What a beautiful day we have
out there today. Winter's coming. I said to say
that just for fun. I'm sorry. But what a glorious day. What a great
God we have. Turn, if you would, today to
First Corinthians. First Corinthians. The name of the message today
is Christ, the Power and Wisdom of God. Christ, the Power and
Wisdom of God. Our text will be found in verse
24 of 1 Corinthians chapter 1, where the Word of God proclaims
that Christ is both the Power and wisdom of God, but unto them
which are called both Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power of
God, and the wisdom of God." Now let's read the context, though,
of this wonderful verse. We'll start at verse 18 when
we'll read to the end of the chapter, which will be verse
31. For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish
foolishness." Now to the world, the preaching of the cross is
absolute foolishness. But unto us which are saved,
it is the power of God. What a contrast right there before
us, beloved. For it is written, I will destroy
the wisdom of the wise and will bring to nothing the understanding
of the prudent. Where is the wise? Where are all these wise men
from ages gone? They perished in their sins. Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this
world? God not made foolish the wisdom
of this world? For after that in the wisdom
of God, the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the
foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. So that which
man calls utter foolishness, God uses to save his people. Oh my. For the Jews require a sign,
and the Greeks seek after wisdom. But we preach Christ crucified. There it is. We preach Christ
crucified. Unto the Jews a stumbling block,
and unto the Greeks foolishness. But unto them which are called,
and that calling there is an effectual calling, an invincible
calling by the Holy Spirit of God, unto them which are called,
both Jews and Greeks, that's Jews and Gentiles, Christ the
power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness
of God is wiser than men. And the weakness of God is stronger
than men. For you see, O Colin, brethren, how not many wise after
the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called, but God
hath chosen the foolish things, and that just means common, God
hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the
wise. And God hath chosen the weak
things of the world to confound things which are mighty. And base things of the world,
and things which are despised, hath God chosen. Yea, in the
things which are not, to bring to naught things that are, that
no flesh should glory in his presence. But of him are ye in
Christ Jesus, who of God has made unto us wisdom, righteousness,
sanctification, and redemption, that according as it is written,
he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. And that's what
we do. We glory in the Lord for the wonderful things that he's
done for us. So let's look at verse 24 again here of this chapter,
where it's proclaimed that Christ is both the power and wisdom
of God. But unto them which are called, so God's people, the
elect, those who are affectionately called by the Holy Spirit of
God, those who hear the voice of the shepherd through the preaching
of the word, those who are born again by the Holy Spirit of God
and granted faith and repentance to believe upon Christ, both
Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
That's what he is to us. He is the power of God, and He
is the wisdom of God. And this text brings forth that
Christ is both. He is both power and the wisdom
of God. Turn, if you would, to Isaiah
chapter 9. This ties right in with Isaiah chapter 9, verses
6 and 7, in the prophecy of the Messiah, when He is proclaimed
as the mighty God. The mighty God has all power,
and the mighty God has all wisdom. Isaiah 9, verses 6 and 7, for
unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government
shall be upon his shoulder, so he has all authority, and his
name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, look at this, the
mighty God. The mighty God. the everlasting
father, the prince of peace. Of the increase of his government
and peace, there shall be no end. No one will thwart his command. No one will thwart his government.
Upon the throne of David and upon his kingdom, to order it
and to establish it with judgment and justice from henceforth even
forever, the zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this. So
notice it says, the mighty God. Christ is the mighty God. He
has all power, beloved, and he has all wisdom. He's the mighty
God. Let's go back to our text here
again. Paul here, by inspiration of
the Holy Spirit of God, he's bringing forth one answer to
both objections by the Jews and the Greeks. Now we know from
our reading there that the Jews required a sign. What comes with
a sign? What comes with a sign is power.
Howard comes with a sign. And then the Greeks sought after
wisdom. So with one answer, with one person, Peter, I mean, not
Peter, Paul, is bringing forth the one answer to both objections
by the Jews and the Greeks. If you met a Jew who believed
not on Christ and the Apostles' Day, he said, I cannot believe
because I want a sign. And if you met a Greek, he said,
I will not believe because I want a philosophic system, one that's
full of wisdom. Now, says the apostle, both these
objections are unsound and unreasonable because they both bring, what
do both those objections bring forth? Both those objections
bring forth a heart of unbelief. That's really the root problem.
