I Corinthians 1
40 miles west of
direct communication between the Ionian and
the Acrocorinthus, a vast citadel
of rock, which rises abruptly to the height of 2000 feet
above sea level, and the summit of which is so extensive
that it once contained a whole
town. The situation
of
Cenchrae and Lechaeum, are the secrets of its history.
mental and intellectual activity, as well as commercial and
manufacturing enterprise.
Its wealth was so celebrated to be proverbial; so were the
vice and profligacy of its
inhabitants. The
worship of Venus here was attended with shameful licentiousness.
Paul preached here, Acts 18:11, and founded a church, to
which the Epistles to the
Corinthians are addressed.
This first epistle was written by Paul towards the close of
his nearly three years stay
at
terminated with the Pentecost of A.D. 57 or 58.
The bearers were probably
Stephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus. It appears to have been called forth by the
information the apostles had received of dissension in the
which thus may be explained:
The Corinthian Church was planted by the apostle
himself, (ch. 3:6), in his second
missionary journey. (Acts 18:1) Paul abode in the
city a year and a half.
(ibid. v. 11) A short time after the apostle had left the city the
eloquent Jew of Alexandria, Apollos,
went to
followers, dividing the church into two parties, the followers
of Paul and the followers
of Apollos. Later on Judaizing
teachers from
spirit of direct antagonism to Paul personally. To this third party we may perhaps
add a fourth, that, under the name of the “followers of Christ,”
(ch. 2:12) sought
at first to separate themselves from the factious adherence
to particular teachers,
but eventually were driven by antagonism into positions
equally sectarian and inimical
to the unity of the church.
At the momentous period, before parties had become
consolidated and had distinctly withdrawn from communion
with one another, the
apostle writes; and in the onset of the epistle, chapters
1-4, we have his noble and
impassioned protest against this fourfold rending of the
robe of Christ. (The above
two
paragraphs come from A Dictionary of the Bible by William Smith, L.L.D).
The Apostle Paul loved the
had to deal with any church so inflated and so immoral, so
indifferent to his sufferings,
so contemptuous towards his teaching, or so tolerant of his
opposition.
The
Greeting (vs. 1-3)
An opening salutation is found in all the Epistles of Paul,
and in every Epistle of
the New Testament except the Epistle to the Hebrews and the
first Epistle of St.
John, both of which were more in the nature of treatises
than letters.
1 “Paul
called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God,
and Sosthenes our brother,”
Paul. After the beginning of the first missionary
journey (A.D. 45) he seems to have finally abandoned his
Hebrew name of Saul.
Called. The word “called” is absent from A, D, E,
and other manuscripts, but may
have been omitted as superfluous. It occurs in the greeting
of Romans 1:1, but not
in any other Epistle. The words might also be rendered “a called or chosen
apostle.”
To be an apostle. He
uses this title in every letter except the private one to Philemon,
the peculiarly friendly and informal one to the Philippians,
and the two to the
Thessalonians, which were written before the Judaizers had challenged his claim
to this title in its more special sense. The Epistle to the
Romans is the first in which
he calls himself “a slave of Jesus Christ” (compare Philippians
1:1; Titus 1:1;
James 1:1; II Peter 1:1; Jude 1). It was necessary for him
to assert his right to
the apostolate in the highest sense of the word, as one who
had received
from Christ Himself an authority equal to that of the twelve
(see ch. 9:1-5; 15:9;
II Corinthians 11:5; 12:11-12; Galatians 1:1-19, etc.). Of Jesus Christ. In
the
Gospels the word “Christ” is
all but invariably “the Christ,” the Anointed,
the Messiah. It is the designation of the office of Jesus as the promised Deliverer.
We
trace in the New Testament the gradual transition of the word from a title into
a
proper name. In the two names together our Lord is represented as “the Saviour,”
and the anointed Prophet, Priest, and King, first of the chosen people and then
of ALL MANKIND! –
Through the will of God.
(compare II Corinthians;
Ephesians; Colossians; II Timothy 1:1). This special call to
the apostleship is
emphatically expanded in Galatians 1:1. The vindication of
the Divine and
independent claim was essential to
considerations, but to the necessity of proving that no
human authority could be
quoted to overthrow the gospel which was peculiarly “his gospel” (see
Galatians
1:11; Ephesians 3:8), of which one main feature was the
freedom of the Gentiles
from the yoke of Judaic bondage. And Sosthenes. The association of one or more
brethren with himself in the greeting of his letters is
peculiar to
Timothy are associated with him in I and II Thessalonians;
and Timothy,
though so much his junior, in II Corinthians, Philippians,
Colossians, and
Philemon; doubtless he would have been associated with
Epistle had he not been absent (ch.
4:17; 16:10). The practice arose partly
from
partly from his shrinking from mere personal prominence. It
is owing to the
same reasons that in the earlier Epistles he constantly uses
“we” for “I,” and
sometimes when he can only be speaking of himself (I
Thessalonians 2:18).
But even in the Epistles to the Thessalonians he sometimes
relapses from “we”
into “I” (ibid. v. 5).
Our brother. Literally, the brother; i.e. one of “the
brethren” (compare II Corinthians 1:1). Of Sosthenes nothing whatever is
known. He may possibly be the amanuensis whom
this letter. Later tradition, which in such matters is
perfectly valueless,
spoke of him as” one of the seventy disciples, and Bishop of
(Eusebius, ‘Hist. Eccl.,’ 1:12).
There is a Jewish Sosthenes, a ruler of the
synagogue, in Acts 18:17; but it is only a vague conjecture
that he may
have been subsequently converted, and may have joined
Epistles were not in any way supposed to be responsible for
their contents,
for
recognized title for Christians. In the Acts they are
vaguely spoken of as
“those of this way.” Among
themselves they were known as “the saints,”
“the faithful,” “the
elect.” The name “Christians” was
originally a nickname
devised by the Antiochenes. In the
New Testament it only occurs as a
designation used by enemies (Acts 11:26; 26:28; I Peter.
4:16).
2 “Unto
the
Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all
that in every place call upon the
name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both their’s and our’s:
“Unto the church” - This form of address is used in I and II
Thessalonians, I and
II Corinthians,
and Galatians. In Paul's later Epistles, for some unknown reason, he
prefers
the address "to
the saints." These forms of address show the absence of any
fixed
ecclesiastical government. He does not in this Epistle address any "bishops" or
"presbyters" whom
he might regard as responsible for the growing disorders which
prevailed
at
ecclesia - church - signifying those who were "called out
of the world," and so
primarily
applied to "the congregation of
"a
congregation." The only apostle who uses the word "synagogue" of
the Christian
assemblies
is James (James 2:2). “of God” Not the Church of this or that
party leader.
Some
commentators give to these words an emphasis and importance which does
not
seem to belong to them. “Which is at
and II
Thessalonians he prefers the form, "the Church of the Thessalonians."
“The Church at
contrasts.
It brought into juxtaposition the holiest ideal of the
new faith and
the vilest degradations of the old paganism. It
was “a glad and great paradox”
(Bengel). The condition of society at
throws
light on many parts of the Epistle.
alike for wantonness, luxuriousness, and the study of philosophy.” – Even them
that are sanctified. The apostles could only write to Churches
as being really
Churches,
and to Christians as being true Christians. In all general addresses they
could
only assume that the actual resembled the ideal. They never conceal the
immense
chasm which separated the real condition of many members of their
Churches
from the vocation which they professed. They knew also that it is
(as
Calvin says) "a perilous temptation to refuse the name of Church to every
Church
in which there is not perfect purity." Ideally even the Corinthian
Christians
were
redeemed by Christ's expiation, consecrated and sanctified by the work of
the
Holy Spirit. They could only be addressed in accordance with their ostensible
position
(see Hooker, 'Eccl. Pol.,' 3:1; 5:68). Our Prayer
book is constructed on
the
same principle. The harvest is still a harvest, though amongst the corn there
may be
many tares. In Christ Jesus. The
words, "in Christ," constitute what has
been
happily called "the monogram of
is no
longer his own. The Christ for him has
become the Christ in him. His
natural
life is merged into a higher spiritual life. Baptized into Christ, he has
become
one with Christ “to them
that are sanctified in Christ
Jesus” –
The
words, “in Christ,”
constitute what has been happily called “the monogram
of
Paul.” The life of the true Christian is no longer his own. The Christ for him has
become the Christ in
him. His natural life is merged into a higher spiritual life.
Baptized into Christ, he has become one with Christ. – “called
to be saints” –
(On
this Christian calling, see Ephesians 4:1, 4; II Thessalonians 1:11; II Timothy
1:9;
Hebrews 3:1; II Peter 1:10). They are called to be united saints, not
schismatic
partisans
or members of antagonistic cliques. The description of what they were
ideally
is the more emphatic because he feels how much they had fallen away -
“with all that in every place” - Perhaps this may mean the same
as II Corinthians 1:1,
"With all the
saints that are in the whole of Achaia;" or the words may imply
that St.
Paul's
exhortations are applicable to all Christians, wherever they may be and (as is
expressed
in the next clause) whatever may be their varying shades of individual
opinion.
It was well in any case to remind the Corinthians that they formed but a
fraction
of the Christian communities. Catholicity (all embracing), not provincialism,
makes
the true
middle
voice, not "who are called by the Name"(compare James 2:7; Amos 9:12,
Septuagint).
It means, therefore, all who reverence the Name of Christ, all who
adore
their one "Lord" in
the fullness of his nature (see Joel 3:5; Acts 2:21;
Romans
10:14; II Timothy 2:22, etc.); in other words, "all who profess and
call
themselves Christians" (compare Acts 25:11). Their Lord
and ours. I connect
these
words, not with "place," as in the Vulgate, In omni loco ipsorum et nostro –
which,
however it may be twisted, can give no good sense - but with "Jesus Christ."
It has
been in all ages a fatal temptation of party Christians to claim a monopoly of
Christ
for themselves and their own sects, as though they only taught the gospel,
and were
the only Christians or the only "Evangelicals." But Christ
cannot thus be
"parcelled into fragments" (see
vs. 12-13), nor has any party a right to boast
exclusively,
"I am of Christ." The addition, "and ours," could not be regarded
as superfluous in writing to a Church of which
one section wanted to assert an
exclusive
right in Christ.
3
“Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the
Lord Jesus Christ.” Grace be
unto you, and peace” - This
is Paul’s greeting
in all
the Epistles except the pastoral Epistles, in which he beautifully adds
the
word “mercy.” It is a remarkable blending of the Greek and
Jewish salutations.
The Greeks
said Ξαίρειν – Chairein —
from χαίρω - khah’ee-ro a primary verb;
to be
cheerful, i.e. calmly happy
or
well-off; impersonal especially as salutation
(on meeting or parting), be
well: — farewell, be glad, God speed, greeting, hail,
joy
(joyfully), rejoice - and to them
the word “grace” χάρις – charis - khar’-ece;
from (χαίρω); graciousness
(as
gratifying), of manner or act (abstract or concrete;
literal,
figurative or spiritual; especially the divine influence upon the heart, and
its
reflection
in the life; including gratitude) – acceptable, benefit, favor, gift, grace
(-ious), joy, liberality, pleasure, thank (-s, -worthy). involved the notions of joy
and brightness and prosperity. The calmer
and more solemn greeting of
the
East was, “Peace be to thee.” The Church
unites both forms of greeting
—
“grace,” the beginning of every blessing; and “peace,” εἰρήνην – eiraenaen;
probably
from a primary verb εἴρω – eiro - to join; peace
(literal
or figurative);
by
implication prosperity: — one, peace, quietness, rest, set at one
again –
the end of all
blessings; and into both she infuses a deeper meaning,
that of a “joy” which defied
all tribulations, and a “the peace of God
which passeth all understanding.” – (Philippians 4:7) – “from God our Father” –
God is
the source of “every good gift and
perfect gift” – (James 1:17) – “and
from the Lord Jesus Christ.” - In the first nine verses of this Epistle, the Name
“Jesus Christ” is repeated
no less than nine times. “Observe,”
says St. Chrysostom,
“how
he nails them down to the Name of Christ, not mentioning any man, either
apostle or teacher, but continually mentioning Him for whom they yearn, as men
preparing
to awaken those who are drowsy after a debauch. (He is
the “Desire of
all nations” –
Haggai 2:7 – CY – 2010) For nowhere in
any other Epistle is the
Name
of Christ so continually introduced. By means
of it he weaves together
almost his whole introduction.
The Thanksgiving (vs. 4-9)
This
thanksgiving of Paul is the natural overflow of a full heart and is a feature
in
almost
every Epistle of St. Paul, except the Epistle to the Galatians, in which he
plunges
at once into severe reprobation.
