A. In 1Corinthians 2:2, the apostle Paul wrote, "For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified."
1. What did Paul mean by this? Did he limit his preaching to nothing more than the historical events surrounding the crucifixion of Jesus? If so, then why did he speak and write of many things other than Christ's crucifixion.
2. In short, this is a simple and powerful way Paul used to describe the wisdom of the gospel he preached. The term "nothing" is qualified to mean that nothing of what he preached was according to man's wisdom.
B. Presently, let us consider the full context of 1Corinthians 2 in order to understand the meaning and application of Paul's words.
II. THE WISDOM OF GOD: NOTHING EXCEPT CHRIST CRUCIFIED (1CORINTHIANS 2)
A. The gospel is the power of God rather than the wisdom of men (vv. 1-5).
1. In 1Corinthians 1:18-31, Paul showed that the wisdom of man was excluded from the preaching of Christ crucified.
a. To "those who are perishing" (v. 18) and those who are "wise according to the flesh" (v. 26), the gospel is foolishness, for it does not conform to the world's wisdom. Paul gives further insight into this in chapter 2.
b. Throughout this context, Paul used such phrases as "the word of the cross" (v. 18) and "we preach Christ crucified" (v. 23) to distinguish the cross-centered message of the gospel from the wisdom of man.
2. In 1Corinthians 2:1-5, Paul continued this theme by describing his approach to the Corinthians, which was not by man's wisdom.
a. Paul "did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom," but he "determined to know nothing...except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified" (vv. 1-2).
b. Paul was personally weak (v. 3; 2Cor. 10:10; 12:7), but his message concerning the crucified Christ was divinely powerful (v. 4; 2Cor. 10:3-4).
c. The purpose of this approach was to anchor his hearers' faith in the power of God rather than the wisdom of men (v. 5).
3. Application: Our appeal to others on behalf of Christ must not be based on the wisdom of men.
a. As Christians and ambassadors for Christ, the content of our preaching must come from the gospel of Christ. We must find our message in the word of God and not within the philosophies and traditions of men (Col. 2:8).
b. Christ Himself must be the attraction of our message (John 12:32). Smooth-talking preachers and friendly congregations are worthless without the resurrected Jesus.
B. The gospel actually is wisdom, but it is the wisdom of God rather than the wisdom of man (vv. 6-9).
1. Although Paul completely dismissed the wisdom of man from the gospel of Christ, he affirmed that it does reveal wisdom to those who are mature.
a. In 1Corinthians 1:18-31, Paul used the terms "wisdom" and "foolishness" in a way that represented the worldly view of spiritually immature men (see also 1Cor. 3:1-3).
b. Starting 1Corinthians 2:6, he refers to the genuine wisdom of the gospel that is correctly perceived and accepted only by those who are spiritually mature. See also Hebrews 5:14.
2. The wisdom of the gospel is the divine and true wisdom that was previously unknown to men.
a. It is an immeasurable blessing to receive the wisdom of the gospel, for it was predestined by God before the ages and previously hidden from men (even from prophets and angels -- see 1Pet. 1:10-12).
b. This wisdom did not come from the rulers of this age, and it was not even understood by them, for otherwise they would not have crucified Jesus.
c. This wisdom includes the revelation of the wonderful things God has prepared for those who love Him.
3. Application: The world does not understand the wealth of wisdom contained in the word of God.
a. The world in its wisdom did not recognize Jesus when He was on earth, so it should be no surprise that the world does not recognize His gospel as the wisdom of God today.
b. If we desire to understand the wisdom of God, then we must be spiritually minded and not worldly. Otherwise, the word of God will appear to be foolishness to us.
C. God revealed the wisdom of the gospel through His Holy Spirit (vv. 10-13).
1. The gospel did not proceed from man, but it came from God Himself.
a. It was by means of the Holy Spirit that God revealed the wisdom of the gospel. Only His Spirit knows His thoughts, for no man can search the mind of God.
b. God communicated His word to men through His Holy Spirit. These men were not the source of the message, but rather they were recipients of the word from God.
c. Calvinists make a false application of verse 12 by teaching that a man must receive a direct act of the Holy Spirit to understand the gospel. This context is actually describing how God revealed the gospel to men like Paul, who were inspired apostles and prophets. Paul says that when we read his writings we can understand his insight (Eph. 3:3-4).
2. The very words of the gospel are those that are taught by the Spirit.
a. These words are not taught by men and often conflict with the words of men.
b. These words are spiritual in nature, which means that they express truth about the unseen things of God (see John 6:63).
c. This is the biblical concept of verbal and plenary (complete) inspiration of the gospel.
3. Application: The Bible is the inspired word of God.
a. The great claim of 2Timothy 3:16 states, "All Scripture is inspired by God." Inspiration of the Scriptures happened when "men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God" (2Pet. 1:21) and wrote their words.
b. Whereas Paul wrote specifically of the Old Testament in 2Timothy 3:16, the application of his words now extends to the New Testament as well. (Notice that Paul's writings were classified by Peter with the Scriptures in 2Peter 3:15-16.) Indeed, all of the Bible is inspired by God.
c. Because the Bible is the inspired word of God, we must have the highest regard for its message. It is not subject to our own opinions, preferences, or revisions. We must conform to it directions and precepts and teach them to others also.
D. He who is spiritual understands the wisdom of the gospel (vv. 14-16).
1. A "natural" or carnally-minded man cannot comprehend the spiritual wisdom of the gospel.
a. One who appraises all things with a worldly viewpoint will never accept the gospel, for his worldview is incompatible with the spiritual truth of God's word.
b. For example, a worldly-minded man will never understand how baptism has a part in salvation (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 1Pet. 3:21). To him, dipping in water is merely a physical act with no spiritual significance.
2. A spiritually-minded man is blessed to understand the gospel's wisdom.
a. Through a spiritual viewpoint, a man sees the truth and value of the gospel, and he is blessed to obtain faith through the hearing of Christ's word (Rom. 10:17).
b. A spiritual man can rightly judge both the gospel and the world (he "appraises all things" -- v. 15), but no man judges him ("he himself is appraised by no man").
3. Application: Let us set our mind on spiritual things so that we may understand the word of God.
a. The Bible often directs us to set our minds on things of heaven (Phil. 4:8; Col. 3:1-2). This refers to a way of thinking that allows us see things as God sees them so that we may make truly wise decisions that will benefit us for eternity.
b. Without a spiritual mindset, we will not understand God's word, and without this understanding, we will not conform to His word to do His will.
III. CONCLUSION
A. Based on this study of 1Corinthians 2, it is good for us to know nothing except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.
1. This does not mean that the only knowledge we have is that Jesus died on the cross.
2. Rather, it means that we are to live by the wisdom of the gospel of Christ and not by so-called wisdom of men in the world. This is the meaning of Paul's words given by inspiration of the Holy Spirit in this chapter.
B. Therefore, may the spiritual wisdom within the word of the cross be the basis of every part of our lives.
