Ep 486 | Wisdom & The Bible - Chris Osburn 1/22/23

It's certainly good to see everybody this morning who's

made it with us. We're thankful for all your

presents and if you're a visitor, we welcome you.

We think we're thankful that you're here.

And if there's any questions you may have after service, please

see one of us and we'll do the best we can to help you out with

whatever is needed. Today we're going to be studying

in First Corinthians chapter 2. I'd ask everybody to please turn

1 Corinthians 2 · chapter mention

their, grab your bible in front of you or underneath your seat,

or if you don't have one, your neighbor may have, when you can

look upon, or your iPad or iPhone, whatever, maybe, but

we're going to read the word of God together.

I'm not going to be putting it up here on the screen

intentionally because I think it's important that we read from

the good book. And as you turn there, I want us

to think about you know, the chapter that we're going to be

studying, give us to Crystal Clear ways that we can live our

life, two opposing ways that we can live and the choice that we

make today based on what we're going to read on chapter 2 of

First Corinthians can determine how we live our life and how it

affects our cells, how it affects our lives, how it

affects those that may be around us and ultimately it'll affect

not just our life here, but Eternity, it'll affect how we

live beyond death. So, as we read, I want us to.

If you have your own bibles, if you want to underline or Circle

or whatever it may be, but I want us to pick out words that

are kind of repetitive that keep coming up not not single two or

three letter words, you know, but but larger words that have

some substance to it. So be aware of those as we kind

of read through there. So let's start reading First

Corinthians chapter 32, what will only read through verse 13

there? And it says, and I Brethren when

I came to you did not come with excellent source of speech or of

wisdom, declaring to you, the testimony of God.

For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus

Christ. And him crucified, I was with

you in weakness and fear and in much, trembling and my speech.

And my preaching were not with persuasive words of human

wisdom, but in demonstration of the spirit, and of power, power

that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men, but in the

power of God, However, we speak wisdom among those, who are

mature yet. Not the wisdom of this age, nor

of the rulers of this age who are coming to nothing.

But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom,

which God ordained before the ages of our Glory, which none of

the rulers of this age. New for, they had known.

They would not have crucified the Lord Of Glory.

But as it is, written Eye Has Not Seen Nor Ear heard nor Or

have entered into the heart of man, the things which God has

prepared for those who love him. But God has revealed them to us

through his spirit for the spirit searches all things.

Yes, the Deep things of God for what man knows the things of

what for what man knows the things of a man except the

spirit of the man which is in him, even so no one knows the

things of God, except the spirit of God.

Now we have received not the spirit of the The world but the

spirit who is from God that we might know the things that have

been freely given to us by God these things.

We also speak not in Words which of which man's Wisdom teaches,

but which the Holy Spirit teaches comparing spiritual

things with spiritual. so, I hope that we noticed the word

wisdom in that Passage That's what we're going to be studying

on. And I think if I counted

correctly in that in that span of verses that we read, we see

wisdom eight times. And if just a reminder that this

is Paul is the one who wrote this, to the Corinthians and

Paul is the one who actually established the church in

Corinth and he's writing back to them.

And he tells them when I came to you, I did not come in these

ways, but I came in this way. And after which, he talks a lot

about wisdom, then in the second half of the chapter there's also

another word that we see over and over again, and that word is

spirit, so if we read on and in verse 4, it says, and my speech

and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom

but in demonstration of the spirit and of power, Is this too

loud? and then, if we skip down to

verse 10, It says but God has revealed them to us through his

spirit for the spirit searches all things.

Yes, the Deep things of God for what man knows the things of a

man except the spirit of the man which is in him.

