1 Corinthians Lesson 4

1 Corinthians

Lesson 4

The Message of the Cross -- God's way vs. man's way

Hi! Welcome back to Lesson 4 of this study of 1 Corinthians. And, as you recall, the book of 1 Cor. Is actually a letter written by Paul, the Apostle, to the Christians (Believers) of the Church in Corinth, Greece. Paul is writing this letter to them because he had heard that there were divisions and problems in the church and he wants to instruct them concerning these things. Also, he will be answering some of the specific questions which they had written to him concerning various problems and issues which they were facing.

In our last lesson, we discovered that many of their problems were due to the fact that they were spiritually immature; indeed, Paul had called them "baby Christians." And, Paul exhorted them to stop going over the basic fundamental ("milk") teachings of the Gospel, as important and as necessary as those teachings are. Rather, he told them that it was time for them to go on in their spiritual growth and to begin taking in the "solid food" of mature Christians and to begin to live in the light of those "solid food" truths of Scripture.

In this lesson, we will look at one of those "solid food" teachings, which Paul recorded in 1 Corinthians 1:17-2:16. In these verses, Paul explains to them some "solid meat" information about the message of the Cross and about REAL wisdom and power.

Why did he need to teach them about Wisdom and Power? He needed to do this because the culture and lifestyle of the people in the city of Corinth, Greece, as we learned in a previous lesson, placed its emphasis on man's knowledge, wisdom, and learning. The Greeks esteemed men who were wise and knowledgeable and they believed that things were obtained and achieved through man's efforts and power. Also, in Corinth, pagan worship of many different gods and idols was common and, indeed, immoral lifestyles and evil and wicked practices were part of these pagan worship rituals. The Greek value system' was based on human thoughts, human wisdom, and human effort, and their goal was to obtain and satisfy their own individual desires. Therefore, the emphasis of the Greeks in general, and of the Corinthians in particular, was on man's wisdom and knowledge, on self, on education, on learning for the intellectual pride it provided, on physical beauty, oratory, art, and sports. (Does this sound a lot like the culture in which we also live today?

Yes!)

And, it was in such a culture as this that the Christians in Corinth (and we today) found themselves. And since they were not yet spiritually mature in their understanding of the Gospel message of the Cross of Christ, they did not understand that REAL Wisdom and Power is NOT from or through man, but instead it is from and in God, Jesus Christ, their (and our) Lord and Savior.

Paul, in these verses, 1:17-2:17, is now going to address this situation and teach them what real Wisdom is and what the message of the Cross is and ..... Well, let's see what Paul has to say to these "baby" Christians who are living in an immoral, corrupt, pagan society which placed its emphasis on man and man's intellect, wisdom, knowledge, and desires.

So, you guessed it, it is time for an assignment. And, your assignment now, should you choose to accept it, is to read 1 Corinthians 1:17-2:16. As you read, look for and mark the following words: (I will suggest a symbol and color to use, but, as always, you may use whatever symbol or color you prefer. These are only suggestions.) Ok, these are the words for you to mark as you read.

1.WISDOM and WISE. Put a Purple W on each occurrence these words.

2. FOOLISH and FOOLISHNESS. Put a Black F on each of these words.

3. POWER. Put a Yellow or Orange Circle around each occurrence of this word.

4. WEAK and WEAKNESS. Put a Black Circle around each occurrence of these words.

5. CROSS and CRUCIFIED. Put a Red Cross on each occurrence of these words.

IF you have time, read the passage (1:17-2:16) ONE time for EACH of the 5 Word or Words you are marking; ie. One time as you mark Wisdom and Wise. Then read 1:17-2:16 AGAIN, this time looking for and marking Foolish and Foolishness. Then Read 1:17-2:16 AGAIN, this time marking the word, Power. Then Read the passage again as you look for an mark the words Weak and Weakness. Finally, read the verses AGAIN while looking for and marking the words, Cross and Crucified.

But, you ask, WHY read this passage over and over? Why not just read it once and mark all of the words on one reading? Because, by reading a section of Scripture over and over, as you are doing in this assignment, while looking for something specific, you will actually learn MORE and will remember it LONGER and the Holy Spirit will have a greater opportunity to speak to you and teach you truths and give you insights and understandings that you would not see if you had just read it once.

So, in ALL of the marking assignments in this or any other Bible Study, it is always best to look for and mark only ONE word or phrase at a time, instead of trying to do several or all of the words in "one fell swoop."

Ok, you have your assignment. Now do it! And, when you have finished, return here, and there will be some questions for you to answer.

***************pause while you Read 1 Cor. 1:17-2:16 and mark the words*********

Finished? Great! And, now, based on what you have read, answer the following questions:

What are the 2 KINDS of Wisdom?

