SERMON: “Preaching the Wisdom of God” (1 Cor. 2:1–5)
“Preaching
the Wisdom of God”
(1 Cor. 2:1–5)
Series: “1 Cor: Holiness from Messes” #7 Text: 1 Corinthians 2:1–5
By: Shaun Marksbury Date: November
9, 2025
Venue: Living Water Baptist Church Occasion: AM Service
I.
Introduction
Have you ever asked a friend after they’ve
tried out a new church what they thought about it? One of the interesting responses you might
get is that your friend “felt the Holy Spirit” there. That’s fascinating because it can mean so
many different things to different people.
For instance, there’s an idea that a true “Holy
Ghost church” will be filled with big emotional experiences. Perhaps it turns down the lights as a live
band performs favorite worship music from the radio. The
preacher might come out and give a warm and encouraging message, speaking with
charisma and perfectly-timed stories that make the congregation laugh and
cry. Perhaps they even have a time when
everyone in the church seems to break into spontaneous dancing and
giddiness. Whatever the case, it’s
certainly not a “boring” church with a piano and a guy preaching for an hour or
more!
What does Scripture describe as important in
ministry, though? For the past several
weeks we have been walking through this letter under the theme “Holiness from
Messes.” Corinth was a mess — it was divided,
immature, proud, and sensual. Yet, God
was graciously making the believers there holy. In chapter one, Paul exposed the root problem:
they were glorying in human wisdom instead of the cross. Now, in chapter two, he highlights the Spirit’s
work and superiority to any wisdom the world has.
A sure sign of Holy Spirit ministry is when
the church is focused on teaching the right message. In this passage, we see three aspects of Paul’s
preaching that should direct our churches.
First, we’ll note the content of preaching (vv. 1–2), what kind of messaging
should be included. Second, we’ll note the
conduct of preaching (vv. 3–4), how pastors should approach the pulpit and
carry themselves. Third, we’ll note the
commitment of preaching (v. 5), what the preacher should aim to achieve with
the message. Let’s consider the first of
these:
II.
First, the Content of Preaching (vv. 1–2)
And
when I came to you, brothers, I did not come with superiority of word or of
wisdom, proclaiming to you the witness of God. For I determined to know nothing among you
except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.
Paul is placing himself alongside the weak,
foolish things of 1:26–28. He begins
with a strong, emphatic association by saying, “And I myself.” When he first arrived in Corinth (Acts
18:1–18)[1] — fresh
from being beaten in Philippi, chased out of Thessalonica and Berea, and
laughed off the Areopagus in Athens (Acts 16–17) — he knew the Corinthians
would not respect him any more than other places had. So, why should he play pretend with his
ministry, acting as though he were somebody when he wasn’t?
The city loved rhetoric. Special speakers known as sophists paraded into
town, dazzled crowds with flowery speeches, and charged high fees.[2] They had a “superiority of word,” or “lofty
speech” (ESV). People judged a speaker
by this, how clever he sounded.
However, Paul essentially says he avoided
such an approach. As one commentary
notes, “He did not affect to appear a fine orator or a deep philosopher; nor
did he insinuate himself into their minds, by a flourish of words, or a pompous
show of deep reason and extraordinary science and skill. He did not set himself to captivate the ear by
fine turns and eloquent expressions, nor to please and entertain the fancy with
lofty flights of sublime notions.”[3] Paul did not engage in their words, their wisdom,
or their tactics.
Understand that Paul wasn’t opposed to the
idea of persuasion or exercise of wisdom.
There are times and seasons for these things, and Paul elsewhere says
that he uses both.[4] In 2 Corinthians 5:11, Paul says, “Therefore,
knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade men,” and here in v. 7, Paul says, “But
we speak God’s wisdom.” Paul is rather saying
that he does not take his ministry cues from culture, which we already saw in
chapter one.
Instead, he came “proclaiming to you the
witness of God” (many translations have “testimony of God”). This “refers to the news about God’s
redemptive work through the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.”[5] In other words, Paul was here to bear witness
to the gospel, and he saw the rhetorical fireworks of the lost world as
distracting from the message of God.
The whole of Scripture is the content of a
Spirit-filled preaching ministry (cf. Acts 18:11; 20:27). MacArthur notes this in his commentary:
In his second letter to that young minister,
Paul solemnly charged him ‘in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus’ to ‘preach
the word’ (2 Tim. 4:1–2). I cannot
comprehend how any man who calls himself a minister of God can do anything but
preach the Word of God and be ready to do it ‘in season and out of season’ (v.