4 “I
thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which
is given you by Jesus Christ” – I thank my
God. It is probable, from papyrus
rolls
in the
or
less conventional. In
of a
full heart. It was no mere compliment or rhetorical artifice like the captatio
benevolentiae, or endeavouring to win the hearers by flattery, which we find
in
most
ancient speeches. My God
(Romans 1:8). Always; that
is, constantly; on all
occasions
of special prayer. He could still thank God for them, though his letter
was
written "with
many tears" (II Corinthians 2:4). For the
grace of God. The
grace
(χάρις) of
spiritual life showing itself in many special spiritual gifts
(χαρίσματα),
such as "the gift of tongues." Which was
given you. This is
one of
life
of the soul as summed up potentially in one supreme moment and crisis –
namely,
the moment of conversion and baptism. The grace given once was
given
for ever, and was continually manifested. In Christ
Jesus. Paul
regarded
the life of
the Christian as “hid with Christ in God,” and of Christ as being the
Christian’s
life (see Romans 6:23; II Corinthians 4:10-11; Colossians 3:3-4;
II Timothy
1:1).
5 “That in every thing ye are enriched by Him,
in all utterance, and in all
knowledge.” In everything; i.e.
of course, every gift which belongs specially
to the
Christian life. In all utterance; i.e.
in all "eloquence" (λόγῳ - logo - expression),
or perhaps "in all doctrine" (so
Luther, Calvin, Meyer, etc.). The word for “utterance"
is ῥῆμα - rhema;
λόγος - logos
means "discourse" and "reason" (compare
II
Corinthians 8:7). Knowledge. From the word γνώσεως— gnoseos - knowledge:
—
knowledge, science - is derived the name Gnostic, which was applied to so many
forms
of ancient heresy. There was danger to the Corinthian
Christians in the
exaggerated
estimate of what they took for gnosis, and many of
them were tempted
to pride themselves on
purely intellectual attainments, which were valueless for
the spiritual life.
St. Clement of
1.')
speaks of their "mature and established knowledge."
6 “Even
as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you:” Even as; i.e.
"inasmuch
as." The testimony of Christ. The
testimony borne to Christ by the
apostle.
The genitive is thus objective (about Christ), not subjective (" the
testimony borne by Christ"). In reality,
however, the meaning' would be the
same
in either case, for if the apostles testified concerning Christ, so, too,
Christ
spoke in the apostles. Was confirmed in you. This
does not merely mean
"that
the truth of Christianity was established among them," but that they were
living confirmations of the apostolic testimony. (I pray that
you and I may
be
living confirmations also! CY – 2018)
7 “So
that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our
Lord Jesus Christ:” So that ye
come behind in no gift” - The “gifts”
are here
the χαρίσματι, - charismata -
graces, such as powers of healing, etc.,
which were the
result of the
outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The sequel
shows
that they
were rather outward than inward; they were splendid endowments
rather than
spiritual fruits. Yet even these were not wholly wanting, as we see
from II
Corinthians 8:7. The Greek may also mean “causing you
not to be conscious of inferiority.”
– “waiting
for the coming of our
Lord Jesus Christ” – Expecting
His return, not fearing it – This was the constant
attitude
of the early Christians (Romans 8:19-25; Philippians 3:20; I Thessalonians
1:10;
Colossians 3:4; Titus 2:13). Love for Christ’s manifestation was a
Christian characteristic – (II
Timothy 4:8) The revelation. Three words are
used
to express the second advent:
- ἀποκάλυψις -
apokalypsis – unveiling;
manifestation; coming; appearing;
revelation (as here and in II Thessalonians 1:7; I Peter 1:7, 13);
- παρουσία – parousia
– coming;
presence (as in Matthew 24:3, 27, etc.;
I Thessalonians 2:19;
James 5:7-8, etc.); and
- ἐπιφανεία – epiphaneia – advent in the pastoral Epistles (I Timothy 6:14;
II Timothy 1:10; 4:1-8; Titus 2:13).
six times in I and II Thessalonians, and
once in here, ch. 15:23.
All
Christians alike expected the return of Christ very soon and possibly in their
lifetime (ch. 15:51; I
Thessalonians 1:9-10, etc.; James 5:8-9; I
Peter 4:7;
I John
2:18). [and so do we – “Even so come
Lord Jesus” – {Revelation 22:20}
- CY –
2010] Their expectation was founded on
the great eschatological discourse
of our
Lord (Matthew 24:29-30, 34), and on His express promise that that generation
should
not pass away before His predictions were fulfilled. They were fulfilled in
the
fall of
more universal fulfilment.
8 “Who
shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless
in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Who;
clearly Christ, though his Name is
again
repeated in the next clause. Shall also confirm
you. This natural expression
of the
apostle's yearning hope for them must not be over-pressed into any such
doctrine
as "the indefectibility of grace." All honest and earnest students
must resist
the
tendency to strain the meaning of Scripture texts into endless logical
inferences
which
were never intended to be deduced from them. Unto the
end - namely, to
the
end of “this age,” and to the
coming of Christ (Matthew 28:20; Hebrews 3:6,13; 6:11)
That ye may be blameless - unreprovable; rather, unimpeached -
ἀνεγκλήτους -
an-eng’-klay-tos
- unreprovable; which signifies that which cannot
be called to
account – as in Colossians 1:22; 1 Timothy 3:18;
Titus 1:6. It is not the word
rendered
"blameless" (ἄμεμπτοι – amemptoi ) in Philippianws
2:15 or in II Peter
3:14. A Christian can only be “blameless,” not as
being sinless, but as having
been forgiven, renewed, sanctified (I Corinthians 6:11; Romans
8:30) - “in the
day
of our Lord Jesus Christ.” – Although
neither of the following words are used
here,
it is the same
as the ἀποκάλυψις of Christ mentioned above and the word
παρουσία; from the
presumed participle of (πάρειμι - pareimi - a being near, i.e.
advent) (often, return; specially
of Christ to punish
(by
implication) physical aspect: coming, presence. It is sometimes called simply
"the day"
(compare I Corinthians 3:13; Acts 1:20; Joel 3:4; II Thessalonians 1:10;
Revelation
6:17).
9 God
is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of His
Son Jesus Christ our Lord.” God is
faithful” - He will not leave His promises
unfulfilled or His work unfinished (Romans 8:28-30; I
Corinthians 10:13; I
Thessalonians
5:24; II Thessalonians 3:3; Hebrews 10:23) – By whom – as the
moving
cause and agent in your salvation. Ye were called - The calling was a
pledge
of the final blessing unto the fellowship of
His Son Jesus Christ our Lord.” -
THE SOLE MEANS OF SPIRITUAL LIFE - (John
15:4; Galatians 2:20).
Through the Son we also have fellowship with the Father (I John 1:3).
The perfect
sincerity of the apostle is observable in this thanksgiving. He speaks
of the
Church in general in terms of gratitude and hopefulness, and dwells on
its rich
spiritual endowments; but he has not a word of praise for any moral
advance
such as that which he so lovingly recognized in the Thessalonians and
Philippians.
Party
Spirit at
This
subject is pursued in various forms to ch. 4:21. Here Paul changes from
thanksgiving to reproof.
10 “Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus
Christ, that ye all speak the same thing,
and that there be no
divisions among you; but that ye be
perfectly joined together in the
same mind and in the same judgment.” Now. The
particle implies the
transition
from thanksgiving to reproof. Brethren. This
very title involves an
appeal
to them to aim at unity among themselves; and Paul, like James
(James
5:10), uses it to soften any austerity which might seem to exist in his
language
(ch. 7:29; 10:1; 14:20, etc.). Through the Name of our Lord
Jesus Christ; that is, by the whole idea of Christ's
being and office - the
strongest
bond of union between true Christians (see the powerful appeal in
Ephesians
4:1-6). That ye all speak the same thing; that
is, "that
ye may all with
one mind and one mouth
glorify God" (Romans 15:6). They were doing the
very
reverse - each glorifying himself and his party (v. 12). And that there be no
divisions - (σχίσματα – schismata
- schisms); from σχίσμα - schisma
– split; schism;
division; literal
or figurative: “schisms” used of bodies within the Church, not of
separatists
from it (ch. 11:18). The word is only used
in this special sense in this
Epistle. In
Matthew 9:16 and Mark 2:21 – σχίσμα means “a
rent;” in John (John
7:43;
9:16), “a
division of opinion.” There would be little or no harm in the
σχίσματα so far as
they affected unessential points, if it was not their fatal tendency
to end in “contentions” – (v.
11) - [(ἔριδες – erides
– strifes] from ἔρις, — eris;
of
uncertain affinity; a quarrel, i.e. {by
implication} wrangling. contention, debate,
strife, variance and also
to end in “factions”
αἱρέσεις – haireseis
– heresies; sects;
factions; ch.11:19).
spring
up, partly from the disputatious vivacity and intellectual conceits of the
inhabitants,
partly from the multitudes of strangers who constantly visited the port,
partly
from the numerous diversities of previous training through which the various
sections
of converts had passed. Perfected together;
literally, repaired, reunited.
In the
same mind and in the same judgment; that is, in what they think and believe
(νοῒ - noi - mind), and in what they
assert and do (γνώμῃ - gnomae - opinion). The
exhortation, "be
of one mind," in every sense of the word, was as necessary in the
ancient as in the
modern Church (Romans 15:5; II Corinthians 13:11;
Philippians
1:27; 2:2; I Peter 3:8).
The
Greek word for heresy is αἱρέσεις - hah’ee-res-is; - a
choosing, a choice – then
that which is chosen, and hence an opinion, especially a self-willed opinion, which
is
substituted for submission to the power of truth and leads
to division, the formation
of sects
and finally, APOSTASY FROM GOD! (Think of the origins, influences and
roles of PRO-CHOICE and the AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES
UNION
in the
CHOICE – a la – HERESY – CY
-2009)
would be likely to
spring up, partly from the disputatious vivacity and intellectual
conceits
of the inhabitants, partly from the multitudes
of strangers who constantly
visited the port, partly from the numerous diversities of
previous training through
which the various sections of converts had passed.
11 “For
it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are
of the
house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you.” It hath been
signified unto me. He had heard these saddening rumors towards the close of
his stay in
only has "by them of Chloe. Paul wisely and kindly mentions his authority for
these reports. Nothing is known of Chloe or her household.
It has been conjectured
that Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus,
Corinthians who were now with Paul at
Contentions. These are the works of the flesh (II Corinthians 12:20;
Galatians 5:20;
I Timothy 6:4). The condition of the Church was the same when St. Clement of
the elect of God, detest able and unholy spirit of faction
which a few rash and
self willed persons kindled to such a pitch of dementation" ('Ep. ad Corinthians 1.').
12 “Now
this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of
Paul; and I of Apollos;
and I
of Cephas; and I of Christ.” Now this I say. In
other words, "what I mean
is this." Their "contentions" are defined to be equivalent to "religious
partisanships;
"antagonistic adoption of the names and views of
special teachers. That every
one
of you saith. - That party spirit ran so high that they were all listed on
one side or
another. None of them were wise enough and spiritual minded enough to hold
aloof from parties altogether. They prided themselves on
being “uncompromising”
and “party men.” Saith - in a self-assertive way (ch.3:21). (Compare the modern
contemporary movement
and the traditional services – CY – 2010) – “I am of Paul”
– Paul shows his indignation at their partisanship by first
rebuking those who had
used his
own name as a party watchword. He disliked Paulinism as much as any
faction. All the Corinthians would probably have been in
this sense Paulinists but
for the visits of subsequent teachers. At present the Paul
party consisted of those
who adhered to his views about Gentile freedom, and who
liked the simple
spirituality of his teaching.
party spirit is excusable in our own partisans. He reproves
factiousness even in
the party of freedom. And
I of Apollos. Apollos personally was absolutely loyal
and honorable, but his visit to
his Alexandrian refinements, his allegorizing exegesis, the culture and polish of his
style, had charmed the fickle Corinthians. The Apollonians were the party of culture.
They had, as we see from later parts of the Epistle,
exaggerated Paul’s views, as
expounded by Apollos, into
extravagance. Puffed up with the conceit of knowledge,
they had fallen into moral inconsistency. The egotism of
oratorical rivals, the
contemptuous tone towards weaker brethren, the sophistical condonations of vice,
were probably due to them. Apollos,
as we see by his noble refusal to visit
under present circumstances (ch.
