Christ, The Wisdom and the Power of God

Q: What does the Bible say about the power of God?

The Bible teaches that Christ is the power of God, especially in terms of salvation. The Bible emphasizes that the power of God is manifest through Christ, particularly in the act of salvation. In 1 Corinthians 1:18, it states that the preaching of the cross is the power of God for those who are being saved. This power is not like the might used in creation; instead, it is the power to redeem and transform sinners through the work of Christ. The gospel itself is described as the power of God unto salvation; this means that it is through the message of Christ that lives are changed and faith is awakened.

Q: How do we know Christ is the wisdom of God?

Christ embodies the wisdom of God as revealed in Scripture, demonstrating divine truth and insight. Christ is revealed as the wisdom of God throughout the Scriptures, particularly in Proverbs 8, where wisdom is personified. This chapter illustrates how wisdom was present at creation and how it is intertwined with God's purposes. In the New Testament, this is affirmed by the recognition that Christ's message and life are the ultimate revelation of God's wisdom. He is the fulfillment of all the wisdom and knowledge of God, and through Him, believers gain understanding of divine truth, righteousness, and the ways of salvation.

Q: Why is preaching Christ central to the Christian faith?

Preaching Christ focuses attention on His work and ensures that faith stands in the power of God rather than human wisdom. Preaching Christ is central because it directs the attention of believers to the core of the Gospel: Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Paul emphasized that he determined to know nothing but Christ because the message of the cross is what ultimately saves. This focus prevents the gospel from being diluted by human wisdom or persuasive speech, which can detract from the power of God's message. By keeping Christ at the center, believers are reminded that their faith should rest in the power of God, enabling true conversion and spiritual growth.

Q: How does Christ enable God to save sinners?

Christ satisfies God's justice and provides the atonement necessary for sinners to be redeemed. Christ enables God to save sinners by fulfilling the requirements of divine justice through His atoning sacrifice. In Hebrews 9:12-14, it is shown that Christ, as the high priest, entered the holy place not with the blood of animals but with His own blood, securing eternal redemption. His death satisfies the law and honors the justice of God, making it possible for God to be both just and the justifier of those who have faith in Christ. This reveals the profound nature of salvation as one that requires both grace and justice to be met through Christ's sacrifice.

