2004-05-22 Communion Dedication - Baldwin Christian Church
1 Corinthians 2
1 And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God.
2 For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.
3 And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.
4 And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:
5 That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.
6 Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought:
7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:
8 Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
9 But as it is written
(in Isaiah 64:4), Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.Isaiah 65:17 For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
10 But God hath revealed them (The things He planned long ago have now been revealed...) unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
11 For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him?
Nobody knows what you're really thinking except you.
...even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.
The best thing we can pray for each other is that we might receive more of the Spirit.
12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
13 Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
15 But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.
16 For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? (Isaiah 40:13) But we have the mind of Christ.
And only with the mind of Christ can we understand:
...how a person who isn't smart or well spoken can outsmart the well-educated.
...how a feeble person can put the mighty to shame.
...how someone despised and rejected by the world can show the world it's own worthlessness.
...why no natural-born flesh can glory in God's presence.
Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.
Do any of us really believe that? Do you trip over that little word, "all", and like me you're thinking, "Jesus helps me with a lot of things, but I don't know about the big things?" The biggest problem for me is sanctification; taking time to be holy. It's a lifelong process, and nobody ever quite makes it. One of the biggest impediments to sanctification is our inability to align our wants with our needs; being able to see that the things we think will make us happy aren't even in the same picture with the things we actually need.
1 Timothy 6:6-8
6. But godliness with contentment is great gain.
7. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
8. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.
Think about it; in all the times you've pulled over to the side of the road and let a funeral procession pass, have you ever seen the car in the front pulling a U-Haul trailer? God tells us that everything beyond food and clothing is a trap; something that entangles us, and keeps us from our destination in heaven. We need food and clothes to survive, but we want the food and clothes that we want, so if we don't get what we want, we're not content. We don't need food and clothes. Be careful if this sounds foolish to you, for there is only one thing that we need, and that's Jesus on Judgment Day.
Now, when I weigh everything that I really want against the one thing that I really need, it's easy for me to see which way the scales will tip, and it's easier for me to be content. That being said, I think that for today, for this world, there may actually be something we need even more than Jesus on Judgment Day, and that is to seek Him today, while we live in this world.
Jesus said,
"...seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33), and "these things" He spoke about were food and clothing. He even went further, and said that we shouldn't think about tomorrow. If we seek Him first, the food, the clothes, and even tomorrow will be taken care of. If you're not seeking Jesus everyday, He's still taking care of you, even if you don't know it. Read Matthew chapter 6. We need more of His Spirit, and we need to keep chiseling away at this cocoon of carnality that traps us. We'll never be content, until we can unfold the wings He gave us - when He gave us His Spirit.