1. The Wisdom of the (1:20) ______________ sometimes called the Wisdom of Man or Human Wisdom

2. The Wisdom of (1:21) __________________

Correct! I assume you said that the 2 kinds of Wisdom are the Wisdom of "the world" and the Wisdom of "God." And you noticed that these two types of Wisdom are very different! Indeed, they each have a different goal, purpose, emphasis, and focus. In fact these are soooo different that they actually clash. And, obviously, this was one of the main problems the Christians were facing in Corinth. They were living in a culture where the Wisdom of Man was the focus and was highly prized and esteemed, yet, they were learning from Paul and the other Apostles and teachers who had come to their Church, that the Wisdom and Power of God was entirely different, indeed it was OPPOSITE to what the "world" thought and honored! What a dichotomy. What a problem. What were they to DO! How were they to live in a culture like this?

And, it was not just Wisdom that was different depending on whether it is the Wisdom of Man (the World) or the Wisdom of God. Paul is showing them, in these verses, that Foolishness, Power, and Weakness are also different depending on the perspective in which they are viewed (ie. from Man's perspective or God's perspective.)

Hmmmmm. You know, that could probably be charted. Let's do that. Let's look at how these things are different based on the perspective from which they are seen.

So, in the space provided below, note how each of these are different when seen from the two different ways they can be viewed, ie. as man sees it vs. as God sees it. I will begin to do the first two as an example for you, to show you how to do this assignment.

Hmmmm. That is VERY interesting, isn't it? The way Man views things is VERY different from the way God does. And that helps them (and us) understand what Paul was saying in 1:17 and 1:18. Let's look at those verses again.

What did Paul say was the PURPOSE of his ministry? It was to ____________________. Yes, he said he was sent by Christ to Preach the Gospel. And, HOW was he to do this? What kind of words was he to NOT use? (1:17 _________________________________________

Why? = Because words of human wisdom would cause the _____________________ to be emptied of its ______________ .

"Words of human wisdom" would cause "the cross of Christ to be emptied of its power." What does that mean? Well, in order to answer that, let's think a bit.

First of all, we know that Paul's ministry was to preach the Gospel, which is, of course, the message about Jesus' death on the cross and His resurrection from the Dead. That, in a summary form, is what the "message of the Cross" is! So, Paul, in giving this "message" is actually saying that the Gospel teaches that Salvation can ONLY be obtained by believing that Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty for sin and accepting that substitute sacrifice as a free gift. That is God's WAY. And, that is why the message of the Cross is POWERFUL, because the way of the Cross is the ONLY way to obtain salvation. Jesus purchased our redemption by dying on the Cross.

But, MAN'S way of obtaining and purchasing salvation would be by trying to do it himself by ___________. Yes, Man thinks he can use his own human (1: 17) ___________ and WORK his way to God. Man thinks that the teaching that "the Cross is the ONLY way to be saved" is (1:18) _________________. So, instead of coming to God in the way that God provides and requires, man thinks that God's way is foolishness and wants to substitute works and human effort and "trying to do good deeds" to earn his way to God.

God, however, says this method does NOT work, and indeed, it empties the cross of its

(1:17) _________________ when you try to attain salvation through human effort.

"Salvation is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast." Paul said that in Ephesians 2:8. Hold that thought as we will come back to it. For now just know that Salvation is a gift. It can not be earned. Accepting Christ's death on the Cross as a substitute for sin is the ONLY way to Salvation. That is WHY the Cross has Power! That is the POWER of the Cross. It is the WAY. the ONLY WAY to salvation.

But, the Greeks, and all those who are (1:18) ___________________ are perishing, ie, not saved and are, therefore, dead in their sins and destined for eternity in Hell.

(And YES, there IS a Hell).

But, the Greeks say, "no, this cannot be. We can figure out a way to get to heaven. We can use our minds, our works and effort, our intellect, our wise words."

God, however, says, "No, you can't. There is only ONE way to be holy and righteous and acceptable in My sight and to be able to come into My presence and that is through the Cross, through the atoning substitutionary death of Jesus on the Cross to pay the penalty for sin."

And, this DEBATE has endured down through the centuries. The Greeks and the Corinthians are not the only ones who have tried to get to God through human wisdom and works. And, this effort by man to reject God's way and to try to "do it my way" continues today.

Let's look again at the contrasts between GOD'S WAY (of providing the Cross and the free gift of salvation to anyone who will accept the gift and make God their Lord and Savior)

and MAN'S WAY (of rejecting the Cross but trying to reach God through wisdom, works, and human effort.)

Read 1 Cor. 1:17-2:16 and, in the space provided below, list everything you learn about

the WISDOM of MAN:

Now list everything you learn about the WISDOM OF GOD:

Now list what Paul told them about the CROSS of Christ and about Christ CRUCIFIED:

Hmmmmm. Very interesting. And, now, based on what you have read and written, answer these questions:

What do those who are being saved by believing "the message of the Cross" think about the cross? (1:18) it is ________________________________________________

What do those who are perishing, because they do not believe "the message of the cross," say about the cross? (1:17) it is ____________________________________

What do Greeks (Gentiles) look for as the way to salvation? (1:22) _________________

What do Jews look for as the way to salvation? (1:22) _________________________

What should a person look for as the way to salvation? (1:23) _____________________ .

