Daily Archive

“We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:12-14).

Do you ever wonder why some folks just seem to be unable to grasp the deep yet critical truths of God? Why such things as grace, mercy, imputed sin and righteousness, the substitutionary atonement, abiding in Christ, and living in the Spirit seem to be completely foreign and meaningless ideas that do not take root in their minds and hearts? Paul explains this in First Corinthians and the second chapter. Let’s take a look.

Perusing the first five verses of this chapter we see that God’s truth is not revealed by means of eloquent speech, superior human wisdom, man-generated knowledge, persuasive arguments, or a confident presentation by some teacher. Instead it is centered in Christ and His death, communicated by His Spirit, wrought by God’s power, and fosters faith in the learner. It is born out of humble and fearful submission to the inherent truth of God’s revelation and our dependence upon His Spirit to transfer its truth to us. Although this does not excuse us from scholarly Biblical study and “rightly dividing the Word of Truth”, the old saying that “a preacher can teach truth but only the Spirit can impart it” is valid.

Next we see (verses 6-11) that the lost world does not understand the things of God. The wisdom of God is contrary to the wisdom of this world therefore it is a mystery and hidden to those unenlightened by the Holy Spirit. Earlier in this letter Paul indicates that God’s wisdom is perceived as “foolishness” to the so-called sages and scholars of secular philosophy (1 Corinthians 1:18-31). Primarily it is their rejection of the seemingly silly and faith-requiring message of Christ and the Cross. This is why he calls them lacking in understanding, perishing, coming to nothing, and that their wisdom will be destroyed by the preaching of the Cross and the enlightenment of the Spirit. We must remember that Christ (Logos) is always at the center of understanding truth: “It is because of [God] that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God–that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 1:30-31).

Now in our focal text (verses 12-14 above) we see that in our ability to know spiritual things we are not like the world. We, in Christ, have been given understanding of these mysteries and truths hidden from the lost. In Him we are freely given a wisdom that supersedes the wisdom of this world as God’s wisdom leads to light and life. It is spiritual and not material therefore it can only be learned by the Holy Spirit. Jesus tells us this is the Spirit’s role: “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come” (John 16:13). And we have a uniquely intimate access to His power and the truth He gives us: “the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you” (John 14:17).

My recommendation is this: Make sure that you have the gift of the Holy Spirit that is given to all who are born again of God (John 3:5-8). Unless you have received spiritual illumination regarding the helpless situation your sin-debt has caused, that Jesus has provided the only solution for your sin problem, and that He is compelling you to receive Him and His salvation through a totally surrendered faith in Him then these rest of this discussion is a moot point. You need to know Jesus through His Spirit to understand the wisdom of God – our righteousness, holiness, and redemption. As Peter preached it: “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38).

If you have received His Spirit through repentance (a change of mind) and the New Birth then I suggest the following: Acknowledge the Spirit’s presence in you and with you, trust in His role in teaching us the truths of Jesus, call upon Him for discernment, yield to the His power to illuminate your mind and heart and, based upon sound scriptural exegesis, pray that He reveals and embeds God’s truth in you. And then, through faith and the Spirit’s power, live out what He has taught you. For through the Holy Spirit, as Paul concludes in this chapter, we can have the glorious reality of knowing Jesus, understanding His truth, and making it a reality in our daily walk with Him: “For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ” (2 Corinthians 2:16).