16:12), was as indignant as Paul himself at the
perversion of his name into an engine of party warfare. (On Apollos, see
Acts 18:24-28; 19:1; Titus 3:13.) Nothing further is known
respecting him, but he
is the almost undoubted author of the Epistle to the
Hebrews, which proves that he
was of the
in his way of arriving at the same conclusion as his teacher
– “and I
of Cephas” –
The use of the Aramaic name (I Corinthians 3:22; 9:5; 15:5;
Galatians 2:9), perhaps,
shows that these Petrinists (Peter)
were Judaizers. They
personally disliked Paul,
and questioned his apostolical
authority. Perhaps the extravagances of the “speaking
with
tongues” arose in this party, who recalled the
effects of the outpouring of the
Spirit after Peter’s great sermon on the day of Pentecost - “and I of Christ” –
We trace the origin of this party to one man in particular (II
Corinthians 2:7), who
was, or professed to be, an adherent of James, and therefore
one of the more rigid
Judaizers. He may have been one from the circle of Christ’s earthly
relatives —
one of the Desposyni – a direct
kinsman of Christ – (see I Corinthians 9:5), and,
like James, may have
had views resembling those of the Essenes and Ebionites.
If so, he was probably the author of the questions about
celibacy and marriage;
and perhaps he prided himself on having seen “Christ
in the flesh.” This party
at any rate, like some modern sects, was not ashamed to degrade into a party
watchword even the sacred name of Christ, and to claim for a miserable clique
an exclusive interest in the Lord of the whole Church. It is the
privilege of every
Christian to say, “Christianus sum
(I am a Christian);” but if he says it in a haughty,
loveless, and exclusive spirit, he forfeits his own claim to the title. This
exclusive
Christ party is, perhaps, specially alluded to in II Corinthians 10:7-11.
13 “Is
Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized
in the
name of Paul?” Is Christ divided? – Has Christ been parceled into fragments?
"Is there a Pauline, a Petrine,
an Apollonian, a Christian Christ?" Whether you call
yourselves Liberals, or Intellectualists, or Catholics, or
Bible Christians, your party
spirit is a sin, and all the worse a sin because it pranks
itself out in the guise of
pure religious zeal. This is more forcible than to take the
clause affirmatively:
“Christ has been parcelled into
fragments." In either case we see “the tragic
result of party spirit." Was Paul crucified for you? Again he rebukes the
partisanship which attached itself to his own name. This
showed a splendid
courage and honesty. The introduction of the question by the
negative μὴ - mae –
no - expresses astonished
indignation: "Can you possibly make a watchword of
the name of a mere
man, as though he had been crucified for you?" This outburst
of feeling is very important, as proving the immeasurable distance which, in Paul’s
own view, separated him from his Lord - “or
were ye baptized in the name of
Paul? It is
also instructive to see how
without deigning to enter into the question as to which
party of these wrangling
"theologians" was most or least in the right. He
did not choose to pander to their
sectarian spirit by deciding between their various forms of
aggressive orthodoxy.
Into the name (compare Matthew 28:19).
Divisions (v. 13)
The “contentions” in
the Church at Corinth, the report of which had
reached Paul, and which he here rebukes, were probably not the
outgrowth of definite party divisions, but were individual
differences as to
who among the great Christian leaders should receive superior
honor.
They were individual strifes,
however, that might develop into very serious
divisions — schisms (σχίσματα - see
v. 10) that would utterly rend asunder the
fellowship of the Church. It must have been deeply painful to the
apostles
that they should thus be set in rivalry with one another, as if
they were
seeking the ends of their own vain ambition, and still more that
their names
should be permitted in any way to obscure the glory of the Name of
their
Divine Master. “Is Christ
divided?” The question suggests:
·
THE ESSENTIAL UNITY OF CHRIST. Consider different aspects of
this unity. As it regards:
Ø
His own person. In Him we see the blending of the Divine and human
in one
glorious personality, the balance and harmony of all conceivable forms
of moral
excellence. No discord in His being, no flaw in His character, no
failure in His life; He stands before us in every light, on every
side, a
complete,
symmetrical, and perfect whole.
Ø
His redeeming purpose and the means by which He
effects it. He comes
to deliver
men from the power of evil, to turn them from their iniquities, to
restore them to
fellowship with God. The end He seeks is THE SAME
FOR ALL! “There
is no distinction; for all have sinned,” etc. (Romans
3:22-24). And as all human
distinctions are lost in the common need of
salvation, so in Christ the same possibility of good is placed WITHIN
THE REACH
OF ALL! “As through
one trespass the judgment came
unto all
men,” etc. (Romans
5:18). There
is but one gospel message, and
it is “the power of God unto salvation
to every one that believeth.”
(ibid. ch. 1:16)
Ø
The life with which He inspires those who
receive Him. In
whomsoever it
dwells this life is always one — one in its affections and
energies, in the
laws of its development, in the fruit it bears, in the ends to
which it leads.
The
inspiration of a common spirit life is the grand uniting principle amid
endless
individual diversities. “By
one Spirit we are all baptized into one
body,” etc. (ch.
12:13).
Ø
His authority as the sole Head of the Church. There can be no divided
authority. In the very nature of things, Christ can own no rival. The body
can have but
one living head, the source of informing, guiding, and
controlling power. Its
own unity lies mainly in the recognition of this:
“One
Lord, one faith, one baptism,” etc. (ch. 8:6; 12:5-6; Ephesians 4:5-6;
·
THE EVIL OF EVERYTHING
THAT VIOLATES THIS UNITY.
The divisions
of the Church of Corinth were deprecated by the apostle as
an offence against the fundamental principles and laws of the
Christian
fellowship. All such divisions have certain marked
features of evil.
Ø
They exalt that which is subordinate and
accidental at the expense of
the vital
and supreme. The
form of truth is placed above the spirit,
doctrine above life, the instrument above the power, appearances
above
realities, the shadow above the substance — creeds, systems, men,
above
Christ (ch. 3:4-5). Examine them closely, and you find that
all “contentions” in the Church mean this.
Ø
They engender mutual animosities which are
destructive of the
fellowship of a
common life. Here
lies the heart and core of the evil. Mere
outward diversities are not so much to be dreaded. Schism is a
thing of the
spirit. It lies not in the formal separations that conscience may
dictate, but
in the fierce antagonisms that may unhappily, but not
necessarily, grow out
of them. Sectarianism consists not in the frank outspoken
assertion of
individual convictions, but in the bitterness and uncharitableness
with
which one conscience may assert itself against all other
consciences. So
that the very spirit of schism may inspire that passion for
uniformity which
would suppress individual liberty of thought and speech and
action. The
true schismatics are these who by their intolerance create
divisions.
Whatever
tends to check the flow of spiritual fellowship violates the law of
Christ. We do
well carefully to watch against the estrangement of heart
that difference of religious opinion and ecclesiastical practice
too often
generates, “giving diligence to keep the unity of
the Spirit in the bond of
peace” (Ephesians 4:3).
Ø
They bring public dishonour
on the Name of Christ. That Name is the
symbol of a Divine reconciliation — the reconciliation of man to
man, as
well as man to God. But in this case it is made the cause of separations.
Christ
came to bind men together in a true brotherhood; but thus He is
made a “divider.” “Where
jealousy and faction are there is confusion and
every evil
work” (James 3:16).
And thus the very essential principle
and purpose of the Saviour’s mission
is falsified, and occasion is given to
the enemy to blaspheme. Few things have a more disastrous effect
in
discrediting the Christian cause than the bitterness of contending
parties in
that Church which is “the pillar and ground of the truth.” (I Timothy 3:15)
Ø
They squander and dissipate energies that ought rather to be
devoted to
active service in the Lord’s kingdom. Think
of the waste of spiritual force
these
divisions involve! If half the enthusiasm mere partisanship has
engendered had been expended on some real substantial work for the
good
of humanity and the glory of God, how blessed the results
might have
been! In one sense, of course, all zeal for truth, however
subordinate the
position of the particular truth may be, is for the good of humanity
and the
glory of God; but to be contending for the maintenance of
comparatively
trivial points of difference in violation of the spirit that ought
to harmonize
all differences, and of the grand responsibilities of the
Christian calling, is
to be guilty of “tithing the mint and the anise and the cummin, to the
neglect of the
weightier matters of the Law.” (Matthew 23:23)
·
THE CURE FOR THESE EVILS. There is but one cure — to
keep
Christ in all the glory of His being and
the supremacy of His claims
habitually before our minds, and to open our hearts freely to the inspiration
of His Spirit. This
will raise us above the littleness and meanness
of party
strife. A lofty object of contemplation and a high moral purpose
must
needs have an elevating and ennobling influence on the whole man.
It will
subdue within us all base affections, will rebuke our personal vanity,
will
enlarge our sympathies, will chasten our lesser enthusiasms. We
shall not
be in much danger of helping by our influence to violate the
unity of the
great household of faith, when our souls are filled with the full orbed
glory
of the
undivided Christ. The
expansive Spirit He gives will teach us to say,
“Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in
sincerity.”
(Ephesians
6:24)
14 I
thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius”
I thank God that I
baptized none of you.
"goes off at the word" baptize. He thanked God,
not by way of any disparagement
to baptism, but because he had thus given no excuse to the
undue exaltation of his
own name. Compare the practice of our Lord Himself, in
leaving His disciples to
baptize – (John 4:2)
The apostles would not have approved the system of wholesale
baptisms of the heathen which has prevailed in some Romanist
missions. Save Crispus.
The ruler of the synagogue (Acts 18:8). Doubtless there were
some strong special
reasons why, in these instances,
personally baptizing his converts. And Gaius. Gaius of
It was one of the commonest of names. There was another Gaius of Derbe
(Acts 20:4), and another known to
15 “Lest
any should say that I had baptized in mine own name.” I had baptized.
The better reading, followed by the Revised Version, is, Ye
were baptized unto my
name; א, A, B, C
16 “And
I baptized also the household of Stephanas: besides,
I know not
whether
I baptized any other.” And I baptized also. This he recalls by an
afterthought being, perhaps, reminded of it by Stephanas himself. The household
of Stephanas. Stephanas and his house were the
first converts in Achaia (ch.16:15).
When converts became more numerous,
(compare Acts 10:48). I know not. The
inspiration of the apostles involved none
of the mechanical infallibility ascribed to them by popular
dogma, He forgot
whether he had baptized any one else or not, but this made
no difference as
regards his main argument.
17 “For
Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not
with
wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of
none
effect.” For Christ sent me not
to baptize, but to preach the gospel:
The primary function of the apostles was “to
bear witness” (Mark 16:15;
Acts 1:8, etc.). To
preach the gospel. -
and dwells for eight verses on the character of his
preaching. Not
with wisdom
of
words. Not, that is, in a philosophic and oratorical style. The simplicity of
the style and teaching of
the apostles awoke the sneers of
philosophers like
Celsus and Porphyry. The cross of Chris. The central doctrine of
Christianity,
the preaching of a crucified
Redeemer. Should
be made of none effect.
The cross of Christ should be made void - The
rendering of the Authorized
Version is too strong; the cross
cannot “be made of none effect.” The word
means “should be emptied” (compare Romans 4:14; here, ch.
9:15; II Corinthians
9:3; Philippians 2:7;); made void of its special and independent power. The words,
“the
cross of Christ,” form the emphatic end of the
sentence in the Greek.
The World’s Greatest Blessing and the World’s Greatest Evil (v. 17)
“Lest the
cross of Christ should be made of none effect.” Here we have :
- The
Greatest BLESSING in the World. “The
cross of Christ.” By “the
cross of
Christ” the apostle did not mean, of course, the timber
on which
Christ was
crucified, or any imitation of that in wood, brass, marble, gold,
silver, or paint. He uses the word as a symbol, as we use
the words
“crown,” “court,” “bench,” etc. He meant the eternal principles
of which
the cross of Christ was at once the effect, evidence, and
expression — he
meant, in one word, all that we mean by the gospel. And this, we say, is the
greatest blessing in the world today. The human world lives under a system
of mercy, and mercy pours on it every hour blessings
innumerable. But no
blessing has come to it, has ever been found in it, or will
ever come to it,
equal to the cross or the gospel
of Jesus Christ! Look at it, for example, in
only three of its many aspects, and you will be impressed
with its incomparable
worth.
ü
As a Revealer. The chief
value of the material universe is, that it reveals
the spiritual and the eternal; but the gospel reveals all
that the material
does of God and the universe with much greater fullness and
effect. It
presents the “image of the
invisible God.” All true theological doctrine
and ethical science come to us through the cross. It is the moral light
of the world.
ü
As an Educator. That in
human life which is the most successful in
quickening, evolving, and strengthening all the powers of
the human
mind is its chief blessing. The “cross of Christ” has done this a
thousand times more effectively than any other agency. Art,
government,
science, poetry, philosophy, owe
infinitely more to it than
to any other agent in the world. The cross is to the human soul what the
vernal sunbeam is to the seed; it penetrates, warms, quickens, and brings
all its latent powers out to perfection.
