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Pathways Through Paul
Daily Devotional
June 2
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Today's Pathway:
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I Corinthians 2:6-10
- 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:
- But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:
- Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
- But as it is written, 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.
- But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
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Paul began this chapter by stating that he did not use men's wisdom in his preaching. He makes it clear in verses 6-7 that his failure to use worldly wisdom does not mean that his message lacked intelligence or correct information. According to verse 7 his message contained "the wisdom of God". As we saw in chapter 1, God's "foolishness" is better than any wisdom man can come up with. Paul told the Romans,
"O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!" (Romans 11:33).
Thus, speaking God's wisdom is exactly the correct thing to do!
Paul says in verse 6 that this wisdom is accepted by those that are "perfect". The word "perfect" is the word for "complete" or "mature". There are some who think that Paul is referring to all believers. In Philippians 3:15 Paul uses that word for believers when he writes,
"Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded."
Thus Paul may be saying that all believers will receive God's Word as wisdom. In verse 14 he says,
"But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him",
which would bolster that position. However, there are others who think that Paul is saying that only mature believers can understand the wisdom of God; that it is available to all Christians because all Christians have the Holy Spirit, but it is only understood and appreciated by those who are prepared to receive it. While it would probably be true that mature believers could understand more of God's wisdom than baby Christians would, it is my opinion that Paul is speaking of believers in general, regardless of their level of maturity, for in verse 10 Paul says that God has revealed His wisdom "unto us", which would include not only Paul, but also the immature (I Corinthians 3:1) believers in Corinth.
Paul says that he spoke God's wisdom "in a mystery". A "mystery" in the New Testament is a truth never previously known, a truth which human intellect could never discover, but which has now been made known by divine revelation. It is called "hidden" for the same reason. Matthew 13:35 says that Jesus spoke in parables
"that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world."
It was not the world's wisdom (vs. 1), nor the wisdom of political rulers (vs. 1, 3), for had they known the truth they would never have crucified Jesus in the first place. It was God's plan of redemption that He determined before the world began (Ephesians 3:11), and which has now been "revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit" (Ephesians 3:5).
In verse 9 Paul states that men have never heard, or seen, or even been able to imagine what God has prepared for believers. But, according to verse 10 these things have been revealed to believers by the Holy Spirit. This is a principle given in Isaiah 64:4. Verse 10 is often used to teach that people do not have any idea how wonderful Heaven will be, and there is certainly truth to that. However, remember that the context of this passage is speaking about worldly wisdom in contrast to spiritual wisdom. Therefore, what Paul is saying is that unsaved human beings can never hope to understand the wisdom of God. However, those who have received Christ and have the Holy Spirit indwelling them can understand it, because the Spirit reveals it to them. Paul wants the believers in Corinth to know that they can experience the blessings that God has prepared for them to enjoy during their lifetime. Albert Barnes concludes,
"The 'thing' to which the apostle here refers is the wisdom which was revealed in the gospel; but he also intends to include all the provisions of mercy and happiness which the gospel makes known to the people of God. Those things relate to the pardon of sin; to justification by faith; to the peace and joy which belief imparts; to the complete and final redemption from sin and death."
Have you let God's Spirit reveal these things to you?
Pastor Mark J Montgomery
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