I welcome you as well. It's good
to see you all out this morning. You can see my text will be 1
Corinthians 2. If you want to follow along with
me, you can go ahead and be turning there while I introduce this
lesson. You can see the title are things freely given. So,
you know, Generally speaking, we like free things. You know,
everybody likes free things. I mean, especially during this
time of year, one of the big department stores like Walmart
or Penny's or somebody said we're giving away 20 free television
sets. They'll be 2,000 people lined
up outside just waiting for their free TV, hoping to be one of
them. Or you get one of those things
in the mail and you know it's something that you might want
to buy or might not, but they've given you this free gift you
get to keep whether you buy it or you don't buy it. We like
free things. Well, today we're going to talk
about some things in this lesson that God gives to the objects
of His everlasting love. He gives gifts. He gives gifts
to men. And we're also going to consider
how or upon what basis these things are given. That's what
we'll be looking at. The things God freely gives,
how he gives them freely. Okay. Look at verse one. The verse I took my title from
is first Corinthians two and verse 12. So let's look at that
first of all. Paul writes here to the Corinthians,
now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the
spirit which is of God, that we might know the things that
are freely given to us of God. So the lesson today, we're going
to consider three statements concerning three things, things
freely given, three statements. Things freely given are first
of all, things which are held, they're locked up in a mystery.
Secondly, they're things that are spiritually discerned. The natural man won't have anything
to do with these things. And thirdly, well, that's my
next point. The natural man will not have
a thing to do. He won't receive the things that
are freely given of God. Now our study is going to be
from verses 6 through 16 in 1 Corinthians 2 here, but let's go back to
1 Corinthians 2 and verse 1 to get the context of this whole
chapter here. He says in Paul writes here in
1 Corinthians 2, verse 1, he says, I and I, brethren, when
I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or wisdom,
declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not
to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ and him crucified.
Paul is saying here that he didn't come with great oratory. I mean,
in some of his letters here, I think, well, I'm sure it is,
the ones with the Corinthians, they even said his speech was
contemptible, you know, so we don't necessarily see him as
a great orator. Apollos was a great orator. Paul,
kind of an ordinary kind of guy, kind of like me, just ordinary.
He didn't come with great debate and philosophy and human reasoning
and human wisdom. He said he came rather declaring
the simple truth of the gospel. He came declaring how God is
just to justify ungodly sinners. Look on in this chapter verses
3 through 5. And he said, and I was with you
in weakness and in fear and in much trembling, and my speech
and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom,
but in demonstration of the spirit and of power that your faith
should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. In other words, he didn't come
into this church or right when he came, he didn't come trying
to convince men. that what he had to say was the
truth. He came and preached the gospel and let God call his elect
out of darkness by that message. The demonstration of the spirit
in power is man embracing the gospel, man believing the gospel.
When the spirit works, when the gospel is preached and the spirit
works and men come, that's God given faith. It's not by men's
reasoning that men will come to true faith in Christ. Now,
as I said, our emphasis today is going to be on two things.
It's going to be on the things that God has given to those sinners
that he's loved from all eternity. And second, it's going to be
on how, upon what basis, those things are given. We'll see that
every sinner chosen in Christ has already been blessed in Christ
with all spiritual blessings. Now, how are these blessings
given? They're given freely. They're given unconditionally.
They're given without a cause in those who receive them. Let's
go to our first point. Things freely given are things
which are held, they're locked up in a mystery. Look at 1 Corinthians
2 verses 6 through 7 now. Howbeit, we speak wisdom among
them that are perfect, yet not the wisdom of this world nor
of the princes of this world that come to naught or nothing,
but we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden
wisdom which God ordained before the world unto our glory. The things that God has given
to his elect people, they're in a mystery. Now, we know from
earlier studies in the scriptures that a mystery is not something
that can't be figured out. It's something that has to be
revealed. Men don't know it by nature. It's not known until
God makes it known. Consider a murder mystery, for
instance. The book is designed to hold
the reader in suspense. The writer, he's fabricated this
great thing leading up to the end of the book, which will reveal
the plot along with the murderer. It's a mystery, see? It's a mystery. A lot of times you might try
to figure out the end of that mystery, but you don't have the
writer's thoughts. You don't know how it's going to end. You
have to either go over to the end of the book and read it,
or wait till you get to the end of the book and find out. But
once that mystery is revealed, it's no longer a mystery, see?