2). Many congregations, however, do not want their pastors to preach only the
Word. They ‘will not endure sound
doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for
themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires’ (v. 3). … Some people, including some immature
believers, will go from church to church looking for the right preacher. Unfortunately their idea of ‘right’ preaching
is not sound biblical exposition but interesting observations and suggestions
based on the preacher’s personal philosophy. They are not looking for a word from God to
believe but for a word from man to consider.[6]
This is the ministry Paul commanded and modeled
in Corinth. Here in v. 2, he says, “For
I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.” This is one of the most famous verses Paul
ever wrote, and it is pure pastoral hyperbole[7]
telling us he taught them about Christ.
Paul is not saying he was ignorant of
everything else. There was a
16th-century radical Anabaptist sect in Germany that our kids would absolutely
love. They read this passage and
concluded they should avoid human knowledge and learning, including the very
basics of reading and the alphabet (hence their name, Abecedarians). Paul, of course, is not giving our children
permission to drop out of school!
Paul instead says that his ministry is
focused on Jesus Christ. Of course, that
means proclaiming Jesus as the long-awaited Jewish Messiah, but it also meant
proclaiming the crucifixion. Remember what
he’s already said in chapter one — “we preach Christ crucified,” and this is
despite the fact that it’s a scandal to both Jews and Greeks (1:23). That’s because the message of the penal, substitutionary
atonement of Christ is greater than the wisdom of men. [8]
Church, this is still the test of biblical
preaching. Is Jesus Christ — and Him
crucified — the content of our message? Or
do we drift into moralistic therapeutic deism, self-help, or felt-needs
entertainment? May every elder and every
Sunday-school teacher at this church agree with Paul. May we also model the right heart, bringing
us to the next point:
III.
Second, the Conduct of Preaching (vv. 3–4)
And
I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling, and my word and
my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of
the Spirit and of power,
Paul now describes how he felt while he
ministered among them, and he “draws a contrast between himself and
professional public speakers who used eloquence and wisdom to gather an
audience.”[9] We’ll note two overarching principles for
what Paul describes here. First, there
should be a reverence for God and His Word.
Second, there should be a boldness in the Lord. Let’s consider the first of those.
A.
First, there should be a reverence for God and
His Word.
There are three revealing phrases in v. 3 — weakness,
fear, and much trembling. In 2
Corinthians 10:10, Paul tells us some critics said, “His personal presence is
unimpressive and his speech contemptible.”
Perhaps you’ve wondered what this is about, especially if you’ve had an
image of Paul boldly proclaiming the word among the Gentiles.
Well, this is not stage fright. Some wonder if this may include a physical
frailty. After all, before coming to
Corinth, he had just been flogged, stoned, and shipwrecked.[10] In Galatians 4:13, he also hints he came to
Galatia (and perhaps Corinth) because of a bodily ailment. We can’t rule that
out here.
More importantly, though, this is
reverential awe before God. First, we
should boast in weakness, for God’s strength is made strong in it (2 Cor 11:30;
12:5, 9–10). Moreover, the same phrase
“fear and trembling” describes obedient slaves (Eph 6:5), obedient churches (2
Cor 7:15), and obedient believers working out salvation (Phil 2:12). Paul trembled under the weight of representing
the holy God to a wicked city.[11]
Paul is showing us how we should all
approach the work of the Lord. John Knox
was the Reformer who boldly faced the evil queen known as Bloody Mary; he also famously
said, “I have never once feared the devil, but I tremble every time I enter the
pulpit.” This is what Paul showed here;
one commentary explains, “He was not fearful for his own life or safety or of
the gospel’s having lost its power. He
was fearful only of its being rejected, and of the terrible consequences of
that rejection. Surely he also feared
his own inadequacy and sin which could weaken his ministry (cf. 1 Cor. 9:16,
27).”[12]
So, in the next verse, Paul contrasts two
kinds of preaching. Negatively, he says
that he doesn’t argue in “in persuasive words of wisdom.” This tells us that he is not saying that his
weakness, fear, and trembling was a mere mental hesitation. Rather, he was seeking to honor the Lord by
avoiding converting people through psychological techniques. As Matthew Henry said, “Divine truths are
most likely to do good when they are spoken plainly.”[13] Paul was striving to deliver the words of Scripture
without diluting them with himself.
During the First Great Awakening, Jonathan
Edwards would read his sermons plainly and without drama so that he not
emotionally manipulate people. Even so,
his most famous sermon, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” was vivid and
elicited responses from congregants; some said they were fearful that the floor
would open up an they would plunge into hell at that very moment if they didn't
repent. However, when some would begin to
groan in despair, wept, and grip their pews in terror, I heard that Edwards once
stopped and said, “Please, I am trying to read my sermon!” I’m not sure how accurate that is, as he did
counsel people afterward, but he was clam and sought to honor God in his
delivery by avoiding any emotional manipulation or rhetorical flair.