And that's still the root problem today, a heart of unbelief. Man
has a heart of unbelief. Man is at enmity with God in
our natural state. We have a heart of unbelief.
That's how we're born, dead in trespasses and sins. So the Jews
require a sign. And a sign would come with power,
and yet here's the Lord, right? Doing all these miracles. Doing
all these miracles, manifesting his deity, manifesting the power
that he has. And they do not believe. And
they do not believe. His power was sufficiently, abundantly
manifested, wasn't it? And then the Greeks, they seek
after wisdom, and yet here is the one who is the wisdom of
God incarnate. And they reject him. And they
reject him. Christ is the wisdom of God. He is the one who is of profound
wisdom. One who is so full of wisdom
that even the man with the most gigantic intellect would be drowned
in studying about him. And the wondrous gospel is no
shallow gospel. The gospel of God's free and
sovereign grace in Christ is no shallow gospel. It's a deep
ocean. It's an ocean of mercy, and it's
an ocean of grace. It's vast and deep and it passes
understanding. How could God have a mercy on
me, the believer says. So the objection of both the
Jew and the Greek is absolutely unfounded. Because Christ alone
is the power and wisdom of God. And God's gospel is the one which
manifests the infinite wisdom of God. And we who believe we have the
honor, the privilege, I don't have to say, I have to read my
Bible, I get to read my Bible. Is it so with you? We get to
read it, don't we? We get to open it up and study
the Word of God. It's a privilege, it's an honor. And the Holy Spirit reveals to
us power of who Christ is, the wisdom
of God, the power of God. And it's Christ and Christ alone.
So let us consider Christ personally as the power of God. He's the God-man. Let's first
of all consider the power of God. Christ is the power of God. He's the power of God from all
eternity, beloved. Turn, if you would, to John chapter
1. John chapter 1. And this is brought forth so
clearly because it is He who created all things. Look at this marvelous statement
in John chapter 1. The Word of God. And we know the Word became flesh.
And dwelt among us. Look at this in John chapter
1. In the beginning was the Word. And the Word was with God. And
the Word was God. That's a very plain statement,
isn't it? Very clear. The same was in the
beginning with God. Look at this. All things were
made by Him. Beloved, He has all power. Without him was not anything
made that was made in him was life and the life was the light
of man And we know later on in the chapter. It says the word
became flesh and what dwelt among us Christ the power of God and
the wisdom of God It's wonderful Absolutely wonderful note there
in verse 3 all things were made by him the word He made the world
and all things in it therefore this manifests his almighty power
It manifests his almighty power. God alone has all power. And
was it not manifested when he created the heavens and the earth?
Did God not manifest his power when he created the heavens and
the earth? And beloved, we create things out of something. He created
it out of nothing. He spoke it and it was so. That's power. That's power like
none of us ever have or will ever have. He's God. And He's God alone. So I ask
you to consider then, is not Christ the power of God? And the wisdom of God? Let us
consider Christ as both God and man, that He, again, is the power
of God. Turn, if you would, to Matthew
chapter 8. When He came to earth, He gave abundant proofs of His
power. He worked many miracles. He raised
the dead. He stilled the seas. He walked
upon water. He fed 5,000 with just a few loaves and some
fishes. Look at this in Matthew 8. Was
His power not manifested? Matthew 8 verses 23 to 27. And
when He was entered into a ship, his
disciples followed him. And behold, there arose a great
tempest in the sea, as much that the ship was covered with waves,
but he was asleep. And his disciples came to him
and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us or we perish. That's
a great statement right there, isn't it? That's a cry of a sinner,
isn't it? I love that. Lord, save us or
we perish. And he saith unto them, why are
ye fearful? O ye of little faith. Look at
this. Then he arose and rebuked the
winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. He just, he
said, be still. It was like glass. You ever see
a lake in the morning when there's like no wind, and it's like glass. So the commentators say it was
this huge tempest, this huge tempest, this huge storm. And
then he speaks the words and it's like glass. Oh, that's power,
beloved. He's the power of God. And he
manifested this power while he was here on this earth. He manifested
his deity. And look at this. And would not
this be us? But the man marveled, saying,
what manner of man is this? Wouldn't we not say that? Oh
my goodness, who is this? Who is this? That even the winds
and the sea obey him. And we say stop to the wind and
don't do nothing. We have no power. We have no
power at all. But he just speaks the words,
and it's calm. Oh, my beloved. Turn, if you
would, to John chapter 11. John chapter 11. I remember a
preacher saying one time, he put this to test. He went to
a grave site, and he sat in front of this old grave from the 1800s,
and he said, If you come out of there, you can marry my daughter,
right? And nothing happened, right? Of course, nothing happened.
