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Scripture Reading: 1 Cor. 1:18-25
Brother Watchman Nee once told us that what is most important and precious in reading the Bible is to touch the spirit of the writer. When Paul wrote the book of 1 Corinthians, no doubt there was a specific burden in his spirit. As we read this Epistle, we need to get into the writer’s spirit.
In order to touch Paul’s spirit in 1 Corinthians, we need to know something of the background both of Paul himself and of the believers in Corinth. Paul was a typical religious Jew, absolutely committed to the religion of his forefathers. Because of his absoluteness for Judaism, he was opposed to the gospel, to the name of Jesus, and to the church. As we know, when he was opposing the church, the Lord Jesus came to him, called him, separated him, commissioned him, and charged him to preach Christ. In obedience to the Lord’s commission, Paul did preach Christ.
On a particular journey of ministry he visited the city of Corinth, a cultured city in Greece, where many philosophical people lived. To these people Paul preached Christ Jesus. Some of the philosophical Greeks in Corinth received the word of Paul’s preaching, accepted Christ, and were saved. When they were regenerated, they received the initial gifts: eternal life and the Holy Spirit. These initial gifts were sown into them as spiritual seeds. However, after receiving the divine life and the Holy Spirit, they did not live by these gifts. Instead of living by the divine life and by the Holy Spirit, they still lived a life according to Greek culture. This means that they lived a life of wisdom and philosophy, not a life of Christ. They lived according to their philosophy and worldly wisdom, not according to the divine life and the Holy Spirit.
Due to the worldly wisdom of their philosophy, the believers at Corinth had different minds and opinions. They spoke different things and had different preferences and choices. Some said, “I like Paul”; others said, “I prefer Cephas”; and still others said, “My choice is Apollos.” Certain of the Corinthian believers even said, “I like Christ.” These different opinions and ways of speaking opened the door for many evil things to come into the church life, things including strifes, quarrels, fornication, and lawsuits. Regarding married life, there was also confusion and differing opinions. Some said that a brother should leave his wife if she was not willing to go along with him to believe in the Lord. Others advised against this. Thus, among the believers in Corinth there were differing opinions. Even though they were genuine Christians who had received the divine gifts, they were not living a Christian life, but living a Greek life. They were not living a life of divinity, but living a life of philosophy according to their worldly wisdom. As a result, there was confusion among them. This was the background of this Epistle.
As Paul was writing this Epistle, he was burdened to guide the distracted, philosophical Christians in Corinth back to Christ. These believers had been distracted by their wisdom, philosophy, and culture. Thus, Paul’s spirit was burdened to bring them back to the very Christ whom he had testified to them. This burden in Paul’s spirit is especially evident in the first two chapters of this book.
The first two chapters of 1 Corinthians are very difficult to understand. You may read these chapters again and again without understanding what Paul is talking about. You may be impressed by many different verses and yet not be able to see Paul’s main point. The main point in these chapters is that in his spirit Paul was endeavoring to bring the distracted philosophical believers back to Christ. For this reason, in these chapters Paul does not emphasize the resurrected Christ or the ascended Christ; instead, he emphasizes the crucified Christ. In 2:2 he says, “I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ. and this One crucified.” To the Corinthians Paul proclaimed a crucified Christ, a Christ who had been killed.
We have pointed out that the best way to solve problems among people is to terminate everyone involved. However, the human way of solving problems is to negotiate. God’s way, on the contrary, is not to negotiate, but to terminate. When everyone has been terminated, there is silence. The best way to bring in silence and simplicity is to have a Christ who has been crucified. It seems as if Paul was saying to the Corinthians, “I testified to you a Christ who had been crucified. When I first came to you, I preached to you concerning the crucified Christ. The Lord’s life on earth ended with death by crucifixion.”
The fact that Christ was crucified implies many things. It implies that He was despised, rejected, and defeated. No one could be crucified without first being rejected and defeated. Through crucifixion Christ suffered man’s rejection. He was able to avoid death by crucifixion, but He did not do so. He could be crucified only because He was willing to be killed. The crucifixion of Christ has silenced the entire universe and simplified the extremely complicated situation in the universe.