And that's the way the things given of God are. They're a mystery
to those to whom they haven't been revealed, but once they're
revealed, they're no longer a mystery. The wisdom of God that's held
in a mystery, that wisdom that must be revealed is the mystery
of God's salvation. This mystery includes the things
that God has provided, as well as how those things are freely
given to the objects of his everlasting love. Let's look at the things
that God has provided. Look at these things as they're
summarized in Ephesians chapter one. Look at Ephesians one in
verse three. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with all spiritual
blessings in heavenly places in Christ. And you can see, see
that? That's a summary right there
of all the things that God has given, all spiritual blessing,
nothing left out. Look on it, verses four and five.
We'll see some of those things listed out here. according as
he has chosen us in him before the foundation of the world that
we should be holy and without blame before him in love having
predestinated us into the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to
himself according to the good pleasure of his will. A multitude
of sinners was chosen in Christ before the world began. See,
he chose us in him before the foundation of the world. That's
a blessing. I mean, what did we have to do
with being chosen? Not one thing. God did it of
his own prerogative. And we see that these sinners
are given an unchangeable standing of justification. That's what
holy and without blame before God means. It means justified. It means God is declaring you
righteous. They're adopted into the household
and family of God. And in time, according to Galatians
4, those who've been adopted receive the adoption. It's not
at that time that we're adopted, but we receive it. Look only
to Ephesians 1, 5 through 6. All these things are given and
done to the praise of the glory of His grace wherein He has made
us accepted in the Beloved. in whom we have redemption through
his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches
of his grace." Those chosen are right now and forever will be
accepted in the beloved. Not accepted based on who we
are or what we've done, but accepted based on what Christ the Lord
has done for us. They have redemption through
his blood. A wrathsome price has been paid for these sinners.
All that's required by God's justice has been paid in full.
And they have forgiveness of sins. Sin will never be charged
to these sinners' account. We ask for God to forgive us
our sin, but we do it on the basis of that forgiveness that's
already been given us in Christ. Every sinner in Christ has already
been given these things. These sinners are already reconciled.
They're already at peace with God through the obedience and
death of the Lord Jesus Christ. All the benefits and blessings
of salvation belong to these sinners, and they are theirs
without any cost to them. They're theirs without any cause
in them. In other words, these sinners
didn't do one thing to get these benefits. These benefits are
given, and they're given freely. There's no cause in the sinners
for them having these benefits. It's like Bill said in his message,
if you've been blessed eternally, there's only one reason for it.
God has determined to show you mercy, put you in Christ, who
met all the conditions for you to have all these benefits. Look
at another context of scripture that shows how these things God
has provided are freely given. Look at Romans 8 and verses 31
through 32. This is the only other place
in the New Testament where this word that is translated freely
given in our context is translated freely give here in this context
as well. Look at verse 31, what shall
we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be
against us? He that spared not his own son,
but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also
freely give us all things? And of course, the answer to
that question is, he will freely give all things to those for
whom the son was delivered. The things freely given, though,
are not free. They're not free. They came at
a cost. They came at the cost of the
obedience, suffering, and death of Christ. They came because
God spared not His own Son. They came because He delivered.
God the Father delivered Christ up to the cross to put away sin
and to bring in everlasting righteousness. Christ earned these things that
are given. They're bought and paid for by
Him. Now that's the reason that God can freely give them to us,
because the cost of them has already been paid by Christ.