ü
As a Deliverer. The cross
is more than a revealer or an educator; it is a
deliverer. The human
soul is condemned, diseased, enthralled; every-
where it groans under the sentence of its own conscience. It
languishes
under a moral malady; it is fettered by lusts, prejudices,
evil habits, and
social influences; its deepest cry is, “O wretched man that I am, who
shall
deliver me?” (Romans 7:24)
The cross bears a pen to cancel the
sentence, a balm to heal the wound, a weapon to break the fettering chain.
Such,
and infinitely more, is the
cross. What would human life be without
it? A voyage without a compass, chart, or
star. (How are you making it
in life? I have
always heard a picture is worth a thousand words – For
thought provoking ideas, I recommend Thomas
Cole’s Paintings –
Voyage of Life - four in number – Childhood, Youth, Manhood,
Old
Age – click on each photograph and enlarge – view and
ponder –
(type above in blue in browser
on the internet and see what you get –
well worth the effort – CY – 2010 – below are facsimiles)
Childhood
Youth
Manhood Old
Age
You will have to go to the
above web site to enlarge these pictures.
- The greatest EVIL
in the world. What
is the evil? Making this cross of
“none effect.” That is “none effect” so far as its grand mission is
concerned.
Some effect it must have; it will deepen the damnation
where it does not save!
“We are unto God a sweet savor of Christ,
in them that are saved, and
in them that
perish: To the one we are the savor of
death unto death,
and to the other the savor of
life unto life” – (II
Corinthians 2:15-16) - We
offer three
remarks concerning this tremendous evil.
ü
It is painfully
manifest. The fact is patent to all, that the cross has not to
any great extent in Christendom produced its true effect.
Though it has
been in the world upwards of eighteen hundred years, (now
two
thousand – CY – 2010) a small percentage of the human
population
know anything about it, and not one-hundredth of those who know
something of it, experience its true effect. Intellectually, socially,
politically, it has confessedly done wonders for mankind; but morally,
how little! How little genuine holiness, disinterested philanthropy,
self-sacrificing devotion to truth and God! How little Christlikeness
of life! In all moral features,
as hideous as heathendom!
ü
It is easily
explained. How is it done? The apostle in this verse indicates
one way in which it could be done, that is, by “wisdom
of words,” by
which we understand him to mean gorgeous rhetoric. What is
called the
Church
has done it; that is, the assembly of men who profess to be its
disciples, representatives, ministers, and promoters. The
Church has
done it:
Ø
By its theologies. In its name
it has propounded dogmas that
have clashed with reason and outraged conscience.
Ø
By its polity. It has sanctioned wars, promoted priest-craft,
established hierarchies, which have fattened on the
ignorance
and poverty of the people.
Ø
By its spirit. The spirit of the Church, as a rule, is in direct
antagonism to the spirit of the cross. The spirit of the cross is self
sacrificing love; the spirit
of the conventional Church has been to
a great extent that of selfishness, greed, ambition, and
oppression.
Mal-representation of Christ by the Church is the instrument
that
has made the cross of “none
effect.”
ü
It is terribly
criminal. It is wonderful that man has the power thus to
pervert Divine institutions and blessings; but such
perverting power he
has, and he uses it every day even in natural things. He
forges metals
into weapons for murder, he turns bread corn into liquids to
blight the
reason and to damn the souls of men. (to
say nothing of the drug
culture – CY –
2010) - Wonderful power this! and
terrible is the
crime in employing it for perverting the cross of Christ. A
greater crime
than this you cannot conceive of. Were you to turn all bread
into poison,
make the flowing rivers pestiferous, quench the light of the
sun, mantle
the stars in sackcloth, you would not perpetrate a crime half so enormous
as that of making the cross of Christ of “none effect.”
- CONCLUSION. Two questions.
ü
What is the
spiritual influence of the cross on us? Has it crucified unto
us the world; destroyed in us the worldly spirit — the spirit of practical
atheism, materialism, and selfishness?
ü
What are we
doing with the cross? Are we
abusing it or rightly
employing it?
The Nature of True
Christian Preaching (vs. 18-25)
18 “For
the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but
unto
us which are saved it is the power of God.”
For the
preaching of the
cross. Rather, the
word of the cross. Is to them that are
perishing. (I
remember
the old song from a child that encouraged Christians to Rescue the Perishing – CY –
2010) To all those who are now walking
in the paths that lead to destruction
(II Corinthians 2:15).
Foolishnes. To them
it was foolishness, because it
requires
spiritual discernment (ch. 2:14);
and, on the other hand, human wisdom is
foolishness with God (ch. 3:19). It shows the heroic character of the faith
of Paul that he deliberately preached the doctrine of the cross because he
felt
that therein lay the
conversion and salvation of the world, although he was well
aware that he could preach no truth so certain at first to
revolt the unregenerate
hearts of his hearers. To the Jews “the cross” was the tree of shame and horror;
and a crucified person was “accursed
of God” (Deuteronomy 21:23; Galatians
3:13). To the Greeks the cross was the gibbet of a slave’s
infamy and a murderer’s
punishment. There was
not a single association connected with it except those of
shame and agony. This was Christ’s great sacrifice because He, who knew no sin,
became sin for us that we might be made the
righteousness of God in Him –
[II Corinthians 5:21] – CY – 2010) The thought of “a crucified Messiah” seemed to
the Jews a revolting folly; the worship of a crucified
malefactor seemed to the Greeks
“an execrable superstition” (Tacitus,
‘Ann.,’ 15:44; Pliny, ‘Epp.’ 10:97); yet so little
did Paul seek for popularity or immediate success, that this
was the very doctrine
which he put in the forefront, even at a city so refined and
so voluptuous as
(Could it be
that the reason that few people are being
saved today is Christ is not
preached crucified? – CY -
2010) And the result proved his inspired wisdom.
That very cross became the recognized badge of Christianity,
and when three
centuries had elapsed it
was woven in gold upon the banners and set in jewels on the
diadems of the
will draw all men unto me”? - (John 12:32) “but
unto us which are saved it is the
power
of God.” - It is the power of God! Because the cross is at the heart of that
gospel which is “the power of God unto
salvation to every one that believeth”
(Romans 1:16; 8:3), though many were tempted to be ashamed of it. It could never
be a carnal weapon of warfare, and yet was mighty for every purpose (II
Corinthians
10:4-5).
19 “For
it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will
bring
to nothing the understanding of the prudent.” For it is written
- This
formula ( chps. 1:31; 2:9; 3:19; 9:9; 10:7; 15:45; II Corinthians 8:15)
is chiefly used in letters to Churches in which there were
many Jews – I will
destroy the wisdom of
the wise, and will bring to nothing the
understanding
of the prudent. This is a
free citation from the Septuagint of Isaiah 29:14-15 –
“Therefore, behold, I will
proceed to do a marvelous work among this people,
even a marvelous work and a
wonder: for the wisdom of
their wise men shall
perish, and the understanding of their
prudent men shall be hid. Woe unto
them that seek deep to hide
their counsel from the LORD, and
their works are
in the dark, and they say,
Who seeth us? and who knoweth us?” -
[Could it be
that this is what is going on in the White House, the halls of Congress,
and in the
leading, deceiving, spin-doctoring MEDIA of
today? – CY –
2010] –
(I will add this: I
think I can eliminate the White House today as the current
sitting President has prayer meetings with his staff!? CY – 2018) (the same thought is
found in Job 5:12-13; see too Matthew 11:25). The
original .passage refers to penal
judgments from the
Assyrians, which would test the false prophets of
Two Classes of Gospel Hearers (vs. 18-19)
“For the
preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto
us which are
saved it is the power of God. For it is written, I will destroy
the wisdom of
the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the
prudent.” (vs. 18-18=9) - Instead of the “preaching
of the cross,” the New Version
reads, the “word of the cross,” and the word of
the cross stands in contrast to the
word of worldly wisdom. How great
is the contrast! We have here two classes of gospel
hearers.
- The one is gradually
PERISHING, the other is gradually BEING
SAVED.
The
perishing and the saving are gradual.
ü There is a class in every congregation, perhaps, gradually perishing.
They
are gradually losing moral sensibility — contracting fresh guilt, etc.
They
are not damned at once.
ü There is a class in every congregation, perhaps, gradually being
saved.
.
·
To the one
class the gospel is FOOLISHNESS, to the other the POWER OF
GOD.
ü
It is “foolishness” to them
that are perishing, because it has no meaning,
no reality.
ü
It is a Divine “power” to them that
are being saved. Enlightening,
renovating, purifying, ennobling. The power of
God stands in contrast
with mere
philosophy and eloquence.
20 “Where
is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this
world?
hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? Where is the wise?
(Isaiah 33:18); rather, Where
is a wise man? i.e. a scribe, etc.,
which is even more
incisive. These questions are triumphant, like the
"Where is the King of Hamath and
of Arpad?" The same
impassioned form of speech recurs in ch. 15:55 and in
Romans
3:27. The questions would come home to the Jews, who
regarded their rabbis and
the "pupils of the wise as exalted beings who could
look down on all poor ignorant
persons (amharatsim, or
"people of the land"); and to the Greeks, who regarded
none but the philosophers as "wise." The scribe. With the Jews of that day
“the
scribe" was "the
theologian," the ideal of dignified
learning and orthodoxy,
though for the most part he mistook elaborate ignorance for
profound knowledge.
The disputer. The word would specially be true of the Greek clever
dialecticians.
The verb from which this word is derived occurs in Mark
8:11, and the abstract
substantive (“an eager discussion”) in Acts 28:29. If Paul has Isaiah 33:18 in
his mind, the word "disputer" corresponds to "the counter of the
towers" (compare
Psalm 48:12). Even the rabbis say that when Messiah comes human
wisdom is to
become
needless. Of the world; rather, of this
age, or aeon. The old
dispensation,
then so
rapidly waning to its close, was called "this
age" (olam
hazzeh);
the next or Messianic age was called "the age to come" (olam habba).
The Messianic
age had dawned at the birth of Christ, but the old covenant
was not finally annulled
till His second coming at the fall of
of the world? rather, Did not God (by the cross) stultify the wisdom,
etc.? The
oxymoron, or sharp contrast of terms – a figure of which Paul is fond (see
I Timothy 5:6; Romans 1:20; and my ‘Life of St. Paul,’ 1:628) — is here clearly
marked in the Greek. The thought was as familiar to the old
prophets (Isaiah 44:25)
as to Paul (Romans 1:22); and even
Horace saw that heathen philosophy was
sometimes no better than insaniens sapientia [crazily good sense} (Horace, ‘Od.,’
1:34, 2).
Wisdom and Foolishness (v. 21)
“Seeing that in the
wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God,
it pleased God by the
foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.”
·
THE CONTRAST AT
great soldiers or statesmen, for military and political power had
deserted
them and centered at
philosophers, and still considered themselves intellectual leaders of the
world. In this
spirit they sat in judgment on THE GOSPEL. As to
his
treatment of the problems of sin and righteousness, they were not deeply
concerned; but they were ready to
weigh and measure it as a new philosophy,
and thought it deficient in intellectual flavor, and quite
inferior to the
speculations of Greek teachers on the nature of God and of man, the
order
of the world, the beautiful and the good. Paul knew this
feeling well,
and felt the sting of such imputations, for he was an educated
man; but
with his usual frankness and manliness he faced this allegation
of the
supercilious Greeks, and with a sharp spear pricked the bubble of their
self
conscious wisdom. Nay, he boldly maintained that what they thought wise
was foolish, and what they thought foolish WAS WISE! At the same time,
he was too wary and too kind hearted to irritate his readers
by pointing the
statement at
of the world. Let all
the wisdom to which the whole world had attained by
human investigation into the things of God be gathered into a
heap, and
displayed in all the light that the world’s best minds could cast
upon it, and
he would maintain that it was weak, dim, and futile as compared with that
wisdom which he and other preachers of Christ could instill by the
REVEALED
GOSPEL! It was a large claim; but those who know “the
wisdom of the ancients” best, and are most accurately acquainted
with the
ideas and usages of that old heathen world, will be the most
ready to say
that Paul had good ground for his assertion — that his claim was
absolutely
true.
·
THE CONTRAST TODAY. Contemptuous thoughts about the
evangelical faith show themselves in many quarters, Men seem to forget
that the intellectual advancement of modern society, of which
they boast,
and which they put forward as superseding old fashioned
Christianity, is
itself mainly due to Christianity; that the great schools and
universities of
tone and breadth to our civilization, the appreciation of the force
of truth,
and the sense of human brotherhood as something far above mere
enthusiasm for one race and antipathy to all others, all have been
engendered and fostered by our holy faith! Ungratefully
overlooking this,
men stand today on an eminence which Christianity has cast
up, and thence
decry Christianity. Religion
is pronounced weak and quite unprovable. It is
not good enough for these very knowing people and hard thinkers!