But, the message of Christ Crucified on the Cross is a (1:23) ______________________ to the Jews and ____________________________ to the Greeks (Gentiles.). Why? Explain in your own words why the message of Christ Crucified on the cross is a stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to the Greeks. _________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

You can now better understand why Paul said that he did not preach the gospel "with words of human wisdom lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power." So, since you now understand why Paul said that, briefly explain Why Paul does not use human words of persuasion or eloquent oratory to preach the Gospel but, instead just simply points people to the Cross and tells them what Christ did on the cross and why. (Hint: remember what the Greeks think about Wisdom). ____________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

Ok, What about YOU!? Do You understand the message of the Cross? Do you know WHY Christ died on the Cross? Do you know what His death accomplished? Purchased? Do you know that He paid the death penalty for your sins and for my sins -- ALL of them, past, present and future? Do you know that God wants us to be with Him forever? Do you know that the ONLY way we can come into the presence of God is to be pure, holy, righteous, and blameless before Him? Do you know that the ONLY way to be pure, holy, righteous, and blameless is to let Christ take ALL our sins and guilt and shame and to die in my place, in your place, because of our sins! And, do you know that Jesus' death as your and my SUBSTITUTE will allow God to forgive your sins and my sins and to consider us to be SINLESS and therefore holy, pure, righteous and blameless! And, do you know that, in God's Wisdom, God planned this WAY for us to be able to come to Him and that He offers this WAY to Salvation as a GIFT! A Gift! Which means that there is NOTHING we can do to EARN it or to obtain it through our own efforts or works! Yes, this certainly does seem "foolish" to the "wise man", the "scholar", the "philosophers" who are trying to "figure out a way".... but God has already provided a way and it is the way of the Cross. The Cross of Christ is powerful because it is the WAY, the ONLY way to salvation!

If you have never accepted that Gift of Salvation from Jesus, which He has provided through His death on the cross, and if you would like to do that now, you can, by simply praying this prayer and accepting the FREE GIFT of Salvation. Yes, the "world" and the "wise" think this is foolishness. But it is NOT foolish. It is the Wisdom of God! And God offers this way of salvation to you.

Accept this gift of salvation now by praying this prayer (or one like it).....

"Oh Father, God, Thank you sooooo much for having provided a way for me to be saved.

Thank you, Jesus, for dying on the cross in my place as my substitute to pay the death penalty that my sins required. ("For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal salvation" Romans 6:23) I know that I am a sinner and I confess my sins to you ....(stop now and list your sins before God...name them... tell Him that you are sorry for them and agree with God that they are sins and that they are wrong and that they are deserving of your death. Tell God that you want to renounce them and that you will give them all up and that you desire to NOT do these any more and that you give Him permission to be Lord of your life and to be your boss and to change you and to tell you what to do and how to live and that whatever He wants you to do, you will do. Tell Him that you are acknowledging Him as your God and Lord now and forever.) Yes, God, I do forsake all these sins and ask you to forgive me of them and I accept the gift of the blood sacrifice of Jesus' death as payment for the death penalty that I deserved. Thank you, Jesus, for dying in my place! I ask you to come into my life and to be my God and Lord. I desire to serve You only. I want to serve You now and forever and I ask you to be Lord of my life in every area of my life and being. In Jesus' name I pray this. Thank You. Amen!"

IF you prayed that prayer and really meant it, you are now forgiven and you are a child of God. You are a member of His family. You have been saved, not by your works, but by the power of the blood sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross. You will be in God's family forever. He will never leave you or forsake you. You are now a "babe" in Christ. And, it is our prayer that you will begin to drink the "milk" of this Bible Study and begin to grow spiritually as you study God's Word and progress to maturity and the "solid food" of this and other Bible Studies.

If you just prayed that prayer, Welcome to the family of God! And, if you were already a Christian so did not pray that prayer again, because you had previously prayed a prayer like that, that is ok too. You were already in the family and still are. So, whichever is your situation,

your assignment now, the last one for this Lesson, is to spend some time now talking to God and telling Him your thoughts and fears and whatever is on your mind. He wants to hear from you

and to fellowship with you. Take as much time as you want. He is in no hurry. You are who He wants to talk with. There is NOTHING more important to Him than You. After all, Jesus died so that you could be with Him and God the Father FOREVER. What more proof could you have that God cares for you. Yes, the world would say this is "foolish" but it is NOT. This is God's Wisdom. This is God's plan. So, spend time with Him.

And we will continue this study of 1 Corinthians in the next lesson.

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