So we get them without cost to us. Now we're talking about the
wisdom of God that's held in a mystery. We're talking about
God's salvation, salvation by grace. In other words, salvation
conditioned entirely upon Christ without any contribution whatsoever
from the sinner. It's the mystery of Christ crucified. That's what the Apostle had already
stated back in verse 1 Corinthians 2 and verse 2. He said to these
Corinthians, for I determined not to know anything among you
save Jesus Christ and him crucified. The mystery that must be revealed
is the mystery of what Christ has done to save His people from
their sins. It's the mystery of what Christ
has done to accomplish the full salvation of those He was given. It's the mystery of the satisfaction
of the law and justice that He rendered. It's the mystery of
the righteousness He wrought out in His obedience unto death,
that righteousness that makes it right for God. to show mercy
to sinners like you and me. Look back at 1 Corinthians 2,
verses 6 and 7 again. It says, howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect,
yet not the wisdom of this world nor of the princes of this world
that come to nothing, but we speak the wisdom of God in a
mystery, even the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the
world and to our glory. Now, what I want you to see in
these verses now is that the wisdom of God, in other words,
His salvation, that wisdom that's held in a mystery, it stands
in contrast to the wisdom of the world and to the princes
of the world, which wisdom comes to nothing. Now princes here,
they're just people of influence. They're people who have influence
over others. They're preachers. They're doctors of theology. They're men. They may be fathers. They're people who have influence
in this world over somebody else, maybe teachers. Those of Christ's day, the princes
of Christ's day, the people of influence of Christ's day, mainly
the scribes and Pharisees, they didn't know who Christ was. They
didn't know what he had come to accomplish for the people
he represented. Those of our day don't know that
either. None of us know that by nature. Everybody is not shown
the wisdom of God in salvation. This mystery is not revealed
to all, to many. In fact, to most professing Christians,
the wisdom of God, the wisdom of his salvation, it remains
a mystery. Look at 1 Corinthians 2, verses
8 and 9. Paul said, which none of the
princes of this world knew. He's talking about the wisdom
of God in a mystery, which none of the princes of this world
knew, for had they known it, they would not have crucified
the Lord of glory. But as it is written, I have
not seen nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of
man, the things which God has prepared for them that love him. God's salvation is not the salvation
of any of us by nature. What we all know by nature is
the salvation of works. What we know by nature is salvation
conditioned on Christ, but that's not quite enough. It's conditioned
on Christ plus something the sinner needs to do. The best
thing natural man has figured out in the matter of salvation
is that Christ died for everyone, and that if you, the sinner,
will just do your part, you'll be saved. If you don't do your
part, you'll perish. Christ's death didn't quite get
the job done. You still have a condition to
meet. You'll be saved if and only if you close the deal by
whatever. Whatever, by believing in Christ,
by walking an aisle, by reforming your life, by giving up your
drugs, by whatever. But it's not Christ alone. It's
not Christ's death alone bringing salvation under that kind of
theology. And although this is a widely
accepted belief among professing Christians in every generation,
it stands in contrast. It stands in opposition to God's
salvation, which is earned by Christ and it's freely given
to the objects of God's love. So the first thing we learn about
things freely given, they are things concerning God's salvation,
and they are things held in a mystery until God is pleased to reveal
them in the heart. All right, let's go to the second
thing. The second thing about things freely given, they're
things which are spiritually discerned. This is a mystery
to all by nature. but it's revealed to the objects
of God's everlasting love. Look at 1 Corinthians 2, verses
10 and 11. He said, but God hath revealed
them unto us by his spirit, for the spirit searches all things,
yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things
of a man, save the spirit of a man which is in him? Even so,
the things of God knoweth no man, but the spirit of God. Only the innermost being, the
spirit of a man, Bill called it the soul this morning. I think
we're talking about the same thing here. Only that part of
a man knows the things of a man. In other words, you've got things
in your mind. I've got things in my mind that
nobody else knows. I've not revealed them. You've
not revealed them to anyone else. And I'll take some things to
the grave that haven't been revealed. But my spirit knows it. My spirit
knows those things. And only the Spirit of God knows
the things of God. Only the Spirit knows those things
hidden in the mind of God. Only the Spirit knows the things
that God holds in a mystery. Look at Luke chapter 10 and verse
22. Christ writes here, all things
are delivered to me of my Father, and no man knoweth who the Son
is, but the Father. and who the father is but the
son, and he to whomsoever the son will reveal him." The father
is the only one that knows Christ. No man by nature knows Christ.
The Father alone knows what Christ has accomplished by the objects
of his everlasting love. He reveals these things to the
object of his love through the Spirit in the effectual preaching
of the gospel in every generation. They're made known to the objects
of God's love. He sits them down under the gospel.
He sends the Spirit, that's what Christ said, it's expedient for
you that I go away, but if I don't go, the Comforter won't come,
but if I do, I'll send him to you, and that's what he does.
Where the Gospel is preached, he sends the Spirit, the Spirit
gives life, he opens the eyes that had no vision before to
see things that they could not see. The Spirit receives the
things of Christ and shows them unto regenerate sinners. He makes
them willing in the day of his power to bow to the things that
Christ has done as full salvation. Look on in our context in 1 Corinthians
2 verses 12 and 13. Now we have received not the
spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God, that
we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom
teaches, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth, comparing spiritual
things with spiritual. The sinner not embracing the
gospel is still following the spirit of the world. You see
the spirit of the world there in verse 12? He's still following
that spirit. Although the natural man can
understand the things of God, he can understand them intellectually. You know the words I'm saying
here. You can understand what I'm talking about. Yet, it takes
the spiritual man, it takes a regenerate man to put any value on the things
that God has freely given. Only the spiritual man can see
these things as vital in salvation. Now, who is the spiritual man?
Well, he's the man who tries the spirits and discerns between
the spirits. In other words, he knows about
the spirit of the world and he knows about the spirit of God.