But look at this here. It's manifested the power of
God here in John chapter 11. John chapter 11, look at this.
In verses 38 to 44. The power of God is manifested. The deity of Christ is manifested
right before them. John 11, verses 38 to 44. Jesus therefore again groaning
in himself, cometh again to the Cometh to the grave. It was a
cave, and a stone lay upon it." And this is, of course, Lazarus'
tune. Jesus said, "'Take ye away the stone, Martha, the sister
of him that was dead. Saith unto him, Lord, by this
time he stinketh, for he hath been dead four days.'" He is
graveyard dead. He's dead. There's no life. There's
no life in him. Jesus said, "'Said I not unto
thee? that if thou wouldest believe,
thou shouldest see the glory of God. Now remember, this is
the same one who spoke to the seas, and it became calm. Then they took away the stone
from the place where the dead was laid, and Jesus lifted up
his eyes and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me,
and I know that thou hearest me always. Because of the people
which stand by, I said it, that they may believe that thou hast
sent me. And when he had thus spoken, he cried with a loud
voice, Lazarus, come forth. Now, remember, Lazarus is dead.
He's been in the grave for four days. And just with with a command,
the Lord says again, the same one who stilled the seas says,
Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth
bound hand and foot with grave clothes, and his face was bound
about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose
him and let him go. And I remember a preacher saying
one time the reason he didn't say come forth because every
grave would have split open. Right. But note, he said, Lazarus, and
note this, too. Now, I want us to think about
this, too. This is such a picture, too, of how we are before the
Lord saves us, right? We're dead. We're graveyard dead
in trespasses and sins. And what does the Lord do through
the preaching of the gospel? He calls our name, doesn't he?
He says, Newell, come forth. He says, Nancy, come forth. And
we come forth. We were born again by the Holy
Spirit of God, by the power of God. We arise from the dead.
And I'm talking spiritually, of course. One day we will go
forth to be with the Lord, too, though, in glory. But he calls
us from our spiritual deadness to life. What a picture we have
here of effectual calling. And did Lazarus say, you know
what? Now I'm going to sit here. He's dead. He can't. He doesn't
have the ability to come out on his own, does he? No. He doesn't have the ability to
resist. That calls a fact short, beloved. And it comes with power. Because Christ is the power of
God. And the wisdom of God. And when
he says, Lazarus, come forth, Lazarus is coming out of that
grave, beloved. And when he called us from our spiritual deadness,
we came flying out of that grave, didn't we? And we ran right to
Christ. We ran right to Christ. Right there. Oh my. And he that was dead came forth
bound hand and foot with grave clothes, and his face was bound
with a napkin. Jesus said, then loose him and
let him go. And I like what some, Norm, Brother Norm brings this
out. The grave clothes on him. We have grave clothes and after
the Lord saves us, we can't do this and we can't do that, right?
And we're all, right? And some of us who get in, come
out of religion, we got these religious grave clothes all over
us. And the preacher preaches the gospel, and these clothes
just fall off. They fall off. Oh, we're free
in Christ. What freedom the believer has
in Christ Jesus our Lord. And did not Christ here display
that he has all power? Did he not display right here
before us that he is the power of God and the wisdom of God? It's right on display here. I
ask you to consider then, is Christ not the power of God and
the wisdom of God? And then let us consider Christ
is both God and man, that He is the power of God when He died
upon Calvary's tree. When He died upon Calvary's tree.