Paul took pains to make sure that his
message was God’s message. Of course, he
wasn’t timid! That’s what we see
next.
B.
Second, there should be a boldness in the Lord.
The rest of this verse says he was engaging
in “demonstration of the Spirit and of power.” The word “demonstration” is a strong term — it
means undeniable proof.[14] The Holy Spirit took Paul’s weak, plain
preaching and turned it into irresistible evidence that God was speaking. Lives were changed. Drunkards became pure. Idolaters worshiped Christ.
That is the only “power encounter” Paul
boasts in here Some look to the word dunamis here, see its connection to
dynamite, and assume that the apostle is touting the need for signs in
proclaiming the gospel message. This is
sometimes called “power evangelism.”
Paul says he preached Christ (v. 18) and made it his “ambition to
proclaim the gospel” (v. 19). Here, though
Paul worked some wonders among the Corinthians, he is clearly exalting the power
of the Word. Power in this sense also
means authority, and it is derived by God, and its proven in the miracle of
regeneration.[15]
This boldness is one that is wrought by the
Spirit, not the rhetorical skills of some red-faced preacher. Some Christians think a preacher pointing and
shouting at people is bold for Christ, but that’s a man using the force of his
own personality. Preaching that is
biblically bold is reverential and Spirit-empowered preaching of God’s Word.
Part of the issue with churches today is
that we’ve forgotten what the goal is.
That brings us to our final point this morning:
IV.
Third, the Commitment of Preaching (v. 5)
so
that your faith would not be in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.
Here is the “why” behind everything Paul has
said. Paul wanted their faith to be in
God, not men. He wanted them relying on the
power of the Holy Spirit, not in the supposed wisdom of the world. In other words, Paul didn’t want the Corinthian
faith resting on how clever he sounded — he wanted their faith rooted in the power
of God displayed in the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ.
All the ways of men are like sifting sand. There are ever-changing “theories of men
about science, philosophy, religion, politics,” but a “sure word from God can
be depended on.”[16] He didn’t want people following personalities and being let down;
he wanted God’s power in their lives transforming and preserving them when the
preacher is long forgotten.
Preachers who have a commitment other than
this are will miss the mark. Pastors who
want followings will present their own wisdom rather than the power of
Spirit-inspired Scripture. And Christians
in those kinds of churches will place their faith in something that will let
them down.
V.
Conclusion
We don’t need a flashy show to be a “Spirit-filled”
ministry. We don’t need another program
or better marketing. We need preachers
and teachers who resolve like Paul: “I determined to know nothing among you
except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.”
If you are here this morning and you have
never trusted Christ, the message is still the same. The cross still looks foolish to human wisdom,
but it is the power of God to save you. Repent
and believe.
If you are a believer, ask yourself: Is my
faith resting in men or in the power of God? Am I more impressed with personalities than
with the plain gospel?
Elders, deacons, Bible-study leaders: Let us
commit to what we see in Paul. We don’t
engage in superiority of speech, manipulative techniques, or anything by Christ
crucified. May the Lord grant us grace
to preach the wisdom of God until He returns. Amen.
[1] John D. Barry, Douglas Mangum, Derek R. Brown, Michael
S. Heiser, Miles Custis, Elliot Ritzema, Matthew M. Whitehead, Michael R.
Grigoni, and David Bomar, Faithlife Study
Bible, (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012, 2016), 1 Co 2:1.
[2] Andrew David Naselli, Romans–Galatians, 2020, X, 236.
[3] Matthew Henry, Matthew
Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume,
(Peabody: Hendrickson, 1994), 2246.
[4] Naselli, 236–237.
[5] Barry, et. al.,.
[6] John F. MacArthur Jr., 1 Corinthians, MacArthur New Testament Commentary, (Chicago: Moody
Press, 1984), 55.
[7] Barry, et. al., 1 Co 2:2.
[8] Ibid.
[9] Ibid., 1 Co 2:3.
[10] John MacArthur Jr., Ed., The MacArthur Study Bible, electronic ed., (Nashville, TN: Word
Pub., 1997), 1731.
[11] MacArthur Jr., 1
Corinthians, 56.
[12] Ibid.
[13] Ibid.
[14] Barry, et. al., 1 Co 2:4.
[15] Gary T. Meadors, Evangelical
dictionary of biblical theology, 1996, 619.
[16] A. T. Robertson, Word
Pictures in the New Testament, (Nashville, TN: Broadman Press, 1933), 1 Co
2:5.