He knows that the spirit of the world teaches about a salvation
that's conditioned on Christ plus. And he knows the spirit
of God teaches a salvation that's conditioned on Christ and Christ
alone. Look at first John four verses
one through three. John writes here, Beloved, believe
not every spirit, but try the spirits, whether they are of
God, because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
Now, just stop right there for a second. If many false prophets
had gone out, this is John writing about 60 or 70 AD. It's been 2,000 years since then
almost, so if many had already gone out, just imagine how many
more of those false prophets are in the world now. Look at
verse 2. Hereby I know you the Spirit of God. Every spirit that
confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God,
and every spirit that confesses not that Jesus Christ has come
in the flesh is not of God. This is that spirit of Antichrist
whereof ye have heard that it should come, and even now already
is it in the world. The word confession here means
agreeing with God, taking sides with God, agreeing with what
he says. The spiritual man agrees with God about Christ's coming.
The natural man does too. He agrees with God about Christ's
coming. I mean, all men who profess Christ believe that Christ was
a person. They believe he was the son of
God. They believe that he walked this earth in perfect obedience,
that he went to the cross and laid down a perfect life. and
he died for sinners and he rose again from the dead, they believed
the things of Christ's first coming. The thing that the spiritual
man believes about Christ that the natural man doesn't believe,
the spiritual man also believes what Christ accomplished at his
death for those that he represented. They believe he accomplished
something for them. They believe that he accomplished salvation
in full. The natural man, as we'll see in the next point,
won't have that. Look at 1 John 4 and verse 4. Now, let's don't look at that
right now. Just hold off for just a second.
I want to say a little bit more about these verses back in 1 John 4,
verses 1 through 3, where he said, every man that confesses
that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh, that means more than
just confessing that Christ has come now. That means, you see,
if you don't confess what Christ accomplished in His death, you're
not confessing Christ as He's revealed in His Word. You're
not agreeing with God according to the testimony, the record
that He's given of His Son. Now let's go to 1 John 4, verses
4 through 6. He said, you're of God, little
children, and have overcome them, because greater is he that is
in you than he that is in the world. They are of the world. He's speaking still of those
false prophets, see? They are of the world, therefore
speak they of the world, and the world hears them. They speak
the wisdom of the world, the wisdom of salvation not quite
complete by the death of Christ, one that needs something to complete
it. They speak. of the world, and
the world hears them. We are of God. He that knoweth
God heareth us. He that is not of God heareth
not us. Hereby know we the spirit of
truth and the spirit of error. The spiritual man is the one
who's led by the Spirit of God. Look at Romans 8 and verse 14. For as many as are led by the
Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. In the context of Romans
8, he's talking about those who walk after in mind the things
of the flesh and those who walk after in mind the things of the
Spirit. You see, Those that are led by
the Spirit of God understand that Christ has accomplished
all of salvation on behalf of those he lived and died for.
They don't see any condition left on the sinner to be met
in order for them to stand justified in God's sight. They see their
justification and all the benefits and blessings of salvation coming
to them based on nothing but what Christ has done for them. without the Spirit's revelation
of God's salvation in the heart. God's salvation remains a mystery
that the natural man cannot figure out. It's speaking of things
that he can put no value on whatsoever. So the second thing about things
freely given, there are things that are spiritually discerned.
There are things that we don't know by nature. There are things
that we don't know until the spirit of God sits us down under
the gospel and teaches them to us. And that brings us to the
last point. Things freely given are things
that the natural man will not receive. Look at 1 Corinthians
2.14. He said, but the natural man
receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness
unto him. Neither can he know them, because
they are spiritually discerned. As I've already said and we say
many times, the natural man is who we are as we're born into
this world. It's every sinner before the
Spirit of God visits them in regeneration. This natural man
will not receive the things of the Spirit of God. He will not
embrace the things that are freely given to sinners by God. In other
words, the natural man will not embrace God's salvation. That
salvation that's provided by the doing and dying of Christ
alone. He will not have a salvation that he does not have anything
to do with obtaining or maintaining. He won't have such a salvation.
Jim said this last week, the natural man hates a salvation
that is freely given. He hates it. By nature, we literally
hate this salvation. Now, we don't know we're hating
it. We don't know it until God shows us. You're not going to
tell the natural man that he doesn't need to do something
for God to save him. Surely I got to do something.