Yet
nothing is more certain than that men have urgent need of God, and
of
those moral helps and profound consolations which are bound up
with a
knowledge of God and friendship with Him. And the heart at times has
a
passionate cry, “Where is my God?” Put
aside the money bags, the clever
schemes, the amusements, the newspapers, the scientific
instruments, and
the social engagements, and tell me this, O wisdom of the world!
“Where is
God my Maker? Is there not a Highest and Wisest and Best? And where is
he? ‘Oh that I knew where I might find him! that I might come even to his
seat!” (Job 23:3) What can the wisdom of this world reply? It
does not deny
Divine existence, though a good many
persons are coldly doubtful and agnostic
on the subject. But as in the first century any effective
conception of the
Divine was wearing out of thoughtful minds,
and there was hardly any
religious check on licentiousness and rapacity; so now there are mere
vague and high sounding phrases about the Almighty current among the
worldly wise, without as much real faith in God as may restrain one fit of
passion or dry one bitter tear. (For
instance, the hand-wringing of those
who are decrying recent school shootings. I announce with all confidence
that had
teaching of “Thou shalt not kill” would
have prevented our current foolish
situation. He is a force — personal or impersonal, no
one knows; where seated, why operative, how directed, none can
tell. Or,
he is a dream of ineffable beauty and a fountain of ineffable
pity; but how
to reconcile this with the more severe aspects of nature and life BAFFLES
ALL THE
WISDOM OF THE WORLD! The sages arc puzzled; the
multitude know not what to think; and so the world by wisdom
knows not
God. But there
is a better wisdom, and
Paul has shown it to us. It may be
well for some to watch
the weary gropings and struggles of the world’s
wisdom, and speak or
write on the evidences of Biblical theology and the
Christian faith when they find a fit occasion. Yet those to whom the gospel
is committed ought not,
as a general rule, to turn aside to such discussions.
They ought to preach often and earnestly, trusting to God’s vindication
of the wisdom of that which men call foolishness. “What will
this babbler
say?” they
cried against Paul in
say?” they cried against
in
and Wesley — men who, under God, saved the moral and religious life of
preaching has abundantly
shown itself to be wisdom by its results.
Its seeming weakness covers real power. O wise babbler who says,
“Christ
crucified!”
Philosophy and the Gospel (vs. 20-21)
“Where is
the wise?” The “wise” (σοφός - sophos – wise one) here refers specially to
the sages of
more modest title, “lovers of wisdom,” philosophers. The “scribe”
refers to the
learned among the Jews. The appeal of the text, therefore, is to the wisdom or the
philosophy of the world, including
that of the Greek or Jew. Here we have:
·
Philosophy CHALLENGED by the Gospel. The apostle here challenges
the wise men of the world to accomplish the end which the
gospel had in
view. That end was the impartation
to men of the saving knowledge of
God. Where, unaided, had it ever succeeded in accomplishing
this? Who
amongst the wise will come forward to give one single
instance?
·
Philosophy CONFOUNDED by the gospel. “Hath not God made
foolish
the wisdom of
this world?” (v. 20)
ü
By doing
what philosophy could not do. “The world by wisdom knew
not God.” (v.
21) - Though the pages of nature lay open to the eye, with
God’s signature on the whole, man failed to discover Him.
ü
By doing by the simplest instrumentality what philosophy could not do.
The
proclamation of the history of Jesus of Nazareth, and that by a few
simple men regarded as the off-scouring of all things, did
the work. Hath
not God in this way “made foolish the wisdom of the world”? (v. 20)
·
Philosophy SUPERSEDED by the gospel. “It pleased God by
the
foolishness
of preaching to save them that believe.” (v. 21) - The
preaching is
not foolish in itself, only in the estimation of the would
be wise men. The great
want of men is salvation — the
restoration of the soul to the knowledge,
the likeness, the fellowship of God. This want
philosophy cannot supply;
but the gospel does. It has
done so, it is doing so, and it will continue to do
so.
21 “For
after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God,
it
pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.”
For after that in the
wisdom of God - that is, as a part of His Divine
economy –
The world by wisdom knew
not God. In the
Culture Wars of the 21st Century,
these words might be written as an epitaph on the tomb of ancient, and of
modern philosophy and science so far as it assumes an
anti-Christian form.
(Luke 10:21). Human wisdom, when it relies solely on itself,
may “feel after God,”
but hardly find Him (Acts 17:26-27). [They are like the blind man, looking in a dark
room for a black cat, that isn’t there – CY – 2010]. It pleased God by the
foolishness of preaching
to save them that believe. This is a mistranslation. It
would require κῆρυξεος – keruxeos – preaching
- not κηρύγματος – kerugmatos –
proclamation. It should be by
the foolishness (as men esteemed
it) of the thing
preached.
22 For
the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom” Jews
ask for
signs; rather, Jews demand signs. This had been their incessant demand during our
Lord’s ministry; nor would they be content with any sign
short of a sign from
heaven (Matthew 12:38; 16:1; John 2:18; 4:48). This had been
steadily refused
them by Christ, who wished them rather to see spiritual
signs (Luke 17:20-21)
Greeks
seek after wisdom. Paul at
with Stoics and Epicureans, and the same new thing which
every one was
looking for mainly took the shape of philosophic novelties
(Acts 17:21).
23 “But
we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock,
and
unto the Greeks foolishness;” But we preach Christ
crucified,
It was only by slow degrees that the title "the
Christ," i.e. the Anointed,
the Messiah, passed into the name Christ. Unto the Jews a
stumbling-block.
They had for centuries been looking for a regal and
victorious Messiah, who
should exalt their
special privileges. The notion of a suffering and humiliated
Messiah, who reduced them to the level of all God’s other
children, was to them
“a stone of stumbling and a
rock of offence” (Romans
9:33 and compare
Isaiah 8:14) These
two verses, translated into Syriac, furnish a marked
play on
words (miscol, stumbling block; mashcal,
folly; seed, cross); and some have
seen in this a sign that
unto Gentiles; א, A, B, C, I). Unto the Jews... unto the Greeks. Both
alike
had failed.
- The Jew had not attained ease of conscience or moral perfectness;
- the Greek had not unriddled
the secret of philosophy;
yet both
alike rejected the peace and the
enlightenment which they had
professed to seek. Foolishness. The accent of profound contempt is discernible
in all the early allusions of Greeks and Romans to Christianity. The only epithets
which they could find for it were “execrable,” “malefic,”
“depraved,” “damnable”
(Tacitus, Suetonius,
Pliny, etc.). The milder term is “excessive superstition.”
The heroic constancy of martyrs appeared even to Marcus
Aurelius only
under the aspect of a “bare obstinacy.” The word used to
express the scorn of the
Athenian philosophers for Paul’s “strange doctrine” is one of the coarsest disdain
ὁ σπερμολόγος - sper-mol-og’-os; a
seed-picker, like a crow or some other bird,
picking up seeds (Acts 17:18), i.e.
a mere picker up of “learning’s crumbs.”
24 But
unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of
God,
and the wisdom of God.” Unto them that are called (see Romans 8:28);
literally, to the called
themselves. Both Jews and Greeks. Henceforth
the middle
wall of partition between them is thrown down (Ephesians
2:14), and there is no
difference (Romans 10:12). Christ
the power of God, and the wisdom of God.
These words are a summary of
the gospel. Paul is
the best commentator on himself.
He speaks elsewhere of “the exceeding greatness of
God’s power to usward who
believe which He wrought in
Christ” (Ephesians 1:17-20), and of “all the treasures
of wisdom
and knowledge” as being “hid in Christ” (Colossians 2:3). And the world,
once so scornful, has
learned that Christ is indeed the Power of God.
Christ Crucified (vs. 22-24)
It is difficult for us to realize the deep rooted strength
of the prejudices the
truth of Christ encountered on its first proclamation. One thing,
however,
is clear — while the apostles accommodated the mode of their
teaching to
those prejudices, they never so accommodated the teaching itself.
Their
doctrine was THE
SAME FOR ALL! They never thought of modifying it or
softening down its essential peculiarities, to suit the taste of any.
With
reference to the form of his teaching, Paul says, “To the weak I became
weak,” etc. (I Corinthians 9:22); with reference to the substance.
“Though we
or an angel from heaven should preach any other gospel
unto you than that which we
have preached unto you, let him be
accursed.” (Galatians 1:8).
Jews and Greeks are the two broad classes under
which these varieties of prejudice might be grouped; and here are
their
prominent characteristics. “Jews ask for signs.” It was so in the days of
Christ. “An evil and adulterous generation seeketh
after asign” (Matthew 12:39);
“Except ye see signs and
wonders, ye will not believe.” (John
4:48). And in the
apostolic age the race everywhere manifested the same mental
tendency.
They were sign seeking Jews. “Greeks seek after
wisdom” — such wisdom
as found a home for itself in their own philosophic schools.
They knew no
other. Thus each of these classes illustrated a particular aspect
of the vanity
of human nature; the one craving after that which would minister to the
pride of sense, the other to the pride of intellect. For both Paul had but one
message: “Christ and Him
crucified.” Note:
·
THE THEME OF THE APOSTOLIC TEACHING. “We preach
Christ
crucified” (see
also ch. 2:2; Galatians 3:1). This is thebsum and substance of
evangelical doctrine, the idea that filled the foremost place in the
apostle’s
thought and supplied the chief inspiration of his heroic life. Not
a little of the
emphasis falls on the word “crucified.” He
preached Christ as the personal
Redeemer of men, and that not merely as:
Ø
the great miracle working
Prophet of God,
Ø
the moral Reformer,
Ø
the Revealer of new truth,
Ø
the Lawgiver of a new
spiritual kingdom,
Ø
the Example of a divinely
perfect life, but as
Ø
the Victim of death.
It was in the death of Christ that the
whole force and virtue of the apostolic
testimony about Him lay. What meaning did Paul attach to this death?
The
mere reiteration of the fact itself would be powerless apart
from its doctrinal
significance. If he had represented it simply as the crowning act of a
life of
devotion and self sacrifice in the cause of God and of humanity, he
would
have placed the Name of Christ on the level of many another
name, and his
death on a level with the death of many another witness for truth
and
righteousness; instead of which a virtue and a moral efficacy are
everywhere imputed to it, which
cannot be conceived of as belonging to
any other death, and which alone explain the position it
occupies in
apostolic teaching (see ch. 5:7; Ephesians
1:7; 2:14,16; Colossians 1:21;
I John 1:7; 2:2).
Ø
Forgiveness of sins,
Ø
spiritual cleansing,
Ø
moral freedom,
Ø
practical righteousness,
Ø
fellowship
with God,
Ø
the hope of eternal glory,
ALL ARE SET FORTH HERE AS FRUITS OF THE DEATH OF
CHRIST and our faith in it. Paul made it the one grand theme of his
ministry, because he knew that it would meet the deep and universal
needs
of humanity. No other word would bring rest to the troubled
conscience
and satisfaction to the longing, weary, distracted heart of
man; no other
voice could awaken the world to newness of life out of the dread
shadow
of despair and death in which it lay.
·
THE RECEPTION IT MET WITH, from “Jews,” “Gentiles” and
“them that are called.”
Ø
“Unto Jews a stumbling block” — an offence, something “scandalous.”
On several
special grounds Christ was such an offence to them.
o
The lowliness of His origin (humanly speaking – CY – 2018)
o
The unostentatious character of His life.
o
The unworldliness of His aims and
methods.
o
The expansive spirit of His doctrine; its freedom from class
and
national exclusiveness.
o
The universality of the grace He offered, and above all,
o
the fact of His crucifixion.
How could
they recognize as their Messiah One who had died as the vilest
of malefactors; died by the judgment of their rulers and amid
the derision
of the people; died by a death that above all others they
abhorred? The
cross, which Paul
made the basis of human hope and the central glory of
the universe, was to them “a
stone of stumbling and a rock of offence.”
Ø
“Unto Gentiles foolishness.” The Gentile world was pervaded by Greek
sentiment. “
name and government was Roman, but in feeling and civilization
Greek.”
Such a world
scorned the “preaching
of the cross” because:
o
It lowered the pride of the human intellect, both by its
simplicity and by
its profundity — so plain that “the
wayfaring man though a fool,
should not
err therein” (Isaiah
35:8) could
understand it, too deep
for the utmost stretch of thought to fathom.
o
It revealed the rottenness of the human heart beneath the
fairest
garment of civilization and culture. It made man
dependent for all his
light upon
supernatural revelations, and for all his hopes of redemption
on the
spontaneous impulse of sovereign mercy. No wonder it was
“foolishness” to proud Romans and polished, philosophic Greeks.