Deep in his spirit, Paul was yearning to impress the distracted, philosophical Christians in Corinth with this crucified Christ. Among the saints there was turmoil and trouble. Many voices were speaking different things: “I am of Apollos,” “I am of Cephas,” “I am of Paul,” “I am of Christ.” What could silence all these voices? Paul knew that they could be silenced only by a crucified Christ. Therefore, in Paul’s spirit was the burden to bring the believers back to the Christ whom he had preached to them and testified to them. Paul could say, “The Christ I preached to you was a silent Christ, a Christ who was willing to be crucified without a word. He was willing to be despised, rejected, and put to death. This is the Christ I ministered to you when I came to you. Now I want you to know that such a Christ is God’s power. Only a crucified Christ can save you. God’s saving power is not a strong Christ but a crucified Christ, not a fighting Christ but a defeated Christ.” I repeat, Paul’s spirit was to bring back these striving, philosophical Christians to the simplicity and silence of the crucified Christ.
Furthermore, in 1:17 Paul said that he preached the gospel “not in wisdom of speech, that the cross of Christ should not be made void.” In this verse wisdom of speech refers to philosophical speculations. In 2:1 Paul says, “And I, when I came to you, brothers, came not with excellence of speech or wisdom, announcing to you the testimony of God.” Literally, the Greek term rendered “with excellence” means according to elevation or superiority. Paul did not come to Corinth to display excellent speech or philosophical wisdom in the testimony of God. On the contrary, Paul avoided philosophical speculation and excellence of speech and preached the simple word of the cross. The word of the cross is simple, having nothing to do with excellence of speech.
When Paul ministered Christ to the Corinthians, he did not exercise philosophical wisdom, for he realized that the Corinthians were a philosophical people, a people who had been born into a philosophical environment and raised under its influence. Paul’s goal was to deliver the Corinthians from the philosophy into which they had been born. Paul seems to be saying, “You were born into philosophy and worldly wisdom. But I came to you not with philosophy, but with Christ and the cross. I did not preach Christ according to the excellence of your philosophical speculations. Instead, I preached Christ to you in a simple way, telling you that He had been crucified. Christ was willing to be despised and rejected. He accepted man’s rejection. When He was arrested, He did not resist. When He was put on the cross, He did not fight. He was silent, for He was willing to be crucified. This is the Christ I preached to you.”
Paul’s preaching was absolutely contrary to the principle of Greek philosophy. According to the philosophy of the Greeks, Paul’s preaching of a crucified Christ was neither logical nor philosophical. Here Paul seems to be telling the Corinthians, “My preaching was not according to philosophy or worldly wisdom. Nevertheless, you accepted my preaching and my testimony, you were enriched in Christ in all expression and all knowledge, and by grace you received the initial gifts — the divine life and the Holy Spirit. However, you have not lived according to what you have received from the Lord. The initial gifts you received have not been developed. They have not grown to maturity. Rather, you have remained in a stage of infancy. You are still babes in Christ. Now my burden is to bring you back to the crucified Christ and to the initial gifts. You need to forget your Greek culture, wisdom, and philosophy and return to Christ and Him crucified.” This was Paul’s spirit in writing the first two chapters of 1 Corinthians. Writing with such a spirit, Paul pointed the believers to the crucified Christ and spoke to them the word of the cross. He told them that Christ crucified is the power of God for saving us and the wisdom of God for fulfilling His plan.
In this message we shall consider 1:18-25. Our understanding of these verses depends on a proper understanding of the foregoing seventeen verses. Verses 1 through 9 are the introduction to this Epistle. In this introductory section Paul speaks of the initial gifts and of the participation in Christ. In verses 10 through 17 Paul goes on to show that Christ is not divided. He beseeches the saints through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to all speak the same thing — Christ and the cross — and to be attuned in the same mind and in the same opinion. Then in verses 18 through 25 Paul shows us that Christ crucified is God’s power and God’s wisdom.