Turn if you would to Luke chapter 23. What power was on display
at Calvary's cross? Oh, beloved, what power was on
display when the sinless, spotless Lamb of God, the Son of God,
the Lord Jesus Christ, bore the sins of His people and satisfied
the demands of the law and justice in their place. Therefore, He
must have been God, as only the sinless, spotless Lamb, only
the just one could die for the unjust. Only God incarnate in
the flesh could pay for the sins of all the elect of all the ages. And look at here in Luke 23 verses
44 to 47. And it was about the night six
hour and there was darkness over all the earth until the ninth
hour. There was a sudden eclipse when
there should never have been an eclipse. Remember, the other the other
part of the world's already in darkness, right? Because that's
normal nighttime for them. But all of a sudden, when it
should have been light, it's dark. And the sun was darkened. Look
at this. And the veil of the temple was
rent in the midst. And when Jesus had cried with
a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit. And having said thus, he gave
up the ghost. Now when the centurion saw what
was done, and the centurion's a man of power to himself, but
not just a man who's in leadership role. Now when the centurion
saw what was done, he glorified God, saying, certainly this was
a righteous man. In his weakness, the sun was
darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in two. Beloved, it was rent in two from
top to bottom, not from bottom to top, from top to bottom. That
veil was rent, which meant accesses into the Holy of Holies was now
through Christ and Christ alone. Was not his power on display? Turn, if you would, over to Matthew
27. We'll look again at another portion of this. was not His
power on display, was not His power as deity, as He is the Christ,
the power and wisdom of God was not demonstrated. And it was
demonstrated when He rose from the grave, too, by His almighty
power. And He takes the saints also
to glory, all by His almighty power. Look at this in Matthew 27, verse
51 to 54. And behold, the veil of the temple
was rent in twain from top to the bottom. And the earth did
quake and the rocks rent, and the graves were opened, and many
bodies of the saints which slept arose and came out of their graves
after his resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared
unto many. Now, when the centurion and they
that were with him watching Jesus saw the earthquake and those
things that were done, they feared greatly saying, truly, this was
the son of God. What power, beloved. What power
is on display even at the death of our savior. And remember this. He willingly gave up his life.
He willingly gave up the ghost. He cried, it is finished. And
he gave up the ghost. I ask you to consider, then,
is not Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God? Turn,
if you would, to Revelation, chapter one. Beloved, Christ
is even right now the power of God, for he sitteth at the right
hand of God. He is the power of God. He has
the reins of providence in His hands. And He is the sovereign
head of the church. The Lord of heaven and earth.
Lord of heaven, earth, death and hell. And in Revelation chapter
1, He has absolute power. And it is Christ Himself who
speaks this. Revelation chapter 1 verse 8. I am the Alpha and
the Omega. Now that is the beginning of
the Greek alphabet and the end of the Greek alphabet. And He
is everything in between too, beloved. The beginning and the
ending, saith the Lord, which is and which was and which is
to come. The Almighty. He has all power. See, He had
all power before He came to this earth. He had all power when
He was on this earth. And beloved, He has all power
right now in glory. He is the Almighty. And then
look at down verse 17 and 18. And when I saw Him, I fell at
His feet as dead. And He laid His right hand upon
me, saying unto me, and here's those words again I spoke of
a couple of weeks ago, fear not. Oh, those two words. Fear not. I am the first and the last.
I am he that liveth and was dead. And behold, I'm alive forevermore.
Amen. And have the keys of hell and
of death. He has all power, all power. Think upon this, beloved, and
let it sink deep into your soul, deep into the depths of your
soul. The forgiveness of our sins is
all based upon the one who is here spoken of, the Lord Jesus
Christ, who is the power of God and who has all power, all power. Not one of the elect of God could
ever pay for one of our sins. one of our sins, yet he who is
the wisdom and the power of God has paid all that God has demanded
for every one of your sins as a blood-bought believer, every
one of my sins as a blood-bought believer. Every one of them. Everything that God demanded
for our sins is paid in full. What power! What wisdom God displayed
in redeeming His people from our sins. What wisdom, what power
was on display when the Lord Jesus Christ, by His work, by
His life, and by His death, the One who is the power and the
wisdom of God, redeemed us and saved us from our sins. And we know for a fact that God
is absolutely satisfied with the sacrifice of Christ, because
Christ rose from the dead for our justification, beloved. Now let us consider how Christ
is the wisdom of God. Let's read in our text again.
