION - the act of making understood, a lighting up or supplying with light, infusion of intellectual light; an enlightening of the mind by spiritual light. ENLIGHTENMENT - the giving of spiritual insight, freeing from ignorance and misinformation. (See Job 33:30, Ps 19:8) 1Cor 2:14b says that spiritual truths are "spiritually appraised," which is clearly an allusion to the supernatural illumination of the Spirit in believers. He "turns the light on" in our spirit so that we can know spiritual truth given to us by God. You can know Greek and not know God! You can know Hebrew and not know Him! J C Connell - True enlightenment is the intellectual and moral effect produced upon a person by the reception of the Christian revelation (The Bible). It is not a mere intellectual illumination or understanding of divine truth, for this spiritual insight manifests itself in ethical action. Christians are “sons of light and sons of the day,” as Paul puts it (1Th 5:5). (The Zondervan Encyclopedia of the Bible) Warren Wiersbe on Spirit Illumination related to the Message Preached - Illumination is the work of the Holy Spirit, and we must depend on him to teach us new truths and to remind us of truths we may have forgotten. When a congregation is “in the Spirit,” the Word comes forth with power and penetration. We experience what the little girl in London meant when she said to her mother, “Mother, is Mr. Spurgeon speaking to me?” The Word becomes personal… The blessing doesn’t come because we hear the Word; it comes because we do the Word. Anything else is pure deception. (God Isn’t in a Hurry: Learning to Slow Down and Live) Does the fact that God's Spirit illuminates God's Word mean that we are going to everything there is to know about God? Clearly the answer is no for Dt 29:29 makes it clear that "the secret things belong to the Lord our God." Adrian Rogers explains "Nobody knows everything there is to know about God. I want you to put this down in your margin—Deuteronomy 29:29." Rogers adds that "Illumination Does Not Apply to Every Area of Life… it's not going to help you an math test!… Illumination Does Not Mean that We're Not to Study the Bible."… "I love that phrase "the sword of Lord and Gideon." Gideon could not have done it without the Lord. The Lord would not have done it without Gideon. "The sword of the Lord and Adrian"—It is God's Word; but, as you study it, the Holy Spirit, then, will turn the light on in your soul. And, many of us are not diligent in our Bible study, and, therefore, the Holy Spirit of God does not illumine us. The fruit of the Spirit is discipline, the study of the Word of God. "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed." (2Ti 2:15) So, illumination is not a license for laziness, okay?… when the Holy Spirit of God moves upon our heart, and He helps us to understand these things, then Bible study becomes personal communion with God. You see, you don't read the Bible like any other book. You are having fellowship with God, because the Holy Spirit of God is teaching you." Adrian Rogers on illumination - You might want to write down in your margin this verse, right here—Psalm 119:18—a wonderful, wonderful verse to pray, when you go to study the Word of God. It says this: "Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things in thy law" (Ps 119:18). Have you ever prayed that? Have you ever thought, "Well, I can just go to the Bible, and I can pull the truth out of the Bible"? Let me tell you, friend: You cannot. You may know Greek and not know God; you may know Hebrew and not know Him. I don't care who you are in that seminary, or any other Sunday School class—unless you lay that intellectual pride in the dust and pray this prayer—"Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things in thy law"—you'll not know the God of this book. I want to tell you, my friend: It took a supernatural miracle to reveal it; it took a supernatural miracle to write it; and, it'll take a supernatural miracle for you to understand it. Do you believe that? Listen. Most of us don't believe it. If we really believed it, we would agonize before the Lord; we would pray before the Lord; and, we would be saying, "Lord, open Thou mine eyes." Tony Evans - In revelation, God discloses His truth. Through inspiration, He sees that it is recorded for us. And by the illumination of His Spirit, He enables us to understand and apply it. When you get all of this working in your life, you’re going to grow as a follower of Christ!