And have we
not around us now similar phases of aversion to
the
doctrine of “Christ crucified”? The spirit of the world is not the spirit
of the cross.
§
The one is:
ü
carnal,
ü
vain,
ü
selfish,
ü
revengeful, and
ü
self indulgent;
§
the other is:
ü
spiritual,
ü
lowly,
ü
benevolent,
ü
forgiving, and
ü
self abandoning.
The cross to
every one of us means:
§
submission,
§
humiliation,
§
self sacrifice,
§
reproach and
§
shame.
These
are hard to bear. It is hard to say, with Paul, “God
forbid that I
should glory,
save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom
the world
is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” (Galatians 6:14)
The cross may
occupy a prominent place in our creed, our worship,
our sermons and songs, may decorate our churches, may be
made a favorite instrument of personal adornment; but to have
its spirit
filling our
hearts, molding and governing our whole being and life, is
another thing.
Ø
“Unto them that are called,” etc. The “called” are they who “are being
saved” (v. 18). In the case of all such the
Divine purpose in the gospel is
answered. They are called, and they obey the call. The heavenly
voice falls
on their ears, penetrates the secrecy of their souls, and
there is life for them
in the sound, because, like the still, small voice that
breathed in the hearing
of Elijah at the mouth of the cave, “the
Lord is in the voice.” (I Kings 19:12-13)
The proof they
have that the gospel is the embodiment of the power and wisdom
of God is the infallible seal of the Spirit, the unanswerable witness of a Divine
and heavenly life. Is it a “sign” that you ask for? Believe in Christ, and
you
shall have within you that mightiest of all wonders, the miracle
of grace by
which a soul is translated from darkness into light, and from the
death of
sin to the life of holiness. Is it “wisdom” you seek after? Believe in Christ,
and He will
unlock for you the unsearchable riches of the mind and heart of
God. (Romans 11:33)
Christ the Power of God (v. 24)
The power of God is seen in nature and in providence, but
here we have a
new conception of it. Jesus Christ is that Power. In His person, as God
manifest in flesh, there resides the potency of the Highest; but the
apostle is
here thinking mainly of Him as crucified. In that cross, which seems to us
the culmination of weakness, he sees the very power of God.
Consider:
·
THE ELEMENTS OF DIVINE POWER TO BE FOUND IN THE
CROSS OF CHRIST.
Ø The death
of Christ manifests the power of God’s love. As soon as we
understand the meaning of the cross, we cannot help exclaiming, "Herein
is
love!” (I John 4:10) Nor is it merely the fact of His love to men
which it
reveals, for this might be learned elsewhere; but it is the
greatness of His
love. It is the “commendation” of it (Romans 5:8) — the presenting of
it in such a way as to powerfully impress us with its
wonderful character.
Here is the Son
of God dying for sinners; and on whichever part of this
statement we fix attention, it casts light on this marvelous love.
o
The Son of God! The strength of God’s love to us may be
gauged by
the fact that He gave up to death His own Son. “God so
loved the world
that he
gave his only begotten Son,” etc. (John 3:16); “He that spared
not his
own Son, but delivered us up for us all, how shall He not
with Him
also freely give us ALL THINGS?” (Romans 8:32).
What a power
of love is here! Not an angel, nor some
unique being
specially created and endowed for the mighty task, but His HIS
ONLY SON! Human love has rarely touched this high water
mark.
o
For sinners! “While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Human
measures and analogies fail us here. “Greater
love hath no man than
this, that
a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13); but
here is love for enemies. And love, not in mere sentiment, not in
simple
forbearance, but in self sacrifice — love persisting in its purpose of
salvation in the face of hatred and scorn. Thus on both sides the
love of
God is seen in
power. And what a battery to play upon the hearts of men!
Ø
The death of Christ
manifests the power of His justice. No reading of the
cross that leaves this element out of account can explain the
mystery. In a
work the
professed design of which is to restore men to righteousness,
there must surely be no breach of righteousness; yet it is here
put to a
severe test. Is the Law impartial? Will it punish sin wherever it
is found?
What if the
Son of God Himself should be found with sin upon Him? Shall
the sword awake and smite the man that is God’s Fellow (Zechariah
13:7)?
Yes; for He
dies there as one “bruised
for our iniquities.” (Isaiah 53:5)
Surely justice
must be mighty when it lays its hand on such a victim. If that
modern description of God as a “power
making for righteousness” is
applicable anywhere, it is so here; for nowhere is He so severely
righteous
as in the working out of salvation for men. Nothing can more powerfully
appeal to conscience than His treatment of the sinner’s Surety;
and nothing
can more thoroughly assure us that the pardon which comes to us
through
the cross is righteous.
·
THE POWER OF GOD IN THE CROSS AS SEEN IN ITS
PRACTICAL EFFECTS, Our
readiest measure of any force in nature is
the effect it produces, and in this way we may gauge the power
of the
cross. Take it:
Ø
In regard to the powers of darkness. “For this purpose the Son of God
was
manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil” (I John
3:15; compare
Hebrews 2:14). The execution of this purpose is intimated
in Colossians 2:15, “Having put off from Himself the
principalities and
the
powers, He made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it
[the cross].” It is as if ten thousand fiendish arms
were stretched out to
pluck Him from that cross; but He strips them off Him, and hurls
them back
into the abyss. It cost Him much to win that victory, even “strong
crying
and tears” and an agony of soul beyond all human
experience (Hebrews
5:7; Luke 22:
44; but the triumph was complete.
Ø
In regard to the actual salvation of
sinners. To deliver a man from sin in
all respects,
undo its direful effects, and fit him to take his place among
God’s
sons, — what
power is adequate to this? Take Paul’s own
conversion, on which apologists have been willing to stake the
supernatural
character of Christianity. And every conversion presents
substantially the
same features. It is nothing less than a new creation (II
Corinthians
5:17):
o
a calling of light out of darkness,
o
order out of chaos,
o
life out of death;
and this is a more wonderful exercise of power than that which gave
existence to the
universe. The fair
temple of God in the soul has to be built,
not out of fresh hewn stones, but out of
the ruins of our former selves. A
poor weak man is rescued from corruption, defended “against
the spiritual
hosts of
wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12), and
presented at last without blemish before God, — what but
Divine power
can accomplish
this? Add to this
the exercise of this power in a countless
number of instances. From the steps of the throne survey that
radiant
multitude, beautiful with the beauty of God and noble with the
nobility of
Christ, and the might of the cross will need no other proof.
Ø
In regard to what He enables His people to do and suffer for
His sake.
Take an active
missionary life like that of Paul. Read such a catalogue of
afflictions as he gives us in II Corinthians 11:23-33, and ask why a
man
should voluntarily undergo all these. Thousands have followed his
example, meeting toil, privation, death, for their Lord’s sake. Nor does
the
power of the
cross shine less conspicuously in the sick chamber. How
many a
Christian invalid exhibits a patience, a meekness, a cheerfulness,
which can be
found nowhere else!
25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser
than men; and the
weakness
of
God is
stronger than men.” The foolishness of
God... the weakness of God;
the method, that is, whereby God works, and which men take
to be foolish and
weak, because with arrogant presumption they look upon themselves as the
measure of all things. But
God achieves the mightiest ends by the humblest
means, and the gospel of Christ allied itself from the
first, not with the world’s
strength and splendor, but with all which the world despised as mean and feeble —
with fishermen and tax gatherers, with slaves, and women,
and artisans. The lesson
was specially needful to the Corinthians, whom
as “famous, not only for their luxuriousness, but also for
their wealth
and philosophic
culture.”
Man’s Wisdom and God’s (vs. 17-25)
The mention of baptism leads the apostle to speak of his
preaching at
Corinth. His mission was “not to baptize, but to
preach the gospel,” and
he
proceeds to vindicate his discharge of that mission as against those
who
preferred the “wisdom of this world.”
·
THE THEME OF EVANGELICAL PREACHING. He calls it “the
word of the cross;” “Christ crucified” (compare ch. 2:2). Here
at
the simplicity of the gospel and disclaiming the “wisdom of
words” upon
which others laid stress. The central point in his teaching was
that which he
delighted to sum up in the expression, “the cross of Christ.” He did not
keep the Crucifixion out of sight as a thing to be ashamed of,
but gloried in
it as the distinguishing feature of the good news he
proclaimed. The
humiliation and death
of the Saviour of men, His “becoming obedient unto
death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:8), is the very kernel
of the gospel, the key which unlocks the mystery of his work. Paul might
have told them of a purer morality than their moralists had
taught, and a
sublimer
philosophy than Socrates or Plato had imagined; but this would at
best have stirred only a few minds to new thought, and made a few earnest
hearts feel that perfection was further off than ever. It was otherwise when
he could speak to them of the cross of Christ, with all that it
implied; for in
this is THE DIVINE ANSWER to the great life query which men had
striven in vain to answer — How can man be just with God? Here is the
One dying for the many, the Son
of God suffering as a substitute for
sinners, and thus SALVATION ACTUALLY ACCOMPLISHED. To preach
this was truly to bring glad tidings. The example of the apostle is a pattern
for all preachers. Let us not think to recommend Christianity by hiding the
cross or reducing it to a figure of speech, as if the death of Christ were
merely a testimony to the sincerity of His life. Christianity without the cross
is no real evangel to men. You
may admire the spotless life of Jesus, rejoice
in His wonderful teaching, bless Him for His Divine philanthropy, and weep
over His undeserved fate; but this would simply make Him a greater
Socrates
or a greater Paul. It is His atoning death above all that makes
Him more to us
than any of the illustrious teachers or martyrs of history. But
while this is
true, we must not suppose that preaching Christ means nothing
more than
a simple recital of the way of salvation. Paul’s letters are
virtually
summaries of his oral teaching; and in them we see how the one theme
expands into the whole circle of Christian truth, how Christ appears as
Prophet,
Priest, and King, and how the gospel is applied to the trials and
duties of actual life. Let
us not make narrow what God has made so broad.
Let us not stunt and deform our spiritual
life by feeding only on one kind of
nourishment, and refusing the large provision He has made for us. We
shall
preach Christ aright only by exhibiting the fullness that dwells
in Him.
·
THE METHOD OF EVANGELICAL PREACHING. While the main
reference in this passage is to the theme of the preacher, there is
also a
reference to the manner in which that theme is presented. “Not in wisdom
of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made void.” We may preach
Christ in such a way as to neutralize the
gospel’s peculiar power.
Ø
We may do this by merely speculating about the death of
Christ.
Philosophical
essays on the work of Christ, and disquisitions on Christian
doctrine, have their place and value; but they must not usurp the
place of
simple
preaching. They
appeal only to the intellect, whereas the sermon
appeals to the
heart and conscience as well. As a matter of experience, it is
found that the style of preaching here condemned is productive of
little
spiritual fruit.
Ø
We may do this by a rhetoric which hides the
cross. The gospel may be
so adorned that men’s attention is drawn to the gaudy
trappings or to the
preacher himself, instead of being fixed on the truth; and in so far
as this is
the case its influence is lost. The
flowers with which we bedeck the cross
too often
hide it. The right
idea of preaching may be gathered from the two
words translated “preach” in this passage. The first means “to bring glad
tidings” — the good news of a Saviour for
sinners (εὐαγγελίζεσθαι -
euaggelizesthai - to be bringing the well
message, v.17); the
second
signifies “to
proclaim as a herald” the facts of salvation and
the invitations and promises founded upon them (κηρύσσομεν -
kaerussomen - are heralding, v. 23). Evangelical
preaching is a
publication of the good news to men, a direct
setting forth of Christ
in all His
offices. Thus
presented, the cross is full of power to draw
men to the Saviour (John 12:32).
·
HOW THE GOSPEL APPEARS TO THOSE THAT REJECT
IT.
The preaching of the cross affects men
according to their prepossessions.
Bent of mind, education, surroundings, largely
determine their attitude
towards Christ. Two
classes are mentioned by the apostle who rejected the
gospel for two different reasons.
Ø
The Jews. “Jews
ask for signs,” i.e.
they crave for some outward
miraculous exhibition to call forth their wonder. “Master,
we would see a
sign from
thee” (Matthew
12:38) was their constant demand of Jesus;
and, in so far as the demand was a legitimate one, it was complied
with.
Peter on the
day of Pentecost could speak of Jesus of Nazareth as “a man
approved of God
unto you by mighty works and wonders and signs”
(Acts 2:22). The chief sign of all was the cross; but the Jews did not
understand it. They stumbled at it as a “scandal,” which they could not get
over, and which seemed to them to say the opposite of what God
intended.
