1 Cor 1:17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power .
I had an experience with my PC last week that was kind of scary. When I tried to turn it on, the power light turned amber and started blinking. The disks didn't start, the fans didn't go, nothing was running except that dumb light. After looking online (using my kids' computer) I found that the problem was the power supply - they just go bad on my make of computer after a year or more.
The parallel between that and what Paul wrote in 1 Cor 1:17 is interesting. What happens after walking with God for awhile is that we get such knowledge and wisdom (2 separate things, by the way) about the gospel, church, salvation, and everything else that we *can* start to believe that's the real deal, the source of our power and effectiveness in living for God and/or sharing our faith. We stop praying like we used to and can stop depending upon God to supply our needs (even though He always does - but we need to acknowledge and thank Him).
Like Paul writes, this robs the gospel of its power in our lives as we "preach" through how we live (the saying is true - "Your life is the only Bible some people will ever read"). We need to be challenged constantly to get back to our power supply by remaining in fellowship with God and each other, As Paul wrote later, in the letter to the Colossians:
Col 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.
*motivation check*
I confess sometimes I get tired of hearing what I "ought to do" like this, but once I do it, I find it to be self-sustaining. So if you're sick of hearing "duty", then just hear "blessing", which is what we all get when we obey what God has told us - and for our own good.
I had an experience with my PC last week that was kind of scary. When I tried to turn it on, the power light turned amber and started blinking. The disks didn't start, the fans didn't go, nothing was running except that dumb light. After looking online (using my kids' computer) I found that the problem was the power supply - they just go bad on my make of computer after a year or more.
The parallel between that and what Paul wrote in 1 Cor 1:17 is interesting. What happens after walking with God for awhile is that we get such knowledge and wisdom (2 separate things, by the way) about the gospel, church, salvation, and everything else that we *can* start to believe that's the real deal, the source of our power and effectiveness in living for God and/or sharing our faith. We stop praying like we used to and can stop depending upon God to supply our needs (even though He always does - but we need to acknowledge and thank Him).
Like Paul writes, this robs the gospel of its power in our lives as we "preach" through how we live (the saying is true - "Your life is the only Bible some people will ever read"). We need to be challenged constantly to get back to our power supply by remaining in fellowship with God and each other, As Paul wrote later, in the letter to the Colossians:
Col 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.
*motivation check*
I confess sometimes I get tired of hearing what I "ought to do" like this, but once I do it, I find it to be self-sustaining. So if you're sick of hearing "duty", then just hear "blessing", which is what we all get when we obey what God has told us - and for our own good.