Even so no one knows the things of God, except the spirit of

God. Now we have received not the

spirit of the world but the spirit who is from God that we

might know the things that have been freely given to us by God

these things. We also speak not 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, spiritually discerned, but he,

who is spiritual judges. All things yet he himself is

rightly judged by no one. 13 times in this chapter, it talks

about spirit, either the spirit of God, the spirit of a person,

or spiritual things and it's pretty clear that the theme of

this section of verses of chapter is wisdom from God's

spirit. And there's a clear contrast

between the wisdom that comes from God, Spirit which is

spiritual wisdom, and wisdom that comes from man or women,

which is natural wisdom. So, I also want to go back to

chapter 1, in First Corinthians as well, starting in verse 17,

will read through the end of the chapter there.

First Corinthians 1, verse 17 for Christ did not send me to

1 Corinthians 1:17

baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of

words, lest the Cross of Christ should be made.

No of no effect for the message of the Cross.

Is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us, who are

being saved, it is the power of God.

For it is written. I will destroy the wisdom of the

wise and bring nothing to the understanding of The Prudent.

Where is the wise? Where is the Scribe?

Where is the disputer of this age?

Has God not made foolish, the wisdom of this world for since

in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God.

It pleased God through the foolishness of the message,

preached to save those who believe for Jews request a sign

and Greeks seek after wisdom but we preach Christ crucified to

the Jews, a stumbling block, and to the Gentiles foolishness but

to those who are called both Jews and gris-gris.

Christ, the power of God and the wisdom of God, because the

foolishness of God, is wiser than men.

And the weakness of God is stronger than men for you see

your calling Brethren. That we may not let, not many

wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are

called, but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to

put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of

the world to put to shame the things which are Mighty.

And the base things, worse the world and the And the things

which are despised God has chosen and the things which are

not to bring to nothing. The things that are that no

flesh should glory in his presence.

But of him, you are in Christ. Jesus who became for us, wisdom

from God, and righteousness and sanctification and Redemption

that as it is written, he who glories let him glory in the

Lord. That makes a total of I counted

correctly 21 times, Paul talks about wisdom in the first two

chapters. So we've got to understand the

point here that God is teaching us about wisdom, in his word and

in chapter 1 focusing to specifically today on chapter 2,

there's a clear contrast between foolishness or Folly type of

wisdom and and the wisdom that God gives us and if combined

with this, the emphasis on the spirit, and the last half of the

chapter, the contrast is between, which is that which is

natural wisdom, and that, which is spiritual wisdom, I wanted to

make two columns here in our study.

I was thinking about writing this out but that would not have

been wise because nobody would have been able to read my

handwriting, it's really, really bad.

But so I put these up here and hopefully we can see, we've got

two columns here on the left side.

We have the foolish life, which is natural wisdom.

And on the right side we have the wise life which is spiritual

wisdom and that's the contrast, the choice that every one of us

must take, which way are we going to live?

First, the foolish life is marked by natural wisdom or the

wisdom of men and women. In this world, we want to hear

what God says to us in his word. Starting with what we've already

read, in chapter one but they will continue into chapter 2.

What is the foolish life look like?

So the foolish life number one, feeds Pride, the foolish life

feeds pride. And if we remember in chapter 1,

in verse 29, It says so that no human being might.

So that no human being might boast in the presence of God.

In verse 31 at his as it is written.

Let the one who let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.

So clearly there's a right way of boasting and there's a wrong

way of boasting and in some of your Bibles, some Bibles have

with little letter or number down in verse 31.

You know, if you have a study Bible those are actually cross

references that we see that we can say okay well this verse is

referencing another verse and this one specifically here is

referencing Jeremiah 9. Verse 23, and it says here, thus

says, the Lord. Let not the wise man boast in

his wisdom. Let not the Mighty Man boast in

his might let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let

them let him who boasts in this that he understands and knows me

that I am the Lord, who practices steadfast love Justice

and righteousness in the Earth for in these things, I did like

declares the Lord So we see boasting kind of throughout this

passage in Jeremiah, you know, let the not mine wise man boast

in his widows. Let boast you know, here's

another one. Here's my boast right there.

