24TH AUGUST
1 Corinthians 2:1-5
“And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God”
You can sense from Paul’s words that he felt quite insecure in himself about sharing the gospel with the Corinthians. He had decided ahead of time to just share the simple gospel of Jesus dying on the cross. He wasn’t confident of his ability to share it well. “I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling.”
So what made Paul’s sharing of the gospel so effective? “My speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power.” As you learn to be a witness for Jesus, accept your weaknesses and inabilities. Don’t try to pump yourself up with “I can do this!”
Rather, call on God’s Holy Spirit to work even through your weaknesses and stumbling words. Then you will be a “demonstration of the Spirit and of power.”
MAKE IT PERSONAL:
Why do you think it’s a good thing “that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God”?