“that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.”
Now Paul explains why he rested in the “demonstration of the Spirit” (2:4). He did not want to depend on a human facility, but the power of God.
that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men
Paul came in the “demonstration of the Spirit” rather than in the power of his speaking ability. The word “that” indicates Paul’s basis for coming to Corinth in the “demonstration of the Spirit” – faith does not rest on the human facility but God’s power.
but in the power of God
The Corinthians came to Christ by God’s power, not Paul’s power. God’s power rests in the gospel message.
Romans 1:16, For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.
PRINCIPLE:
We trust God’s message, not His messenger, to win people to Christ.
APPLICATION:
The principle is clear – all human ability and power in the world cannot persuade one person to trust Christ as Savior. Only the power of the Holy Spirit can break through to the soul. Faith comes from Christ, not from the ingenuity of philosophy, oratory, or human persuasion.
This refutes the idea that the witness must be a success before he can witness. Human attraction does not bring people to Christ. It is not necessary to be intellectual to bring intellectuals to Christ. We do not have to know all philosophies to win them to Christ; all we need to know is the gospel message. If faith is founded on a philosophical argument, it can be refuted by philosophical argument.
Some people believe you must persue someone with the gospel after they accept Christ until they are firm Christians. This verse seems to say preach the gospel and let the power of God do the rest because no amount of followup or eloquence can convert one without the power of God. We plant the seed of the word, then God works it out in them.
Correct meif Im wrong Im wrong. Even the best prepared sermon may not do it.
Blanche, it is clear to me as well that God expects us to preach the gospel to the non-Christian. However, it is important to build the believer in the faith with the Word of God subequent to salvation. Building an edification contruct is a progressive, daily project: http://versebyversecommentary.com/articles/living-by-the-book/
Yes,we can bring lost people to CHRIST only power of GOD by truth of HOLY SPIRIT,by the love given,by HOLY SPIRIT,because if we do not love we cannot do any effect,because true love come from only GOD,we should be love first then we should be tell about JESUS,because JESUS said “love each other as i love you”,