Boasts. We kind of see that through that

passage and we're not to boast just in our own wisdom or even

in our riches. He says, here says let not the

rich man boast his riches. That's not what we're supposed

to be boasting in, not in ourselves and not in our riches.

Not what we Have we're all prone to focus in that area, you know,

from, you know, a student who may be consumed by what others

may be thinking about him at school or them at school or the

man or woman, who is consumed on how they are comparing with

others at work or maybe on social media.

You know, the comparison they're focused on what they have and

how they look and how they draft dress and what status they may

attain. That is the curse of the foolish

life. The constant focus on ourselves

and what we have or what we want to attain, instead of what God

who God is and what he can give to us.

This is why Paul says back in First Corinthians 2 verse 1.

1 Corinthians 2:1

It says when I came to you Brothers, I did not.

Come proclaiming The Testament, testimony of God with lofty

speech or wisdom. Paul was not trying to impress

them with his speech or his wisdom.

That's the opposite of what he was trying to do or he could do

verse in verse 3. It says I was with you in

weakness and in fear and much trembling.

So secondly, the foolish life which is natural wisdom, depends

on human power. Depends on ourselves.

And what Paul is saying here in this chapter is I'm not good

enough to impress you When I came to you, I was weak.

I was afraid. I was trembling.

And Paul is saying, I don't want to preach in a way that makes

you depend on my wisdom. I don't want to speak to you.

So you're depending on me and who I am, it would be utterly

foolishness to bank your life, on the wisdom of power of

people. You know if that's what Paul was

saying to these, in the process of banking on our own wisdom, we

will reject the wisdom of God. Thirdly, the characteristic of a

foolish life. Is it rejects truth from God?

Natural wisdom, rejects truth from God.

And this is exactly what Paul is saying here.

After he's talking about how the spirit of God reveals the wisdom

of God. We look at verse 14 in Chapter

2, it says the natural person does not accept the things of

the spirit of God. He rejects them.

He is not able to understand them because they are simple

spiritually discerned. This means that the foolish

person is so focused on the wisdom of this world, their

pride, and their own power, that they may feel like they have,

they may have That they have no room for the wisdom of God.

There's nothing left for God. And, you know, we can say, you

know, what will never say that, you know, but I think, you know,

if we go day-to-day and this is something that I can completely

improve on. But if we do not read the word

of God daily, we are not gaining spiritual wisdom, from God and

what he can, he can provide for us, we can be better in that

area. You know, when we were younger,

we all had a tendency that they could got it all figured out

every single one of us. yeah, I don't need I don't need an

advice of an adult or my parents or you know we got it all taken

care of We don't need to God to tell us what to do and that

tendency I think doesn't go away.

Sometimes, you know, we can get older and we can actually

convince ourselves that we know better than God.

And what's best for our lives and reject his truth, or maybe

even just ignore it. That is foolishness.

And it's interesting in verse 14 that says the things of God are

Folly to him. And that's not the first time we

see the word Folly. If we go back to chapter 1 verse

18, Paul wrote for the word of the Cross is folly to those who

are perishing, but to us, who are being saved, it is the power

of God. And then down in verse 21.

For since the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through

wisdom, it pleased, God through the Folly of what we preach to

save. Those who believe the cross the

message of Christ crucified. Was folly or foolishness to the

Gentiles. The wisdom of the world says,

you know, God's wisdom is foolishness, that's natural

wisdom. That's that they're, you know,

the Cross of Christ, doesn't matter and that leads to the

next point in this column. The foolish life sees Jesus on

the cross as foolishness. And that makes sense when we

think about it because the cross represented truth from God and

that is a shock. Basically, to human pride and

power, isn't it? If we put ourselves in the shoes

are of the first century, Christians, you know, we see

some who are we see people wearing crosses around their

necks, or crosses on pictures in their homes?