No, the salvation of God is free. It's based on Christ's work alone. This is one thing in all the
things to be considered that the natural man will never submit
to. It is the thing the natural man
will never bow to. It's the thing that he will never
embrace. The natural man thinks that a salvation which is freely
given, one that he doesn't have to do anything whatsoever to
get, one that was worked out by Christ and is freely given
to the objects of God's love, he thinks that that salvation
is foolishness. Look at 1 Corinthians. For the preaching of the cross
is to them that perish foolishness, but unto us which are saved it
is the power of God. Now the preaching of the cross
is the same thing Paul is writing about here in 1 Corinthians 2.
It's the preaching of Christ crucified. It's the preaching
of a salvation earned by Christ, earned by his doing and dying
alone and given freely to those he died for. Salvation earned
entirely by Christ and freely given is what Satan blinds sinners'
minds to. Look at 2 Corinthians 4 verses
3 and 4. Paul writes here, but if our
gospel be hid, it's hid to them that are lost, in whom the God
of this world has blinded the minds of them which believe not,
lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the
image of God, should shine unto them. If our gospel is hid, it's
hid to them that are lost, and Satan is blinding the minds of
those sinners, those sinners who reject the gospel. That's
how Satan keeps sinners in bondage. That's how he keeps sinners trying
to work out their own acceptance with God, their own salvation.
That's how he keeps sinners going about to establish a righteousness
of their own. Well, in light of all these things,
in light of these three points, how do you know, how can I know
Who's the natural man and who's the spiritual man? Because we've
looked at two different people here, natural and spiritual.
Who's walking in the light and who is yet walking in darkness?
Who is perishing and who is being saved? Look at our last two verses
in the context here and we'll see it. 1 Corinthians 2, 15 and
16. But he that is spiritual, The natural man receiveth not
the things of the Spirit of God, but he that is spiritual judges
all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. For who hath
the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have
the mind of Christ. We've already seen that the spiritual
man believes the gospel. He tries, he tests the spirits. He embraces that which honors
God as a just God and Savior. And here in this verse, we see
that the spiritual man judges. In other words, he discerns.
The spiritual man examines the truth. in order to come to the
right conclusion. That's what that word, where
it says, the spiritual man, he that is spiritual judgeth. He's
talking about like a judge in a courtroom. He examines the
evidence in order to come to the right verdict. See, he doesn't
come to a verdict without the evidence. This spiritual man
takes the things of the gospel, the things that he's hearing
newly, and he begins to search them out. He goes back to God's
Word. He says, wait a minute here.
That's not what I've always believed. I need to check into this. I
need to look at this. Well, that's what he's talking
about. The spiritual judges all things, and he judges them in
the light of the information he's given. He has the mind of
Christ, it says. What was Christ's first consideration?
in everything, every time. What was it? It was the glory
of God first and foremost. That's why the spiritual man
examines everything, everything in salvation in the light of
how God is just to justify ungodly sinners on the basis of Christ's
finished work alone. How can you or how can I know
where I stand on this matter? We need to be able to answer
this question. Well, I can know by my response to the gospel.
I can know by the Savior I'm trusting in. I can know by my
need for that salvation that Christ has worked out by his
life and death for every sinner he was given. I can know by my
attitude and value for the things that are freely given. Look at
1 Corinthians 4 and verse 7. Now, let me give you the context
here. Paul is exhorting brethren here
in order that no one of you be puffed up one against another.
They were claiming some to be of Apollos and some of Paul,
some to have greater gifts and some to have lesser. He said,
that's not right. Look at verse seven. For who
maketh thee to differ from another? And what hast thou that thou
didst not receive? Now, if thou didst receive it,
Why dost thou glory as if thou hast not received it? Now, we
could apply this verse to temporal and spiritual. Temporal things,
I mean, what do you have in this life? You have a good life. In
America, we have a good life. We have good families. We have
good jobs. We have a good place to live. We have all kind of good things.
Well, what did you do to get it? What did you do to deserve
not being born in a third world country? Nothing. Not one thing. You have it because of God's
mercy towards you. And that's true in a spiritual
sense as well. If any sinner has anything in
the way of eternal blessing from God, it's for one reason, because
God determined before the world began to show you mercy, and
He put you in Christ, and He sent Christ to work out all the
details. Anything we have is ours because Christ earned it
in full. Anything we have in a spiritual way, we have it because
God has given it to us freely. We've done nothing to deserve
it. We're not doing anything. We didn't do anything to get
it, and we're not doing anything right now to keep it. It's ours
for one reason, because Christ has earned it, and His mercy
and grace is keeping us in it. Whatever any of us have in the
way of God's eternal blessing, we have it because of God's mercy
and grace in Christ alone. We have it because it's a part
of those things that have been freely given to us of God.