The cross was
in their eyes the token of humiliation and shame. They
looked for a Messiah attended by far different manifestations, and
they
would not believe in One who had been crucified. There are still those
among us who, like the Jews, seek
after signs. They crave for the outward,
the visible, the sensational — for something to dazzle and
startle.
o
The Roman Catholic will go hundreds of miles to visit the spot
where “our Lady” is supposed to have appeared, will gaze with
devout reverence on the curdled blood of Januarius
turning liquid
before his eyes, and will touch with awe the relics of some saint,
believing that they will cure his diseases.
o
The Protestant, disdaining these superstitions, shows the
same spirit in
other ways. He may love the sensuous in worship and the sensational in
preaching. He may run after the man who is an adept in oratorical
jugglery, who knows the day and the hour when the world is to end, etc.
Whatever is
novel, unusual, popular, is sure to find such sign seekers among its
ardent supporters. To men of this temper the cross of Christ is
still a
“stumbling block.” For it speaks of humiliation, of obedience unto death,
of a quiet unostentatious doing of the will of God; and this
is the very thing
such people feel to be distasteful. To go with Jesus into the
garden, and
there drink the cup God puts to our lips; to endure with Him the
contradiction of sinners, and be exposed to shame and hissing; to go
after
Him, denying
ourselves and bearing our cross; — this is the meaning of the
sign. Is it any wonder if men stumble at it?
Ø
The Greeks. “Greeks seek after wisdom.” The idea of a crucified
Saviour was to them foolishness. Accustomed to the speculations of
their
own philosophers, set forth with learning and subtlety, these
lovers of
wisdom applied to the doctrine of the cross a purely
intellectual test. It was
in their eyes a new philosophy, and Jesus of Nazareth was to
be tried by
the same rules as the founders of their own schools. To these
critical
Greeks Paul
had nothing to offer but the story of Him who was crucified
(compare our Lord’s words to the Greeks, John 12:23, etc.).
The cross
for them, as for the Jews, had but one language — it spoke of
the lowest
infamy; and to preach salvation by a cross would be in their view
the
sheerest absurdity. These Greeks have still their representatives
in modern
life. There are those who glorify human intellect,
and think themselves
capable of solving all mysteries. How many of our men of science seem to
lose their heads when they come to speak of Christianity! They
have
nothing but a sneer for a “theology of blood;” and their quarrel with Jesus
is that, after giving the world such splendid precepts, He
should have
imagined that He could save men by letting them crucify Him. In
forms less
extreme than this the same spirit may be traced. Many hearers of the Word
have more regard to the mental grasp of the preacher, the literary finish
of
the
discourse, or the manner in which it is delivered, than to the
scriptural
and edifying
character of the truth preached. The simple
preaching of
Christ
crucified is to their thinking comparative folly. Let us not be carried
away by this craving for wisdom. “When once the idolatry of
talent enters
the Church, then farewell to spirituality; when men ask their
teachers, not
for that which will make them more humble and Godlike, but for
the
excitement of an intellectual banquet, then farewell to Christian
progress”
(F. W.
Robertson). Observe the apostle’s statement with regard to these
despisers of the cross: “In the wisdom of God the world through its
wisdom knew
not God.” Men groped
after Him, but could not find Him. It
was part of the Divine scheme that the wisdom of the world
should have
free scope to work; and only when it had exhausted itself was the world
ripe for the
bringing in of the gospel. This was a part of the preparation for
Christ. Human wisdom is
still inadequate. It cannot save a single soul.
o
Men perish as they speculate;
o
men die as they frame theories of life.
In
God’s view, man’s
wisdom is folly; in
man’s view, God’s wisdom is folly.
Which is the
wiser?
·
HOW THE GOSPEL APPEARS TO THOSE THAT RECEIVE
IT.
They are described as “called” (v. 24), as “believers” (v.
21), as “being
saved” (v.
18); each term presenting a different aspect of their condition.
Ø
They
are called by God out of the world into the fellowship of Christ;
Ø
being
called, they
believe in Him; and
Ø
believing, they are in the way of
salvation.
There is no salvation without faith, and no
faith without the
calling of God by His Word and Spirit. Now, to all such Christ is “the
Power of God, and the Wisdom of God.” The Jew stumbled at the cross as
a thing of weakness; the believer rejoices in it as a thing
of power. It has
done for him what all other appliances failed to accomplish. It
has made
him a new creature, bringing him out of darkness and death into light and
life. Every
one who has been cured by a particular medicine is a witness to
the efficacy of that medicine; so every saved sinner bears
testimony to the
power of the cross. And there is wisdom here as well as power — “the
wisdom of God.”
Christ crucified is not a philosophy, but a fact; yet
through this fact there shines the highest wisdom. We can well
understand
how the Greek mind, once brought to the obedience of faith,
would revel
in this view of the cross. He would learn to see in Christ “all the treasures
of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:3). In Him “God is just, and
the justifier of him that hath faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:26).
In Him we
have the highest exemplification of that great law of the
kingdom: “He that
humbleth himself shall be
exalted” (Matthew 23:12). All
that the ancient
philosophies
had been striving after:
Ø
the knowledge of God,
Ø
the nature of man, and
Ø
the meaning of human life —
is to be found in JESUS CHRIST
and HIM CRUCIFIED! Here is the
center of all knowledge, round which all else revolves
in order and beauty. Here is the shrine where the wise men of
the earth
must fall down and worship — the touchstone by which their
speculations
must be tried. Here is “the wisdom of God,” outshining
every other
manifestation in creation and providence — that wisdom by which we
become wise unto salvation.
The World’s Foolishness, and God’s Wisdom (vs.
19-25)
So far as we can understand the Divine dealings with our
race, it appears
that, for some four thousand years, God left the nations to a
free
experiment. They might find out for themselves what is
the “chief good of
man.” The more civilized Gentile nations were interested in one
form of the
experiment, viz. — Can man find God, and all in God, by the researches
of
his own wisdom? At
Therefore Paul deals with it, and shows that:
·
HITHERTO MAN’S WISDOM HAD FAILED. The various devices of
science, philosophy, and religion may be reviewed; and the actually
hopeless moral condition of Paul’s age should be forcibly presented.
There
was prevalent atheism; religion was mocked at; philosophy was
an
amusement, and had become a mere logomachy
(an argument about words),
an arena for mere disputants; and there was no satisfaction for
man’s mind or
heart anywhere. The
foolishness of the world’s wisdom was declared. Impress
what must be the consequences always if man’s wisdom is made
mistress,
and not kept handmaid.
·
HENCEFORTH MAN’S WISDOM MUST BE DISPLACED. It was
not to be the Divine agency employed in the redemption of the
world. That
should be revelation, not man’s discovery. A manifestation (Divine), in
the
earthly spheres, beyond human imagination. A life and death, in
which
human wisdom would see naught but weakness and shame. And
the simple
heralding of a message, the proclaiming of a fact and truth given, which
the wise of this world would think any commonplace and ignorant
person
could do. Yet God’s wisdom proves able to accomplish that in which
man’s wisdom failed. For the gospel preaching does bring God near
to
men, does bring home to them the knowledge of Him and the love
of Him,
and does give to
men the:
Ø
salvation,
Ø
satisfaction, and
Ø
ETERNAL LIFE
which they both NEED and SEEK!
The Method of God in the
Spread of the Gospel (vs. 26-31)
26 For
ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh,
not
many mighty, not many noble, are called” - For behold; or, consider (imperative,
as in ch.10:15; Philippians 3:2). Your calling; the nature and method of your heavenly
calling; the "principle God has followed in calling
you" (Beza); see Ephesians 4:1;
Hebrews 3:1. Not many wise after the flesh. Those who
hear the calling are the truly
wise; but they are not wise with a carnal wisdom, not wise
as the world counts wisdom;
they have but little of the wisdom of the serpent and the wisdom
of “this age.” The
Sanhedrin looked down on the apostles as “unlearned and ignorant men” (Acts 4:13).
but they also “took knowledge of them that they had been with Jesus” - “God,”
says
mighty; i.e. not many
persons of power and influence. Almost the first avowed
Gentile Christian of the highest rank was the consul Flavius
Clemens, uncle of the
Emperor Domitian. This was the
more marked because the
Jews won many rich
and noble proselytes, such as the Queen Helena and the royal
family of Adiabene,
Poppaea the wife of Nero, and others. The only illustrious converts
mentioned
in the New Testament are Joseph of Arimathaea,
Nicodemus, Sergius Paulus,
and Dionysius the Areopagite. Not many noble. All this
was a frequent taunt against
Christians, but they made it their boast. Christianity came to redeem and elevate, not
the few, but the many, and the many must ever be the weak and the humble. Hence
Christ called fishermen as His apostles, and was known as “the
Friend of publicans
and
sinners.” – (Matthew 11:19) - None of the rulers believed
on Him (John 7:48).
It must, however, be borne in mind that these words apply
mainly and primarily to
the first age of Christianity. It was essential that its
victory should be due to Divine
weapons only, and that it should shake the world “by the irresistible might of
weakness.” (Consider the teaching of Christ about the grain of mustard
seed –
Mark 4:31-32) After a
time, the wisest and the noblest and the most powerful
were called. Kings became the nursing fathers of the gospel,
and queens
its nursing mothers. Yet the ideal truth remains, and human power shows
utter weakness, and human wisdom is capable of sinking into THE DEPTHS
OF FOLLY!.
27 “But
God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise;
and
God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which
are
mighty;” God chose; not, hath chosen out. We may remark, once for all, that
there was no reason why the translators of 1611 should thus
have turned the Greek
aorists of the New Testament into perfects. In this and in many
instances the change
of tense is unimportant, but sometimes it materially and
injuriously affects the sense.
The foolish things...
the weak things. So,
too, the psalmist, "Out of the mouths
of
babes
and sucklings hast thou ordained strength" (Psalm 8:2); and James, "Hath
not
God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith?" (James 2:5).
28 “And
base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God
chosen,
yea, and things which are not, to bring to naught things that are:”
And base things of the
world” - literally, low-born, unborn; “those who are sprung
from no one in particular.”
Nothing could be more ignoble in the eyes of
the world
than a cross of wood upheld by feeble hands, and yet before
it “kings
and their armies
did flee and
were discomfited, and they of the household divided the spoil.” And
things which are not. The not is the Greek
subjective negative (μὴ – mae - no –
a primary particle of qualified negation; things of
which men conceived as not
existing — “nonentities.” It is like the
expression of Clement of Rome, “Things
accounted as nothing.” Christianity was “the little stone, cut without hands,”
(Daniel 2:34,45) which God called into
existence. (This is prophetic of what
Christ’s kingdom will accomplish – CY – 2010) We find the
same thought in
John the Baptist’s sermon (Matthew
3:9).
29 “That
no flesh should glory in His presence.” For the weak instruments of God’s
triumphs are so
weak that it was impossible for them
to ascribe any power or merit
to themselves. In contemplating the victory of the cross, the world could
only
exclaim, “This hath God wrought.” “It is the
Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous
in our eyes. (Psalm
118:23)
God Destroys the Conventionally Great by
the Conventionally Contemptible
(vs. 26-29)
“For ye see
your calling, brethren,” - These verses remind
us of two facts:
·
EVIL EXISTS HERE UNDER CONVENTIONALLY
RESPECTABLE
FORMS. Evil is spoken of in these verses as the “wise” and the “mighty.”
In
on their side. Sages, poets, artists, statesmen, wealth, and
influence stood
by them, and they appeared “mighty.” Men in
brilliant names. Often,
indeed, has religion itself been used as a means
of covering vices, and of raising the vilest passions of the
human heart
into the spheres of worship. Everywhere evil assumes a respectable garb.
Ø
Infidelity. This great evil writes and speaks in the stately formularies of
philosophy and science; borrows its sanctions from
astronomy,
chronology, criticism, and metaphysics. It is a “wise” thing of the
world.
Ø
Licentiousness. This evil, which involves the utter neglect of all social
obligations, and the unrestrained development of the base
and vicious
lusts of the soul, passes under the grand name of liberty. (freedom of
expression - CY – 2010)
Ø
Social injustice. This is a demon which works in every sphere of life,
leading the crafty to take advantage of the ignorant, the
strong of the
weak, the rich of the poor; and this does most of its fiendish work in the
name of law.
Ø
Selfishness. This goes under the name of prudence. The man
whose
heart knows no throb of sympathy for another passes through
life with
the reputation
of a prudent man.
Ø
Bigotry. This, which leads
men to brand all who differ from them as
heretics and doom them to perdition, wears the sacred name
of religion.