Verse 18 says, “For the word of the cross is to those who are perishing foolishness, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” The little word “for” at the beginning of this verse indicates that verse 18 is an explanation of verse 17. In verse 17 Paul declares, “For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in wisdom of speech, that the cross of Christ should not be made void.” The cross of Christ is the center in the accomplishment of God’s New Testament economy, which is to have a church produced through the redemption of Christ. Paul preached Christ crucified (v. 23; 2:2; Gal. 3:1) and boasted in the cross of Christ (Gal. 6:14), not the law with circumcision, which the Jews and some of the Jewish believers fought for (Gal. 3:11; 5:11; 6:12-13), nor the philosophy which was promoted by the Greeks and some of the Gentile believers (Col. 2:8, 20). The cross of Christ abolished the ordinances of the law (Eph. 2:15; Col. 2:14), and we the believers have died to philosophy, an element of the world (Col. 2:20). But Satan instigated the Judaizers and philosophers to preach their isms of worldly wisdom that the cross of Christ might be made void. The Apostle Paul was alert in this matter. In dealing with the division among the Corinthian believers, which came mostly from the background of Jewish religion and Greek philosophy, the apostle stressed Christ and His cross. When Christ is taken to replace religious opinions and philosophical wisdom, and His cross is working to deal with the flesh attached to any background, divisions will be terminated. The exaltation of natural preference and human wisdom cannot stand before Christ and His cross.
Paul did not want the cross of Christ to be made void through preaching in wisdom of speech, that is, in philosophical speculations. Christ did not send Paul to preach the gospel in the wisdom of speech. Paul refused to indulge in philosophical speculations. He was concerned lest the cross of Christ be made void. He realized that the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing. They regard the word of the cross as too simple and consider it foolishness.
The Greek term rendered word in this verse is the same as that translated expression in 1:5. The word of the cross is the expression, the speech, the preaching, of the cross. Such preaching is despised and considered foolishness by those who are perishing, but honored and received as the power of God by us who are being saved. Paul, in his ministry, stressed the cross as the center of God’s salvation (Gal. 2:20; 3:1; 5:11, 24; 6:14; Eph. 2:15; Phil. 2:8; 3:18; Col. 2:14).
Many professors and educated people today treat the word of the cross as if it were foolishness. To them, it is folly to speak about a Christ who was despised, rejected, and crucified. They do not want to hear of a Christ who was killed without reacting in His own defense. When presented with a word concerning the crucified Christ, they would say, “This is foolishness, and don’t talk to me about it. If anyone despises me, I will react against him. If anyone rejects me, I will fight. Furthermore, should someone try to kill me, I will protect myself and strike him down first. Even the law of the land assures me of the right of self-protection. Don’t tell me about a Christ who was crucified.” Thus, the word of the cross is still foolishness to those who are perishing, especially the philosophical people.
In verse 18 Paul speaks of “us who are being saved.” I appreciate the expression “being saved.” If someone asks you if you are saved, you may wish to reply, “I am in the process of being saved. I have been saved partially, saved to a certain extent. However, I have not yet been saved to the full extent. But I am being saved.” To us who are in the process of being saved, the word of the cross is the power of God.
In verse 19 Paul continues, “For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the understanding of the prudent I will set aside.” Once again Paul introduces this verse with the word “for,” showing that it also is an explanation of what has gone before. Here Paul points out that God does not care for the wisdom of the wise or the understanding of the prudent. Rather, He will destroy this wisdom and set aside this understanding.
Paul’s intention in verse 19 was to refer in particular to the philosophical Greeks. It seems as if Paul was saying, “You Greeks think that you are wise and prudent. You do not realize that God will destroy the wisdom of the wise and set aside the understanding of the prudent. If you regard yourselves as wise, God will destroy your wisdom. If you consider yourselves prudent, God will set aside your prudence. It is dangerous to regard yourselves as wise or prudent, for you run the risk of being destroyed by God or of being set aside by Him.”
In verse 20 Paul asks a number of questions: “Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?” Where are the wise today? Are they in Greece? In New Zealand? In America? In Taiwan? It is common for those with a certain national or cultural background to regard themselves as the most wise and philosophical of people. Perhaps such ones are wiser than others, but they are not wiser than God in the heavens. In the church life we should not practice any particular wisdom. Furthermore, in the church life we should not be scribes or disputers. However, the leading ones in certain places may pride themselves in thinking that the young people under their training are scribes and disputers. But the Bible asks, “Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age?” God has in fact made foolish the wisdom of the world.
In verse 21 Paul goes on to say, “For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, God was pleased through the foolishness of the preaching to save those who believe.” Here the preaching differs from preaching. Preaching is the means to minister the word. The preaching here is the thing preached, that is, the message. God is pleased through the foolishness of the preaching, the message, the thing preached, to save those who believe.
