These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. For “who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ. (1 Co 2:13–16).
We also speak these things not in words that man’s wisdom teaches but the Holy Spirit teaches.
When the apostle states, "these things we speak," he is referring to everything he has been discussing thus far, specifically Christ and his crucifixion, the concealed wisdom ordained before time began, the blessings prepared by God for those who love Him, and the gracious gifts bestowed upon us by God. And here, Paul claims that he does not use words that would resonate with worldly wisdom or the wisdom that comes from the natural man.
Paul tells us, in other places, that his preaching was considered foolish by the Greeks. In the book of Acts, Paul's preaching was laughed at during his visit to Athens, as recorded in Acts 17:32. In Athens, Paul addressed the Areopagus, a council of philosophers and intellectuals. He spoke to them about the unknown God whom they worshiped ignorantly and proclaimed the message of Jesus and His resurrection. When Paul mentioned the resurrection, some listeners responded with mockery and ridicule. The passage states: "Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked.
Those that laughed at Paul did so for several reasons. Firstly, Greek culture strongly emphasized philosophical wisdom and intellectual discourse. They sought after eloquent orators who could present complex arguments and engage in sophisticated reasoning. In contrast, Paul's preaching centred around the simplicity of the message of the cross, which appeared foolish and lacking in intellectual sophistication to the Greek mindset.
Secondly, the Greeks were accustomed to a pantheon of gods and diverse religious practices. They valued plurality and diversity in their religious beliefs and practices. Paul's exclusive proclamation of Jesus Christ as the only way to salvation and rejecting other gods and idols was seen as narrow-minded and unacceptable to Greek sensibilities.
Additionally, the idea of a crucified Messiah was a stumbling block for the Greeks. The concept of a divine figure being subjected to such a humiliating and shameful death on a cross was contrary to their expectations of power, glory, and victory. They found it difficult to reconcile the notion of a crucified Savior with their preconceived notions of what a divine figure should be.
And yet both divine love and wisdom purpose that God would be in Christ to reconcile the world back to himself by entering the very thing He created to suffer and vicious a cruel death by his crown of creation. The Greek-minded Romans saw no power or wisdom in a man hanging from one of their own crosses.
Yet we should not be surprised that the way of the wicked is turned upside down. Jesus said to bless those who curse you, give to those who steal from you, and serve those who bully you. Love those who hate you; declare those your friends who would define themselves as your enemy. It is this wisdom of God that neither the Jews nor the Romans did not understand. Even many of us today can’t understand or metabolize into our current Christian practice this kind of “wisdom of God.” This is evidenced by the number of contentions in Christian circles where we speak of having the “mind of Christ.”
But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God.
Paul makes the statement that when speaking of the things of God, he uses words that are given to him by the Holy Spirit; this can be evidenced by his statement, “not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.”
In John 6:63, Jesus declares, "The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit, and they are life." Through this statement, Jesus illuminates that true life and sustenance originate from the Spirit of God, and it is through His teachings that this spiritual vitality is conveyed. Jesus' words carry profound spiritual significance and offer eternal life to those who embrace Him. This assertion underscores the importance of comprehending Jesus' teachings in a spiritual sense, transcending a mere literal or physical interpretation. Nevertheless, time and again, the people to whom Jesus spoke struggled to grasp His message, limited by their human understanding unassisted by the Holy Spirit. Numerous instances like those seen in contemporary scriptural interpretations reveal how the people of Jesus' time often failed to move beyond hearing His words without filtering them through spiritual discernment.
John 2:19-21: Jesus said, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." The people misunderstood him, thinking he was speaking about the physical temple while referring to his body as the temple.
John 3:3-4: Jesus told Nicodemus, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." Nicodemus misunderstood Jesus' statement, thinking it referred to a physical rebirth rather than a spiritual transformation.
John 4:32-34: Jesus said to his disciples, "I have food to eat that you do not know about." They thought he was referring to physical food, but Jesus meant that his sustenance came from doing the will of God.
John 6:51-52: Jesus said, "I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever." The people took his statement literally, questioning how he could give them his flesh to eat instead of understanding it metaphorically as a spiritual nourishment.
John 8:58-59: Jesus said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am." The people perceived this as a statement of age, not realizing that Jesus claimed to exist eternally and identified himself with the divine name "I am."
Our passage today emphasizes the distinction between man’s and God’s wisdom. When Paul speaks, he does not rely on worldly wisdom but on the teachings of the Holy Spirit. Without spiritual discernment, the natural man cannot fully grasp or receive the things of God. The message of the Gospel, including concepts like the crucifixion and the spiritual significance of Jesus' words, may appear foolish or incomprehensible to those who rely solely on human understanding. We are reminded today that we all need spiritual discernment and reliance on the Holy Spirit to truly understand and embrace God's wisdom as demonstrated in Christ.
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