Turn with me in your Bibles to
1 Corinthians, Chapter 2. 1 Corinthians, Chapter 2. Last Wednesday night, I preached
a message from 1 Corinthians, the second chapter, on the power
of God. Christ, the power of God. Begin reading with me at verse
1. Let's read what we looked at
last Wednesday night, beginning with verse 1. And our brethren,
when I came to you, this is Paul speaking to the church at Corinth,
where he ministered a year and a half. You know, the Lord told
him to stay in that city, in Corinth, because he said, I have
much people there. And he said, when I came to you,
when God sent me to you, I didn't come with excellency of speech,
fine oratory, entertainment, or of human wisdom, declaring
unto you the gospel, the testimony of God. The testimony of God
is what he testifies concerning his son, the record God has given
concerning his son. Now when I came to you preaching
the gospel of God, the gospel of Christ, I didn't decorate
it up. He said another time, lest the
cross of Christ be made of non-effect. Don't cover it up with words,
eloquent sayings and things that you can't hear the message for
the messenger. You can't hear the message for
all that's around it. That's what's wrong with when
you have special music, like that was an excellent thing,
where the message is primary in music or preaching or whatever. But a lot of times they have
so much noise and so much fine music and all these different
instruments, you don't hear the words, crescendos and cantatas
and rising and falling and all this, what that beautiful singing.
It's wonderful to have beautiful singing, but I want to hear the
message. I want to hear the song. I want to hear Christ glorified.
Isn't that what you aim at, Mike? It's the message. It's not to
have people brag about Mike and how well he can play and how
well he can sing. It's Christ and how well he can
sing. That's the key in preaching.
Don't try to impress anybody. Try to instruct them. Don't try
to be clever. Preach Christ. You know, that's
what he's saying. You know what he's saying, Ronnie? I'm not
trying to show off. I'm not trying to attract attention
to myself. I'm not trying to leave you impressed. I'm trying to leave you convicted
and converted and at the feet of Christ. And you're not going
to do that if the preacher or whomever calls attention to himself. I feel very deeply about this.
I feel very strongly about it, and I try to tell preachers this.
If you get a new sport coat, don't wear it on a Sunday morning,
you know. Don't attract attention. That's just fact to yourself. Let people hear Christ, and we'll
read on. I'll be here till next Wednesday
night. Verse 2, For I determined, this
was my determination, I determined this with myself, with God, and
before you not to know anything among you save Jesus Christ and
Him crucified." It's all in Christ. That's what my determination
that when I, like Spurgeon, the people went to London to hear
Spurgeon and they couldn't get in. The church was packed, just
packed, on Sunday morning. So they went to another place
and heard, there were a lot of great orators and pulpiteers
in the day of Spurgeon, lots of them. He had a lot of contemporaries. Preaching was an art back then. And they went to hear another
man, and when they left the service, walking up the aisle, the husband
turned to his wife and said, Ma, what a sermon. What a sermon. What a great sermon. That night,
he went to hear the Prince of Preachers. Charles Spurgeon. And he told this himself. The
man said, when my wife and I left that auditorium, after hearing
Mr. Spurgeon, With tears in my eyes,
I said, Honey, what a Savior. What a great Savior. That tells
it, doesn't it? That's the story. What a Savior. Jesus Christ. And verse 3, I
was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling,
acknowledging my own imperfections and infirmities and total dependence
upon God. And my speech and my preaching
was not with persuasible, enticing. Isn't that the word that conveys
to you what's going on today in religion? Persuasion. Persuasion,
enticing, trying to get somebody to do what you want them to do.
I really don't know what I want you to do except look to Christ. But as far as any outward action,
I couldn't prescribe any. Because the outward action would
depend a whole lot on the personality of the person. So he said, I wasn't up here
trying to entice you and lure you and persuade you with man's
wisdom. But I preached Christ in demonstration
of the Spirit, in the power of the Holy Spirit. Our gospel came
to you not in word only, or even enticing words, or persuasible
words, or eloquent words. Our gospel came to you in power,
in the Holy Ghost and in much assurance. You know, when John
pointed to Christ and said, Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away
the sin of the world, that's not very eloquent. But I'll tell you, two fellows
left him and followed Christ. That's all he said, behold the
Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world. It was
so convincing and so powerful that they left John, whom they
had been following, and went with Christ. Now verse 5, that your faith
should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. Now let me camp here just a moment. that your faith should not stand
in the wisdom of men, in the logic, eloquence of a man, but
in the power of God. And when we speak here of faith
standing in the power of God, we're not speaking about the
sovereignty of God, His ability to do all things, or the might
of God. Listen, young people, listen
to me now. That your faith You should stand in the power of
God. Your confidence in the power
of God. And I don't mean by that the
might of God or the strength of God in creating a world. Or
even of dividing a sea. I'm awed when I stand and think
about the dividing of the sea. That's the power of God. To split
the sea and to dry up the mud and to let Israel walk across
on dry land. Now that's power. or to spread
a mountain, or to create a world. That's power. But the power of
God here to save is Christ. Now, stay with me. Christ is
the power of God to save. Look at 1 Corinthians 1, right
back here, at verse 18. For the preaching of the cross
is to them that perish, or are perishing, foolishness, but unto
us that are saved, it's the power of God, the cross. But it's not
the cross itself, but the person on the cross that's the power
of God. You see that? Christ is the power
of God. Look down at verse Verse 23 says, We preach Christ
crucified unto the Jews a stumbling block, unto the Greeks foolishness,
but unto them which are called both Jews and Greeks. Christ
the power of God, He's the power of God. Almighty God can't save sinners
like He creates worlds or divides seas by an act of power and strength. He can only save sinners by his law being honored and
his justice satisfied, and a suitable atonement being offered. It takes
death to give life. Let me show you that in Hebrews
