1 Corinthians 2:1-5
The Message about the Crucified Christ
2 When I came to you, my friends, to preach God's secret truth,[a] I did not use big words and great learning. 2 For while I was with you, I made up my mind to forget everything except Jesus Christ and especially his death on the cross. 3 So when I came to you, I was weak and trembled all over with fear, 4 and my teaching and message were not delivered with skillful words of human wisdom, but with convincing proof of the power of God's Spirit. 5 Your faith, then, does not rest on human wisdom but on God's power.
On Sunday, we took the children to a farm in Burnley where they had dozens of beautiful little puppies. We were allowed to play with them and pet them as the kids made up names for them. However, there was one little cockapoo that would not come out and when you went to pick it up, it curled up and started shaking with fear. This is the picture that Paul is using to describe himself, he says that he came weak and trembling. Small, defenceless and unimpressive.
Often, I want to feel like a bold lion but feel more like that timid puppy. I worry that I am not good enough, wise enough or strategic enough. I do not have the right words to communicate, I do not know how to pray in the right way, I do not hear God’s voice as clearly as other people seem to. However, Paul’s reminder is that the work of God relies a lot less on us than we think. This does not give us an excuse to be passive - it is still our job to reach out, to share, to pray and to bless. However all the power comes from God. There are a lot of amazing things that we can do through our own strengths and abilities but anything that you want to do that will impact eternity requires power from the Holy Spirit.
Many people are saved and follow Jesus but live by their own strength. It is like trying to build a table but never plugging in your tools. The Holy Spirit wants to empower us to live for Gods glory. Whatever it is that God is calling you to, he wants to empower you with a supernatural grace that will allow you to see God do the impossible through your offering to him.