In this verse Paul refers to the foolishness of the message. In my speaking and writing I intentionally use simple expressions. Others have advised me against this practice saying that the use of simple expressions does not attract learned people. However, I do not want to use eloquent expressions. That is not to preach Christ or the cross. In the preaching of Christ and the cross, we should use simple terms and expressions. We are not those who preach the excellency of speculation. Thus, we should follow the example of John in his Gospel. His writing is very simple. For example, John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” In verse 4 John says, “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.” In verse 14 he tells us simply, “The Word became flesh and tabernacled among us.”
In preaching Christ and the cross to philosophical people Paul spoke in a simple way. According to our opinion, he should have exercised his knowledge to put forth excellent words of philosophical speculation. Paul, however, deliberately avoided this. When he went to Corinth to preach Christ and the cross, he chose not to know anything of excellent utterance. On the contrary, he used simple and brief expressions, expressions which may have been regarded as foolishness by philosophical Greeks. Nevertheless, Paul says that God uses the foolishness of the preaching to save those who believe. By the preaching of Christ and the cross in a simple way, people believe and are saved. As a result, we have the assurance that they believe not in our excellency of speech, but in Christ and the cross as preached by us.
Verse 22 says, “Since Jews indeed ask for signs and Greeks seek wisdom.” A sign is a miraculous token (Matt. 12:38-39) to substantiate what is preached. Religion needs signs, and the Jews kept requiring them. Wisdom pertains to philosophy and was constantly sought by the Greeks.
In verse 22 Paul refers to two kinds of people — to religious Jews and philosophical Greeks. The religious ones desire signs, miracles, and the philosophical ones pursue wisdom. But in preaching Christ crucified, Paul cared for neither wisdom nor signs.
When the Lord Jesus was on the cross, the Jews mocked Him and said, “You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross!” (Matt. 27:40). The chief priests, the scribes, and the elders said, “He saved others; himself he cannot save! He is king of Israel, let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe on him” (v. 42). They challenged the Lord to prove that He was the Christ, the Son of God, by delivering Himself from the cross. However, the Lord remained silent; He did not do anything to save Himself. Instead of a miracle and wisdom, there were weakness and foolishness. According to man’s wisdom, it would be utterly foolish to be crucified.
In saying, “I am of Paul,” or “I am of Cephas,” the Corinthians were exercising their wisdom. They were following their philosophy, not following Christ. But Paul preached to them Christ crucified, an offense to miracle-seeking Jews and wisdom-pursuing Greeks. But to those who are called, this Christ is God’s wisdom and God’s power.
It is significant that Paul did not tell the Corinthians, “We preach Christ resurrected.” The focus of the preaching in Acts is on the resurrection of Christ. According to the book of Acts, this preaching is a testimony that Jesus Christ, the One who was crucified, has been resurrected. But in this Epistle Paul does not emphasize Christ’s resurrection. Rather, he emphasizes the preaching of Christ crucified. No doubt, both the Jews and the Greeks would have preferred to hear of a resurrected Christ. For Jews, this would have been a great miracle. How miraculous for someone to rise out of the tomb and ascend into the heavens! The Greeks may have regarded a word about resurrection as very philosophical. In their quest for wisdom they may have been interested to learn how a dead person could become alive again. Nevertheless, Paul preached a crucified Christ, a Christ who did not do anything to save Himself. Paul followed this crucified Christ and preached Him to the Corinthians. Therefore, verse 23 declares, “But we preach Christ crucified, to Jews an offense, and to the nations foolishness.” It was offensive to Jews and foolishness to Greeks that Paul followed a crucified Christ.
In verse 24 Paul goes on to say, “But to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ, God’s power and God’s wisdom.” Those who are called are the believers who were chosen by God in eternity (Eph. 1:4) and who believed in Christ in time (Acts 13:48). To these called ones, the crucified Christ preached by the apostles is God’s power and God’s wisdom. Wisdom is for planning, for purposing; power is for carrying out, for accomplishing, what is planned and purposed. In God’s economy Christ is both. Praise the Lord that for us today the crucified Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God!
In verse 25 Paul concludes, “Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” Even God’s foolishness is wiser than our wisdom, and His weakness stronger than our strength.