but unto them which are called both Jews and Greeks, Christ
the power of God and the wisdom of God. 1 Corinthians 1.24, but
unto them which are called both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power
of God and the wisdom of God. God displayed his wisdom, beloved,
when he planned the way of salvation. And Christ, who is the wisdom
of God, is the only way of salvation. There is no other way but through
Christ who is the power and the wisdom of God. John the Baptist
proclaimed this wonderful statement. Behold, the Lamb of God. Behold, the Lamb of God. Behold Him dying on Calvary's
cross. Turn, if you would, to Revelation
13.8. Revelation chapter 13, 8. We see here that the Scriptures
proclaim that Christ is the Lamb. John proclaimed, behold the Lamb
of God. And John the Baptist proclaimed
that. And John in the Revelation, he writes this. And proclaims
that Christ is the Lamb slain from when? The foundation of
the world, beloved. Look at this, Revelation 13,
8. And what wisdom is on display in God planning salvation. before
the foundation of the world to save his people from their sins. upon the earth shall worship
him whose names are not written in the book of life of the lamp
slain from the foundation of the world. I want a key on these
words here. The lamb slain from the foundation of the world. What wisdom went into this planning
of salvation of God's elect in and through Christ and Christ
alone? Beloved, our Lord knows the end
from the beginning. So that the things which are
to happen in the universe in the most distant future are to
God as facts already accomplished. Now think of that. He knows the
end from the beginning. So things that are in the future.
He sees them as facts already accomplished. What comfort this can bring the
believer. What comfort the sheep of God
can receive in this wonderful truth. The one who knows the
end from the beginning. The one whose intelligence is
infinite. The one whose wisdom knows no
bounds. Is the one who planned, purposed
and executed the salvation of his people in Christ. eternity. And beloved of God, God's purposes
cannot be thwarted. They cannot be thwarted. They
cannot be defeated. That which he has purposed will
come to pass. And what security the believer
has in Christ, eh? Because he said, I'll not lose
one of them. Oh, my, oh, my. Now, redemption is no afterthought.
The after man fell in the garden. It's no afterthought, beloved. It's no afterthought in the purpose
of God, because our text here in Revelation 13, eight says
that Christ is the lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
from the foundation of the world. Again, what wisdom is on display
here? What wisdom? That he who is called the wisdom
of God is the lamb slain in the purpose of God from eternity. And note here in Revelation the
title given to the Savior. He's called the Lamb. What did
John say again? Behold the Lamb of God. He's called the Lamb here. And
what an appropriate title, since a lamb is looked upon as an emblem
of innocence, gentleness, submission, all qualities in which the blessed
Redeemer was preeminent and fairer than all the children of men.
And note, consider the slaughter of the lamb. He's the lamb slain. He's the lamb slain. The slaughtered
lamb was a prominent element in the Jewish sacrifices, and
one that pictured in type the Lamb of God, the Lamb of God,
whose obedience and death in the place of His people at Calvary's
cross secured the salvation of them. How? By the shedding of
His precious blood. Let us never forget what Paul
penned. Christ, our Passover, is sacrificed for us. Christ
is the Lamb slain. He's God's Passover Lamb. for
his people. And when God sees the blood,
what does he do? I'll pass over you. No wrath. No judgment. Oh my. Christ was slain in the purpose
of God and set forth as the only Redeemer of the elect from eternity.
And it is God himself, the Word, who became flesh and dwelt among
us and who proclaimed who John proclaimed to be the Lamb of
God. Note in that text in Revelation 13, note the date of this wondrous
transaction. Christ is the Lamb slain, what?
From the foundation of the world. That's before any of us was born. That's before there was anything.
Before there was angels. Before there was any worlds.
Christ is a lamb slain from the foundation of the world. So I
ask you to consider the wisdom of God on display in the Lord
Jesus Christ, who has called both the power and wisdom of
God, the wisdom of God that's on display in the planning of
salvation from eternity. Now, let us consider that God
displayed his wisdom when he built the heavens and the earth,
when he just spoke it into existence. He just spoke it into existence.