You wouldn't do that in the first century because the cross

was a picture of death. It was not something that was

socially acceptable to do that. You know, we're you know, if we

put that in our house today, you know, maybe a picture of an

electric chair or a injection table.

Lethal injection, table honor above our mantel.

We're not getting many people, coming back to our homes for

dinner. It's, it's the the cross back in

the first century was and still is a picture of death.

The cross is the most gruesome torture shameful way to kill

somebody and it was reserved for barbarians and slaves.

And Paul said in First Corinthians 1 verse 23 that the

1 Corinthians 1:23

idea of the Cross and Christ crucified is a stumbling block

to the Jews and to a Jewish person.

Anyone who hung on a tree was cursed of God.

In the idea of the messiah messiah, being crucified was

shocking to the Jews that would never happen.

Open in Jewish thought. It was also a Folly to the

Gentiles and that word literally means Madness.

If the GIF, the Gentiles heard that a Jewish man had died on a

piece of wood, in a nondescript Hill, on a knot in a nondescript

part of the world and his death determine the Eternal fate of

everyone else in the world. They would think that that would

be ridiculous. And if Christ is crucified as a

stumbling block, to the Jews and Folly to the Gentiles, I think

as cultural Americans, some can see it as completely absurd.

You know, we take the nice successful well-dressed American

with a nice job of big house. A nice car.

Take your free thinking American woman who thrives on her

independence from everything including God, and you take them

both outside to the city dump. Okay?

We're a naked man is hanging on by Nails on a tree, covered in

blood and you tell that American your only hope.

In life, is to believe that this man is God and you are entirely

dependent on him as your judge, Master Lord, and King and that,

man or woman would rolled her eyes at most.

They would feel sorry for this man and his deranged condition,

then they will move on with their lives.

It's entirely possible. Or maybe many like some who are

profession Christians in America, they will just give

some lip service to that man for a little bit.

Because it's culturally the acceptable thing to do, while

they continue to live a life that's focused on their selves.

The natural wisdom of this world sees the cross as falling or

foolishness and ultimately this natural wisdom.

And foolishness life is doomed to pass away, which is the exact

language that we see here in the English Standard Version.

It says, here in verse 6 of chapter 2, yet among the mature,

we do not import wisdom, although it is not a wizard.

I'm of this age or of the rulers of this age who are doomed to

pass away. Or some translations say coming

to nothing? I think that's what the new King

James says. We can have it all.

We can have the riches power wealth, natural wisdom in this

world to a point where you're even a ruler in this world, you

know, Your ruler over a company or rule over a country but we

can have it all. But at the end of the day, it is

doomed to pass away or to come to nothing.

We know that one day we are going to die and it doesn't

matter. We all know this and that

moment, it doesn't matter. How big our house was, it

doesn't matter what the cars we drive, it doesn't matter, or

social status, doesn't matter where we're at in life.

None of that matters. Because at the end everything

will be left. That is all empty empty wisdom

that we're having in those things.

We live in a world that encourages and exalts pride,

self-esteem. You know, self-worth is the

Mantra Mantra. We have thousands of words that

start with the word self. It's what we're all about.

What can we do? How can I pull my bootstraps up?

I need to work harder for this. I need to put more effort into

this. I need to, I need to look deeper

Within Myself. You know, we want to rely on our

human power and reject the truth of God, which is some think is

Antiquated and defensive. The world sees the cross is

folly in his foolishness. And God tells us that these

things are all doomed to pass away or come to nothing.

But there's another way to live that's characterized by

spiritual Supernatural. Other worldly, wisdom, wisdom

that comes from God and not ourselves.

First Corinthians 2 says that it's freely given to all.

So what does that look like? What is, what is the opposite of

a foolish life look like? And instead of feeding Pride,

spiritual wisdom, crucifies Pride, And I think crucified is

that is the right word. He's making this contrast in

First Corinthians. Paul by chapter two saying, I

decided to know nothing among you except one thing Jesus

Christ. And him crucified really is that

all that Paul wanted to know nothing else, just that It's the

one thing Paul talked about and the answer is yes, because that

summarizes living a wise life, the wise life dies to self

position and status in this world.

