When Paul Got Stage Fright
1Dear family, when I came to you, it wasn’t with carefully crafted speeches or polished pearls of wisdom. I came to tell you the secret of God’s plan. 2I decided that while I was with you I would focus all of my attention on telling you about the crucified Jesus, the Messiah. 3When I met you, I was so afraid that I was trembling. It left me feeling weak. 4The words I spoke and the sermons I delivered weren’t especially compelling or loaded with scholarly insight. [1] Instead, they demonstrated the Spirit’s power. 5I spoke this way on purpose because I didn’t want your faith to depend on human philosophy and insights. I wanted your faith to grow out of God’s power.God’s Brand of Wisdom
6I do, however, have wisdom to pass along to believers who are spiritually mature. But it’s not the kind of worldly wisdom that guides rulers who will one day be long gone. 7What I’m talking about is the mysterious wisdom of God. Until now God had kept the wisdom hidden—this wisdom reserved for our benefit. 8None of the leaders today understood God’s brand of wisdom. If they had, they wouldn’t have crucified our glorious leader. 9As the Bible says,
“No eye has seen,
no ear has heard,
no human mind has imagined
what God has waiting for those who love him.” [2]
Why Spiritual Stuff Sounds Ridiculous
14People outside the faith don’t get the things of God’s Spirit. They think all this spiritual stuff is foolish. The reason they don’t get any of this is because you have to be spiritually connected to understand what’s going on. 15Spiritual people understand all of this. But no one outside the faith understands spiritual people. [4] 16Listen,
“Who knows what’s going on in the mind of the Lord and can give him advice?” [5]
But chew on this awhile: we have the mind of Christ. [6]