What wisdom was on display? All the things that we see and
that that we don't see the word of God spoken to existence. We know the word of became flesh
and dwelt among us, and so truly Christ is the wisdom of God.
Here's a wonderful quote on the wisdom of God in planning salvation
and how this planet was formed for this special purpose. I really
like this little quote. Our planet was formed for the
special purpose of becoming the theater of God's redemptive love
to man. Small and bulk is our planet
is compared with that of other orbs that roll in splendor under
the eye of God. It is a grand moral distinction. Its dust formed, its fruit fed,
the body of the Son of God. Here he lived, labored, suffered,
and was buried, and here his grand work of redemption was
carried out." My, what wisdom is on display. The great things
that he did, creating the angels, the stars, the worlds around
us, and the wondrous universe itself are all proofs of his
His infinite wisdom in all proofs of His power. He made the world
and all things in it. And He is the one who holds all
the molecules in place. And He keeps everything together. Turn if you would to Colossians
chapter 1. Colossians chapter 1. Look around at the wonders of
this world. The Grand Canyon, Niagara Falls,
look at the Amazon rainforest. The beauty of the mountain ranges
all around the world. Look at the vast oceans teeming
with various forms of life. The Great Lakes right here around
us. The largest freshwater deposit
in the world. Look at the delicate flower in
your garden. See the intricacy of its design.
All around us are countless proofs of the wisdom of God. Tom told
me a long time ago about looking at a, I mentioned this a couple
weeks ago, looking at a beehive. You can see the intelligent design
right within the hive. Is not the wisdom of God on display
right there too? It's amazing. Look at this in
Colossians chapter one. verses 16 and 17, for by Him,
that's Christ, were all things created that are in heaven and
that are in earth, visible and invisible, even the things we
don't see. He keeps them all, and they were
created by Him. Whether they be thrones or dominions
or principalities or powers, all things were created by Him
and for Him. And look at this, and He is before all things,
so He is all the preeminence, and by Him all things consist. The only reason you breathe today,
and I breathe, is because God's willed it. And the day that He
wills for us to breathe our last breath, we're not breathing another
breath. Not another one. My goodness. Now let us consider that when
the Word became a man, he gave proofs of his wisdom. Turn, if
you would, to Luke, chapter 2. When the Word became flesh, he
gave proofs of his wisdom. He gave proofs that he is the
wisdom of God. Look at this in Luke, chapter
2. In his childhood, beloved, he astonished the doctors by
asking questions. Luke, chapter 2. Verses 40 to
47. He gave proofs of his wisdom. And the child grew and waxed
strong in spirit, filled with wisdom, and the grace of God
was upon him. Now his parents went to Jerusalem
every year at the feast of the Passover. And when he was twelve
years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast.
And when they had fulfilled the days as they returned, the child
Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem. And Joseph and his mother knew
not of it. They took off home and they didn't
even know they left him behind. This is all part of the plan
and purpose of God, beloved. It's not by chance. We don't
believe in chance or luck or anything like that. It's not
lucky that he didn't get taken away. No, no. This is all planned
by the purpose. This is God incarnated in the
flesh. And he's only 12 here, but look at this. But they, supposing
him to have been in the company, went a day's journey, and they
sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. So they went
a whole day. And then they, where is he? Where is he? And when
they found him not, they turned back to Jerusalem, seeking him.
And it came to pass that after three days they found him. Look
at, where is he? Where is he? He's in the temple, sitting in
the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them
questions. And remember, he's only 12. And
all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. He's manifesting, even at a young
age, that he is the wisdom of God. These teachers were astonished
at his understanding. And note he's in the temple.
Oh my. Now when he was an adult, he
confounded the Pharisees and Sadducees and the Herodians.
Look at John chapter 7, verses 45 and 46. John chapter 7. I'm going to read a little further
up. We'll read at verse 35. Then said the Jews among themselves,
whither will he go? What shall we not find him? Will
he go unto the dispersed among the Gentiles and teach the Gentiles?