That's not what we live for anymore, we've died to those

things. It's the same thing.

Paul says, in Galatians 2 verse 20, that not just Christ had

Galatians 2:20

been crucified, but I have been crucified with Christ, the life.

I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who

loved me and gave himself for me.

The wise life is an entirely New Life In Christ.

The wise life. Also, boasts in one thing

Christ, that's what we boasted. We don't boast in our houses or

nice jobs. Our status or nice success in

this world. It's all rubbish, it means

nothing. We boast in Jesus, he's our

life, everything revolves around him.

And instead of depending on human power, the wise life,

trusts in spiritual power Supernatural power that we

receive from God, And the way that Paul talks about this, you

know, back in verse 3, he said, when I came to you I was in

weakness and fear and much trembling.

We might, you know, read and get this picture of Paul, sometimes

as a amazing preacher and maybe he was.

But also to he's telling the Corinthians I came to you week

and in fear and trembling, I was afraid to do what I was doing.

I did not have the strength to do what I was doing.

And First Corinthians 2 10:10 talks talks about Paula says his

bodily presence is weak and his speech of know.

Account. So we can get that picture of

Paul in our minds of some Stout, man, but that's not what people

who saw him thought. They thought this guy is weak

and he can't preach. You know we think about think

about you to kiss back in Acts 20 verse 9 that guy Paul

Acts 20:9

preached so long. This guy was so bored that he

fell asleep and fell out of a window and died.

You know. The language that in that in

that verse basically say that he was eutychus, was lulled to

sleep. He was put to sleep by the

teaching of Paul. I think we've all been there.

Maybe some of you are there right now.

I don't know, but we can, we can be loyal to sleep.

You know, that that guy was the first guy to fall asleep in a

sermon that we can read about and it's you know, it's amazing,

you know, that guy falls asleep and he dies, Paul goes down

there and brings him back to life, but Paul continues to

preach after that like somebody dying in his sermon wasn't going

to stop Paul from preaching, it was pretty amazing.

So I think we can somewhat get grass.

The Paul wasn't, maybe necessarily, he probably didn't

think of himself as the best preacher and that's the whole

point. He said, I don't want to preach

in a way that you want to trust in me.

Do not trust in my preaching. I want to preach a way that you

trust in God's power. I want you your faith to not

rest on the wisdom of men. But in the power of God, I don't

know who you know everybody here today feels weak or unqualified

in any position that we might have or any Roll, we might take

but if we do, I think we can all feel.

Like we all kind of feel the same way.

Sometimes in our life when we get those positions that we feel

completely unqualified. If we feel weak as a parent, a

spouse a student in her employee.

If we if we don't feel weak in those ways, I would submit maybe

we have a pride problem. If you do feel weak, then what

we have coming from spiritual wisdom which is the word of God.

The Bible is that all who are weak and look to God, he is our

strength. There Are Spiritual power

available for us to have faith in.

It's a wise way to live experiencing the power strength

wisdom, and the help of God himself that is the wives life.

Spiritual wisdom. Also receives truth from God.

Receives truth from God. Verse 7 of chapter two were Paul

says, but we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden

wisdom, which God ordained before the ages of our glory.

And when we think about that passes, I want us to focus on

two words. God ordained.

What the Bible is saying here that is God, that has spoken

this wisdom to us. He has decreed this mess, these

messages Force, you know, this is not just, the Bible is not

just a book of information about God.

You know, these are the characteristics of God, this is

who he is. This is not just information

about God. It's a message from God.

And that's two totally different things we could read information

about somebody, you know, we can just read them and read it.

Okay. This is what this guy's done,

this is his resume, okay, but when they come to us and they

give us a message, that's a direct message to us.

