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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.

Every conversion is a miracle, a supernatural event. We need the power of God in our preaching, in our churches, in our service, in our personal lives. Let us not settle for anything less. We can’t manufacture anything, but let us pray fervently for “a demonstration of the Spirit’s power.”

Jim Packer, in a book entitled ‘Keep in step with the Spirit’, wrote about what he called ‘the floodlight ministry’ of the Holy Spirit. He pointed out that when floodlights are functioning properly we are not aware of them, but the building they are illuminating.

The Holy Spirit came He to glorify Jesus (John 16:14). The Spirit has been referred to as ‘the shy member of the Trinity.’ He is self-effacing. He wants to train the spotlight on Jesus. So if we covet the “demonstration” of the Spirit’s power in our preaching, let’s keep the focus on the central realities of Christ and His Cross. The Holy Spirit will inspire and help us to do this.

And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. 2 For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.

As anyone who has read John Scott’s magisterial book, ‘The Cross of Christ’, will be able to attest, keeping the focus on Christ and His Cross does not necessarily mean saying the same thing over and over again. There are so many aspects to consider and potential angles of approach. The Cross is like a sparkling multi-faceted Jewel. We will find Him – we will find it – in all the Scriptures. We will, for example, find ourselves preaching the Cross if we expound Genesis, as surely as we will if we are working through the gospels and the epistles.

Nevertheless we can affirm that, although there is so much to say on the subject, the simple proclamation of the Cross is full of an immeasurable power. May God help us to keep Christ-centred and Cross-centred. It is relatively easy to get off-centre.

Prayer: Jesus keep me near the Cross…

Thought: “The law discovers the disease. The gospel (the cross and resurrection) gives the remedy.” (Martin Luther)

‘Take my love, like the five barley loaves and two small fish, and multiply it, so that it may be pleasing to you and a blessing to others.’ F.B.Meyer.

It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”

Why are you a Christian? At one level you may be able to give a number of different answers to this question. But the biggest answer we can give is that it’s because of God. I could point to the part my mother played in my conversion, and the key role played by a husband and wife child evangelism team who were leading a week-long mission at our church. I could also write about the wonderful example of godly, praying people in that church. These are just a few of many factors I could highlight. But I know the ultimate reason is “It is because of him…”

So, we have no right to brag. As Andrae Crouch expressed it in his song ‘To God be the glory’:

‘IfI should gain any praise, let it go to Calvary.’

Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him.

“Humility is nothing else but a right judgment of ourselves” William Law

‘’I’m one of God’s ‘are nots’ “, she said to me.

I only met her the once, but I’ll never forget her. She made quite an impression.

Her name was Miss Rose. She was probably in her 80’s, even possibly 90’s. I was a young assistant pastor in my very early 20’s, and I’d been asked to visit her in a Care home in Southport. I was told she’d had a very influential ministry, teaching the Bible to large groups of women. But her own humble estimation of herself was that she was one of “God’s are nots,” because, she explained, the Bible teaches that God chooses “the things that are not – to nullify the things that are…”

I knew it wasn’t mock modesty. She really believed it was true. It was easy to see why the Lord was able to use her so greatly.

“Humility is royalty without a crown.” Spencer W. Kimball

Here is another song we learned recently at our church in Leeds:

Also, F.B. Meyer’s prayer for 7^th October:

‘Lord Jesus, you have revealed the Father; you have brought us near God. I thank you that I may look boldly  at the glory of your eternal throne and know that all the attributes of God are on my side.’

Finally, a quote from C.H.Spurgeon in keeping with what we’ve been studying this week:

“I take it that the highest proof of Christ’s power is not that He offers salvation, not that He bids you take it if you will, but that when you reject it, when you hate it, when you despise it, He has a power whereby he can change your mind, make you think differently from your former thoughts, and turn you from the error of your ways.”

Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth.

Paul did not say, ‘Not any’ but “Not many.”

‘That was my bedroom’, I said to my youngest sister, as we sat in her car outside a bungalow in Hindley Green last week. Although she too lived there she can’t remember it. She was probably only around three years old when our family moved to another part of Wigan.

It occurred to me only a little while later that this was also the room where I knelt by my bed and gave my life to Christ as a boy of 7,8. That changed everything for me.

But what was I when Christ called me? An anonymous nobody. A shy, sickly, weak boy who was often the object of ridicule and regularly bullied. My education was of a pretty average Secondary Modern Variety. I got a handful of O’ Levels and a couple of poor grade A’Levels, and later on a University Diploma in Theology. But I have never been anyone great or significant in the world.

The bottom line is this: I have nothing about which I can “boast.” But God called me to Himself, put me into Christ, and I believe He has graciously used me through the years. For this I am eternally grateful.

It is good for us all to remember where we came from and what the grace of God has done with us.

Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.

“You called, You cried, You shattered my deafness, You sparkled, You blazed, You drove away my blindness, You shed Your fragrance, and I drew in my breath, and I pant for You.” Augustine.

Whenever the gospel is preached it can be expected to meet with varying reactions. But by that great mystery of  Divine election there will be those whose eyes are opened to the reality of who Jesus is, because they are “called” by God. Previously they may have regarded it all as “foolishness”,  and the message of a crucified Christ might well have been “a stumbling block” to them. But minds can change; hearts can change; people can change. Maybe you were like this once, but you know the remarkable process of transformation God has taken you through – in fact, is still taking you through.

In verse 25 Paul is not saying that God actually has any “foolishness” or “weakness” in Him. It is His way of asserting that God is wiser and stronger than any human-beings. In His wisdom and strength He draws to Himself all those He has called.

“God works with power, and can make the unwilling willing; if He undertake the conversion of a soul, it will be converted. All the pious workings of our heart towards God are the fruit and consequence of the powerful working of His grace in us.” Thomas Goodwin.

Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles…

Even after we come to believe in Jesus, and are utterly convinced of gospel truth, there may be times when the devil whispers in our ears that it is all “foolishness”. We have come to surely experience Jesus as the wisdom and power of God, but nevertheless the enemy of our souls tries to sow these seeds of doubt and unbelief in our minds. It may even be – but I can’t assert this with any certainty; it’s speculation on my part – that we become more prone to these temptations as we get older and more frail and weak. Don’t be at all surprised if they come. Also, don’t fail to differentiate between temptation and sin. As Martin Luther observed:

‘You can’t help the birds of the air flying about your head; but you can prevent them building a nest in your hair.’

By God’s grace, we must take a stand. Also we need to lock shields of faith together and help each other stand. (Don’t become isolated from Christian Fellowship).

 We must choose to doubt our doubts and believe our beliefs.

I love the simplicity of these words from a song by the Bill Gaithersburg Trio:

“I have decided I’m gonna live like a believer,

Turn my back on the deceiver,

I’m gonna live what I believe.”

You have to decide – and God will help you.

Prayer: Lord, I have experienced many times that Satan is a liar. Enable me, by your Spirit, to see through every deception and take my stand on your revealed truth.