… The Spirit of God shines His light on the Word of God. Back in Genesis 1:2, we discover that the Spirit was hovering over creation. Then in Ge 1:3 God said, “Let there be light.” Light was not present until the Spirit of God hovered. Why is that important? When the Spirit of God hovers and the Word of God speaks, order comes out of chaos. That’s what happened in creation. The earth was “formless and void” before the Spirit and the light came (Genesis 1:2). Does your life ever feel formless and void? Ever feel empty, chaotic in your life? Guess when you move from chaos to order? You do so when the Word of God is mixed with the hovering Spirit. That’s not just reading your Bible; that’s asking God to illumine what you read and submitting your heart to it. Then God brings order out of chaos. (What matters most: four absolute necessities in following Christ) Roy Zuck on the importance of the Spirit in accurate reading of the Bible - Since inaccurate interpretation of Scripture can lead to improper conduct, one must be sure he is interpreting properly. Adequate application of truth builds on an adequate understanding of truth. A distorted meaning of a Bible verse or passage may result in misguided living. The Holy Spirit, as the "Helper" (John 14:16, 26; 15:26 ), is available to help believers ascertain the correct meaning of the Bible's statements, commands, and questions. He is involved in the hermeneutical process because He is "the Spirit of truth" who, Jesus said, "will guide… into all truth" (John 16:13). And as Paul wrote, "We have… the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us" (1 Cor 2:12). John wrote, "His anointing teaches you about all [spiritual] things" (1 John 2:27). Probably "anointing" refers to the Holy Spirit; by metonomy the act of anointing stands for what is given in the anointing, namely, the indwelling Holy Spirit… The Spirit's illuminating of Christians, then, must include something more than mental apprehension of the Bible… In illumination the Holy Spirit's work is not only to show what the Bible means, but also to persuade Christians of its truth. Illumination is the Spirit's work, enabling Christians to discern the meaning of the message and to welcome and receive it as from God. Hodge states that obedience in the believer's life is the inevitable result of the illuminating work of the Spirit. [Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology] (The Role of the Holy Spirit in Hermeneutics) See also the article by J. Theodore Mueller - The Holy Spirit and the Scriptures We sing a simple chorus "Open the Eyes of My Heart, I want to see You." Today, God's Spirit answers this prayer as He enlightens our eyes to see Jesus in His living and active Word, but one day when our faith becomes sight the Living Word face to face forever! Maranatha, Lord Jesus! RELATED RESOURCE - Illumination of the Bible Notice how all the following passages in some way speak of the illumination of the Word by the Spirit. (John 6:45) “It is written in the prophets, ‘AND THEY SHALL ALL BE TAUGHT OF GOD.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father, comes to Me. (1John 2:20, 27) But you have an anointing (the Holy Spirit) from the Holy One, and you all know… As for you, the anointing which you received from Him abides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you; but as His anointing (the Holy Spirit) teaches you about all things (in the context of false teachers trying to deceive them), and is true and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you abide in Him. (Related Resource - Our Anointing - The Holy Spirit) (Luke 24:45) Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, (Ps 18:28) For You light my lamp; The LORD my God illumines my darkness. (Ps 19:8b) The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. (John 14:26) “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you. (John 16:13) "But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. (Eph 1:18) (Having just referenced the Holy Spirit in Eph 1:13-14 then Paul prays) I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that (purpose clause) you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, (The Holy Spirit gives illumination in answer to prayer. Contrast our adversary's work of blinding the mind in 2 Cor. 4:4) (Col 1:9-10) For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; (Dan 2:22) “It is He who reveals the profound and hidden things; He knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with Him. (Ps 119:18) Open my eyes, that I may behold wonderful things from Your law. Adrian Rogers - When you begin to read the Bible, here's a prayer that you ought to pray - Psalm 119:18. When God opens your eyes you're going to see things you never saw before, you're going to hear things you never heard before, you're going to know things you never knew before because God the Holy Spirit is going to teach you. (Ps 119:130) The unfolding (unveiling) (literally of an unobstructed opening into an enclosure) of Your words gives light; It gives understanding to the simple. (Bridges - Thus the Spirit and the word conjointly become our guide—the Spirit enlightening and quickening the word—and the word evidencing the light of the Spirit.) (