Verse 36. What manner of saying is this
that he said, ye shall seek me and ye shall not find me? And
where I am thither ye cannot come. In the last day, that great
day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, if any man
thirsts, let him come unto me and drink. He that believeth
on me, as the scripture has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers
of living waters. But this spake he of the Spirit,
which they that believe on him should receive, for the Holy
Ghost was not yet given, because that Jesus was not yet glorified. Many of the people, therefore,
when they heard this saying, said of a truth, This is the
prophet, this is the Messiah. Others said, This is the Christ,
But some said, Shall Christ come out of the Galilee? Hath not
the Scripture said that Christ cometh out of the seed of David,
and out of the town of Bethlehem, where David was? So there was
a division among the people because of him, and some of them would
have taken him, but no man laid hands on him." Look at this. Then came the officers to the
priests and Pharisees and said unto them, Why have you not bought
him? So the chief priests and the
Pharisees said, why didn't you bring him with? Why didn't you
bring him with you? Look at this. Then came the officers to the
chief priests and the Pharisees. And I can just see this answer. The officer answered, never a
man speak like this. I never heard a man speak like
this. Never. So he was manifesting his wisdom
that he was the wisdom of God right before them. Now let's
consider that Christ displays his wisdom in bringing many sons
to glory. He's our advocate before the
throne of God. He reigns. The government is in his hands.
We have abundant proofs that He is the wisdom of God. Turn,
if you would, to 1 John, chapter 2. And we're close. I'll just
say a little bit more after this, and then we're close. 1 John,
chapter 2. He displays His wisdom in bringing
many sons to glory, and He is our advocate right now upon the
throne. He rules and reigns. 1 John,
chapter 2, verses 1 and 2. My little children, these things
write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, and we do,
don't we? But look at this wonderful statement.
We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ, the righteous. That's my advocate. Is he yours?
My advocate is Christ, the power and wisdom of God. Is he yours? He's my propitiation. Look what
it says next, and he is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours
only, but also for the sins of the whole world, for the sins
of all the elect of all the ages. He's the propitiation. He's appeased
God's wrath. Is it so for you? I pray that if it isn't, that
God would make it so. That he grant you faith to believe
on the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the power and wisdom of God. And we are bought to glory. We
who believe are bought to glory by the power of God and God alone.
We are redeemed by the precious blood of Christ and His righteousness
is imputed to us. And now He reigns in glory above,
beloved. He reigns in glory above. And
let us never forget that He who controls and watches over all
things is He who keeps us. No matter what comes our way,
He's the one who keeps us. And He will bring us home to
glory. He will. Do not lose one of us. Not lose
one of His sheep. And even those sheep out there
who are lost, we don't know who they are. He will bring them
to Himself. And He will bring them to glory.
It's wonderful. It's absolutely wonderful. But
unto them which are called, Both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power
and wisdom of God. Truly Paul brings forth that
the Lord Jesus Christ is the power and wisdom of God. Salvation
is of the Lord from beginning to end. This shows again the
wisdom of God. And our salvation is in Christ
and Christ alone. The salvation begins with Christ
in eternity, begins with the word being the lamb slain from
the foundation of the world, and it ends with the blood-bought
saints of God praising him in heaven for eternity, saying worthy
is the lamb, the lamb, the lamb. Remember John, behold the lamb
of God, look to him and live. He's the Lamb slain from the
foundation of the world, and God's people will sing in glory,
worthy is the Lamb. The Lamb. And we're saying that
for eternity. What wisdom is on display? What
power is required for this to be so? For us to be, the unjust
to be made holy. May the Lord Jesus Christ comfort
His blood-bought people with this wonderful message of grace.
Heavenly Father, again we thank Thee for the opportunity to be
able to gather together. Oh Lord, we who are your people
are a needy people. And I pray that the message would
strengthen us and give us, help us to lean more and more upon
thee, oh Lord. You alone are our hope. You alone
are the lamb slain from the foundation of the world. You alone are our
salvation and you alone we have had revealed to us are the power
and the wisdom of God. We praise Thee and we thank Thee
for Your mercy to us and bestowing Your grace upon us. In Jesus'
name, amen.