YouTube: https://youtu.be/4CDkvvE-tHY

Download Audio: https://od.lk/f/MV8yOTU5NzQ0NTlf
Download Video: https://od.lk/f/MV8yOTU5NzQ5NTZf
Download PDF: https://od.lk/f/MV8yOTU5NzQ4NDFf

Priscilla: I Corinthians 2:9-16
Misconceptions about Preaching the Gospel (2)

9 according as it has been written, “Eye has not seen, and ear has not heard,” nor has it risen up into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for those that love Him. Isa. 64:4

10 But God revealed them to us by His Spirit, for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God.

11 For who among men knows the things of a man, except the spirit of a man within him? So also no one has known the things of God except the Spirit of God.

12 But we have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit from God, so that we might know the things that are freely given to us by God.

13 Which things we also speak, not in words taught in human wisdom, but in Words taught of the Holy Spirit, comparing spiritual things with spiritual things.

14 But a natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he is not able to know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

15 But the spiritual one discerns all things, but he is discerned by no one.

16 For “who has known the mind of the Lord?” “Who will teach Him?” But we have the mind of Christ. Isa. 40:13

[Literal Translation of the Holy Bible]

Dear God, my Beloved Father, today I offer You my reflections on the Word of God in I Corinthians 2:9-16, which continues to address the misconception of preaching the Gospel.

Verse 9: In the past, no one had ever seen, heard of, or thought about the Gospel of Salvation. Since before the creation of the world, it has been God’s predestined plan to bestow the grace of salvation upon those who love Him. These are people who have faith in God’s forgiveness and cleansing of sins.

Verse 10: The Spirit of God is the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit dwells within God’s true children. He is the Comforter, the Intercessor, and the One who reveals the truth of the Gospel and all other things in God’s Word to His people.

Verse 11: The Holy Spirit is God. Therefore, the Holy Spirit knows the deep things of God. He is the Wise One who bestows wisdom on those who have a heart to seek the truth of God.

Verse 12: Those who do not believe in God receive the spirit of the world, that is, Satan, who is the god of this world. Satan can cause evil spirits to enter them, making them break God’s commandments, rebel against Him, and oppose Him. However, the true people of God receive the Holy Spirit of God, who dwells within them. Therefore, the people of God know how to honor, worship, and serve God in spirit and in truth.

Verse 13: When someone has a sincere heart to preach the Gospel of God truthfully, the Holy Spirit will guide, grant power, and wisdom to their spirits, and they will proclaim according to the spirit, by the power of God. When someone has a heart to seek God, God the Spirit will help them understand and believe in the Gospel.

Verses 14 and 15: The natural people live according to their own reasoning and sinful desires of the flesh. They only consider everything with their physical eyes because they lack the wisdom to understand the spiritual things of God. Therefore, they think that the Gospel is foolishness. The spiritual people, on the other hand, live according to the spirit that comes from God, with a pure and holy life that follows the standards of God’s law. They have wisdom; they understand the things that are spiritual, and they have the Holy Spirit to guide them in discerning and judging all things according to the Bible.

Verse 16: No one can know the mind of God to be able to teach Him. But the true people of God receive the mind of Christ, having the same thoughts, understanding, and desires as Him. They are given the Holy Spirit’s enlightenment in their spirits to understand the mysteries and sacredness of God.

Father, please grant me to always be in the wisdom of God, to understand all the truth of God’s Word, and to be led by the Holy Spirit. Amen!

In the grace of Jesus Christ, my Lord.

Priscilla Christian Huynh
04/21/2023

Note:

[1] (a) Please note that when the term “spirit” is used without a definite article in Greek to refer to God and Christ, it refers to their mindset and should not be capitalized. (b) If it is used to refer to humans, it refers to the human mindset aligning with God’s. (c) When used with a definite article, it refers to the spiritual essence of either God or humans.