Ø
War. This, which by the common consent of all Christian philosophers is
the pandemonium where all evil passions of the human
heart run riot in
their most fiendish forms, is called glory. Thus here and now, as
everywhere and ever, evil appears as the “wise” and the “mighty.” That
errors and evils should appear in respectable forms is one
of the most
unfavorable symptoms in all the history of man. Could we but
take from
sin the mantle of respectability that society has thrown
over it, we should
do much towards its annihilation.
·
GOD IS DETERMINED TO OVERTHROW EVIL BY
CONVENTIONALLY CONTEMPTIBLE MEANS. “God hath chosen
the foolish
things of the world to confound the wise,” - The “wise” and
the “mighty” cannot protect evil. The agency to sweep evil away is here
represented as “foolish,” “weak,” “base,”
“despised,” and “things which
are not.” What does this language mean?
Ø
It does not mean that the gospel is an
inferior thing. The gospel is no
mean thing. It has proved itself the wisdom of God and the power of God.
Ø
It does not mean that the men appointed as its ministers are to be
inferior. There are several things to show that the gospel ministry requires
the highest order of mind.
o
The character of the work. What is the work? Not the mere narration
of facts or the
enunciation of the current opinions of men. No; it is
teaching men in
all wisdom. Teaching implies the impartation to others
of what they are
ignorant of, and that in such a way as will commend
it to the common
sense.
o
The character of the system. If a man is to teach the gospel, he must
first learn it. What a system it is to learn! Simpletons
call the gospel
simple; but intelligence has ever found it of all subjects the most
profound and difficult. The greatest thinkers of all ages have found
the work no easy task.
o
The character of society. Who exerts the most influence upon the real
life of the men and women around him? The man of thought and
intelligence. If the gospel ministry is to influence men it
must be
employed by men of the highest type of culture and ability.
o
The spirit of the work. What is the moral spirit in which
the gospel
should be presented to men? Humble,
charitable, forbearing, reverent.
Such
a spirit comes only from deep thought and extensive knowledge.
o
The character of the apostles. Where can you find greater force of
soul than Paul
had? more searching sagacity than James had? They
were men of
talent and thought. Away, then, with the thought that the
words here afford
any encouragement for an ignorant or feeble ministry.
Ø
What, then,
do they mean?
o That the gospel
was conventionally mean (average). The Founder
was a carpenter’s Son. It was a “foolish” thing to the
Greek.
o
That the first
ministers were conventionally mean. They were
fishermen, clerks, tent makers, etc. The system and its
ministers,
however, are merely conventionally contemptible, nothing more.
These,
like many other things that erring man regards as insignificant
and mean, shall do a great work. From this subject we may infer:
v That, so long as evils exist in the
world, great commotions
are to be
expected. God has chosen
this system to “confound
and bring to naught things that are!”
v That the removal of evil from the world
is, under God, to
be effected
through man as man. The
gospel is to make its
way in the world, not by men invested with
adventitious
endowments, such
as scientific attainments, etc., but by men
as men endowed with the common powers of human nature,
but these powers inspired and directed by the living
gospel.
30 “But
of Him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom,
and
righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:” But of Him are ye
in Christ Jesus” Ye do
not belong to the wise and noble. Your strength will consist
in acknowledged weakness; for it is solely derived from
your fellowship with God
by your unity with
Christ. “Who of God is made unto
us wisdom. These words
rather mean, "Who was made unto us wisdom from God - both righteousness
and
sanctification and
redemption." The
text is a singularly full statement of the
whole
result of the work of Christ as
the source of "all spiritual blessings in
things
heavenly" (Ephesians 1:3), in whom
we are complete (Colossians 2:10).
Righteousness. (see II
Corinthians 5:21). “Jehovah-tsidkenu — the Lord our
Righteousness” (Jeremiah 23:5-6). (I recommend This is the theme of Romans chps. 3-7.
Sanctification (see especially ch. 6:11 and Ephesians
5:25-26). Redemption. One of
the four main metaphors by which the atonement is described
is this of ransom
(lu>tron - loo’-tron; a redemption price
(figurative atonement): a ransom and
ajpolu>trwsiv - ap-ol-oo’-tro-sis; from a compound of ajpo> and lu>tron; (the act)
ransom in full,
i.e. (figurative) riddance, or (specifically) Christian salvation: —
deliverance, redemption. The
meaning and nature of the act, as
regards God, lie
in
regions above
our comprehension; so that all speculations as to the person to
whom the ransom was paid, and the reason why it was
indispensable,
have only led
to centuries of mistaken theology. But the meaning and nature of it, as
regards man, is
our deliverance from bondage, and the payment of the debt which we had incurred
(Titus 2:14; I Peter 1:18-20;
Matthew 20:28; Romans 8:21-23).
31
“That, according as it is written, He that glorieth,
let him glory in the Lord.”
A compressed quotation from the Septuagint Version of
Jeremiah 9:23-24;
I Samuel 2:10. Let
him glory in the Lord. The word
rendered “glory” is more
literally, boast.
The reference is to the two aforementioned scriptures from the
(Septuagint). The prevalence of “boasting” among the
Corinthians and their
teachers drove Paul to dwell much on this word — from which
he so greatly
shrinks — in II Corinthians 10:12. (where the word occurs
numerous times),
and to insist that the only true
object in which a Christian can glory is
THE CROSS, (Galatians 6:14), not in
himself, or in the world, or in men.
Salvation All of God (vs. 26-31)
The apostle has shown, in the previous section, that the
cross of Christ,
which men count foolish and weak, is really the wisdom and the
power of
God. In proof of this he now calls their attention to the social
status of the
converts at
world’s esteem; but, though nobodies according to the flesh, they were
raised to true dignity in Christ.
·
THE CHRISTIAN CALLING DOES NOT
PROCEED ON THE
PRINCIPLES OF THIS WORLD. “For behold your calling, brethren,” etc.
The Church at Corinth was composed chiefly
of the poor and the illiterate.
The philosophers and the rich merchants,
the high born and those who
occupied positions of influence, had but few representatives among
the
disciples of Jesus. They were drawn in great part from those whom the
world reckoned foolish, weak, base, and of no importance. And the
case of
Corinth was not singular. It is
characteristic of Christianity to begin low
down. The Lord Jesus Himself was not born in a royal palace or
nursed
among the lordly of the earth. His birthplace was a stable, His
home the
simple dwelling of Joseph, His training school the carpenter’s
workshop, His
disciples were derived mainly from the laboring classes. One or two
of the
twelve may have been in easy circumstances, but none of them
appears to
have been of high birth; and outside this circle His followers,
with the
exception of Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathaea,
were almost entirely of
the same class. From the beginning, therefore, the gospel found
acceptance, not in the high places of the land, nor among the
representatives of the learning and religion of the time, but among the
plain, unschooled, unsophisticated people. “The poor have good
tidings
preached to them” (Luke
7:22). Beyond the bounds of Palestine it was
the same. The pride of wisdom and station closed the ear against THE STORY
OF THE CROSS. It did not flatter the wise or the great. It spoke to all
alike as
sinners needing a common salvation, and summoned all to repentance and
faith. The result may be illustrated by comparing the reception of
the
gospel at
only a few were converted (Acts 17:16-34); in the capital of
trade a
large Church was formed. So also at
the gospel were among the lower classes of society; and this
was urged as
an objection against it. Celsus
jeers at the fact that “wool workers,
cobblers, leather dressers, the most illiterate and clownish of men,
were
zealous preachers of the gospel, and particularly that they
addressed
themselves, in the first instance, to women and children.” The rend
Roman
could not understand a religion which treated the slave as a man,
and
addressed itself equally to all. But the leaven thus put into the mass spread
not only outwards but upwards. From slave to master, from plebeian to
patrician, did the blessed influence pass, till at last the emperor
himself was
constrained to do homage to Jesus Christ. To a large extent the course
of
the gospel is the same still. In our own country the profession
of
Christianity is not confined to any class
in society; but a living godliness is
a plant of rarer growth. Among our men of science, our
philosophers and
poets, and our hereditary nobility, there are to be found eminent
Christians,
whose lives evince the power of the gospel over the finest
intellects and the
most exalted station; yet it is mainly among those less privileged that the
Church is
strongest. The greatest number of her members are to be found
among the humbler classes, especially among those who have
neither riches
nor poverty, and who know the meaning of honest work.
Illustrate also
from the history of modern missions to the heathen.
·
REASONS FOR THE DIVINE METHOD. When men inaugurate any
new scheme or system, they seek the patronage of great names in
order to
recommend it to the people; but the gospel of salvation was
not proclaimed
to the world under the auspices of kings and philosophers. This is referred
to the purpose of God (vs. 27-28), according to which all
things
proceed. More particularly the end in view is:
Ø
The humiliation of human pride. “That no flesh should glory before
God” (v. 29). Human wisdom and power are of small account in this
matter. Salvation is all of God. Had He chosen the wise and the great, pride
might have boasted itself before Him; but in choosing the foolish
and the
weak, all ground of glorying is removed. This does not imply
that the one
class is of more value in God’s sight than the other; nor does it
put a
premium upon ignorance and weakness. It means that the wise
man will
not be saved
because of his wisdom, nor the nobleman because of his high
birth, nor the
rich man because of his wealth. All trust in these things must
be put to shame, as is done when they that are destitute of
them enter the
kingdom of heaven more readily. In the eye of the gospel all men
arc equal,
which means that some must be humbled, while others are exalted.
It is
always our Father’s way to “hide these things from the wise and
understanding, and
to reveal them unto babes” (Matthew 11:25). Pride
is at once insulting to God and hurtful to man; and it is in
mercy that He
requires us to “become as little children” (Matthew 18:3). In like
manner, the advance of the gospel in the earth is not to be
promoted by an
arm of flesh (“not by might, nor by power,” etc., Zechariah 4:6 - The
first sermon I ever heard by John Christian, a former pastor, was
from
this verse - CY - 2018). Christian work must not be undertaken for the
aggrandizement of
persons, or parties, or sects. The flesh must not be
elevated to
the dishonour of God.
Ø
The advancement of the Divine glory. Human
pride is to be humbled,
that the
honor of salvation may belong to God alone. It is the prerogative
of the Almighty to make His own glory the chief end of all He
does. No
created being can do so. For man and angel, happiness
consists in seeking
the glory of
our Father in heaven. A
life with self as the center, self as the
aim, MUST BE
A LIFE OF MISERY! Does
not this explain the misery of
Satan? “Better to reign in hell than serve in heaven!”
It is otherwise with
the Most High. To seek His own glory is
simply to desire truth and reality.
In the nature of things all praise
is due to Him alone who is the Alpha and
the Omega of
existence. Hence the
glory of God coincides with the greatest
happiness of men, IN THE
MATTER OF SALVATION AS IN OTHER
THINGS!
“He that glorieth,
let him glory in the Lord.” (v. 31; Jeremiah
9:24)
·
THE RICHES IN CHRIST. Salvation
is due entirely to God. It is of
him that we are in Christ Jesus. The believer’s union with
Christ has been
brought about by God Himself, who has given us all things in his Son.
Ø
Wisdom. “In Him are all the treasures of wisdom and
knowledge hidden”
(Colossians
2:3). He
reveals to us God:
o
His nature and His will,
o
His purpose and plan of grace,
v
in the person and work of Christ;
v
in his incarnation, life, teaching, atonement,
the wisdom of God shines out conspicuously. And in union with Christ
we become truly wise. In Him we have the key which opens all
mysteries.
We learn to
know God and to know ourselves; and in Him the broken
fellowship between God and us is restored. The quest for wisdom, alike
in its speculative and in its practical form, is
satisfied ONLY IN HIM!
Ø
Righteousness. He is “Jehovah our Righteousness” (Jeremiah 23:6).
To be
righteous is to be in entire consistence with the mind and Law of
God; and this Jesus,
as our Representative, was. He bore the penalty of our
sins, and met the
positive requirements of the Law; and thus wrought out a
righteousness for us (II Corinthians 5:12; Galatians 3:13; I
Peter 2:24).
When by faith we
accept Jesus Christ as our Saviour, His work is
reckoned to us,
and we are received as righteous for His sake.
Ø Sanctification. This includes the whole of the process by which we are
restored to the image of God. Not only is the
righteousness of Christ
imputed to us, the
character of Christ must also be reproduced in us; and
this is the work of the Holy Spirit. It is His to illuminate, regenerate,
purify;
and the whole man thus renewed is consecrated to God. Every
part of the
nature — spirit, soul,
body; every activity of thought, affection, desire,
purpose; all
are transformed and devoted to the noblest service.
Justification and sanctification are the two sides of one whole, never to
be separated.
Ø
Redemption. This denotes deliverance from all evil,
enemies, afflictions,
death. Soul and body shall be completely emancipated, and presented at
last without
blemish (Romans
8:23; Ephesians 5:26-27).
·