And that's what the Bible is. It's a direct message to us from

God and that will change. The way we look at the book at

this at the Bible, when we come together on Sundays, we have not

come to hear wisdom for me or from any other one who stands up

here. And Gives a word.

That would be an utter waste of everybody's time if you're

coming to hear a preacher because of preacher, in the

words that he says we're coming because we want to hear from God

and God Alone out of the book out of out of the Bible.

Our job is Teachers is to take that word from God and speak it,

and teach it to you in a way as best we can.

So we need not rest, our faith in wisdom of people, but on the

power of God. So the wides life prioritizes

receiving this truth every week when we come together, you know,

we do that sometime Sunday evenings, where we just we just

read a few chapters out of the Bible.

That's a direct message from God to us and that is worship at its

best. So instead of seeing the cross

is folly, we see the wise life. Additionally, we see the cross

as forgiveness. The wise life doesn't look at

the cross and walk away thinking that it's absurd.

The wise life looks at the cross and falls on our faces in, awe,

knowing what that means to us. God in his wisdom is far greater

than ours and he has made a way for us to be forgiven of our

sins by his Mercy. We see the cross as beautiful as

a way to be forgiven of our sins and this leads to the last point

of a wise life, it's not doomed to pass away, but the wise life

is destined for eternal glory. And that's the language that's

used in verse 7 of chapter 2. Right.

After we hear about the wisdom of this age and the rulers of

this age, we read Doom to pass away or coming to nothing.

Then what does it say? It says, but it's one of my

favorite words in the Bible but It's a transition.

You know, you guys were this way.

This is the you guys were didn't have any way to, to be

reconciled to God, but that means God's done something for

us. Things have changed.

It says there, but which is the contrast we speak the wisdom of

God in a mystery. The hidden wisdom of God

ordained before the age of our Glory.

Before the age for our Glory. For our Glory.

For our glory. In God's wisdom, he has made a

way for Sinners to be glorified with him in eternity and that is

great news. Verse 9 says, as it is written,

what what? No eye has seen nor ear heard

nor the heart of man, imagine what God has prepared for those

who love him. That's a really encouraging

verse. The wise life does not live for

this world. So we need to set our sights

higher. The wise life lives for what God

has prepared, for those who love him.

So, I asked, what about you Which way are you going to

choose to live today was our last day on Earth?

Which way are we going to choose the foolish life or the wise

life? Are we going to feed our pride

or crucify? Our pride, are we going to

depend on our own power or trust in God's power?

Are we going to reject and ignore God's truth?

Or are we going to accept it? Ultimately, are you going to see

the cross is folly and give Jesus?

Pity and lip service, or we going to see the crosses

forgiveness and give Jesus our life and the answer to these

questions will determine not just the shape of Our Lives.

Now here on Earth, but it will shape our lives for eternity.

So if you're here and you want to change your life from a

foolish life to a wise life, this is the time.

It doesn't have to happen just now.

But we also always offer an invitation to those who may want

to obey the gospel of Christ, and the gospel can do that

today. We believe the gospel is this,

that we believe that God is real, and Jesus has come and has

died for our sins, so that we might have restoration with God.

We then repent of our former way of life.

You know we were living a foolish life now we're going to

change that. We're going to we're not going

to depend on our natural wisdom anymore.

We're going to go ahead and depend on God's wisdom, change

our way of life. We're going to confess the name

of Christ and knowledge in that he is a Son of God and then be

baptized for the remission of our sins of your sins

contacting, the blood of Our Savior, Jesus the Christ, and

then and only, then he add you to his church.

That can be fulfilled today. We can assist in that.

Today, we have the baptistry here, that can we can fill up

quickly and we can make that happen.

Also there if there's one here who needs to make a public

confession of any sort or just needs the prayers of the

congregation, we ask you to please come.

Now as we stand in as we see We thank you for listening to our

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