chapter 8. Hebrews chapter 8. Now listen to this. Christ is
the power of God. The power of God is Christ. He's
able to save all who come to him by Christ. No other way.
Christ is that power that enables God to be just and justified.
Christ is that power that enables the impossible. Doris asked her
Sunday school class one Sunday, their first and second and third
graders. Is that right? Second and third
graders. Second, third, and fourth graders. And she was teaching
them one Sunday, and she said to the class, she said, uh, what
is a miracle? What is a miracle? And they began to think a little
bit, and one of the little boys raised his hand, she called on
him, and he said, a miracle is the impossible becoming possible. Now, that's a winged-in definition. I wish I'd have thought of it.
I'm telling you, this is nine years old, the impossible becoming
possible. Well, I'll tell you, to make
me holy is impossible. Impossible. To make you righteous before
God is impossible. To put away sin as if it never
happened, in the sight of a God who knows all things is impossible. That takes power. That's a miracle
that takes a miracle. Power. Christ makes that possible. God is able to do that. He's
able to do the impossible in Christ. Now look at Hebrews 8. Let me show you that. Hebrews
8, verse 1. Hebrews 8.1, of the things which we have spoken,
this is the psalm. We have such a high priest who
is set on the right hand of the throne of the majesty in the
heavens, a minister of the sanctuary of the true tabernacle which
the Lord pitched to not man. For every high priest is ordained
to offer gifts and sacrifices whereof it is of necessity that
this man have somewhat to offer." If Jesus Christ is going to bring
us to God, if he's going to satisfy God's justice, if he's going
to fulfill the sentence of death, If he's going to justify God
in us, he's going to have to have a suitable offering, an
atonement. All right? Look at Hebrews 9. It tells you where he got it,
from where it came. Hebrews 9, verse 11. But Christ
being come, a high priest of good things to come, by a greater
and more perfect tabernacle, Not made with hands, that is
to say, not of this building, but by, and neither by the blood
of goats and calves, but by his own blood, he entered in once
into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us." Christ
enabled mercy and truth to meet together. That's the power of
God. That's the power of God. God
can't decree that to be done. It has to be accomplished in
Him. Christ Jesus enabled mercy and
truth, righteousness and peace to kiss each other. On my head. He's able. See, let
me show you something here. The Gospels of power of God unto
salvation. Look at Romans 1, just a moment.
Romans chapter 1. Verse 16 and 17. Listen to this. Paul said, For I am not ashamed
of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God. The gospel is the power of God. Unto salvation to every one that
believeth, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein, in that gospel,
is the righteousness of God revealed. from one degree of faith to another.
That is, it is written that just shall live by faith. So God doesn't
save men by an act of might, an act of strength, an act of
sovereignty. Although this is an act of sovereignty
in decreeing to save, sending his Son, he saves men by a total
fulfillment of every requirement which he has made against them
and of them. And that's in Christ. That makes
Christ the power of God. I want to show you two of the
other scriptures quickly. Turn to Romans 4. Romans 4. Christ is the power of God. You
see, this is the basis of Abraham's faith. In Romans 4, verse 21. Being fully persuaded that what
he had promised, he was able to perform. What has God promised? Justification. Righteousness. Sanctification and Redemption.
How is he able to perform that in Christ? That's how he's able. Look at Hebrews 7.25. Christ
is the power of God. Hebrews 7.25. Turn over here just a moment. Hebrews 7.25. Hebrews 7.25. Wherefore,
wherefore, he is able, powerful, Also to save to the uttermost
them that come to God by him. How? Seeing he ever liveth to
make intercession for them. That's how he's able. He's the
power of God. Look with me at Jude 4. Jude
24. Jude 24. Now unto him that is able. That's power, to keep you from
falling and to present you faultless, you and me, the impossible possible,
to present you faultless before the presence of His glory. We're
exceeding joy to the only wise God, our Savior, the glory and
majesty, dominion and power both now and forever. God's ability
to save, God's power to save is Christ. One more scripture. Turn to Philippians chapter 3. Philippians chapter 3. Philippians 3 verse 20. Philippians
3, 20. For our conversation is in heaven,
from which also we look for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,
who shall change our vile bodies. This is the impossible becoming
possible by his power. That vile body might be fashioned
like unto his glorious body, according to the working the
power whereby He is able to subdue all things unto Himself. Isn't
that beautiful? Christ is the power of God. Now
then, that's foolishness to the world. And I'll say to you young
people who are in college and in high school, the boys and
girls in junior high possibly grade school, do not have too
much conflict with modern thought and modern religion. But the
cross and the blood and the sacrifice and the atonement of our Lord
Jesus is foolishness to them that perish. That's what it says. You look over here at 1 Corinthians
a moment. Verse 18, the preaching of the
cross is to them that are perishing, sheer nonsense, foolishness. And they'll tell you that. It's
foolishness to them. Nonsense. But unto us who are
saved, Christ is the power of God. I read on. It is written,
God said, I'm going to destroy the wisdom of the wise. I'm going
to bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the
wise? Where is the scribe? Where is
the disputer of this world? Had not God made foolish the
wisdom of this world? For after that, in the wisdom
of God, the world, by their natural wisdom, didn't know God. They
worshipped snakes, animals, they didn't know God. All the so-called
wise men of Babylon and Egypt and Rome and Greece, the philosophers,
the Plato's, the Aristotle's, all the rest of them, they didn't
know God. Well, their wisdom didn't reveal God to them. They knew not God. It pleased
God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. For
the Jews require sign and the Greeks seek after wisdom, but
we preach Christ crucified unto the Jews a stumbling block unto
the Greeks foolishness, but unto them that are called, both Jews
and Greeks, Christ is the power of God. Now watch it, and the
wisdom of God. Now look over here at chapter
2, verse 5, my text. That your faith should not stand
in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. How be it?
Now listen to me just a moment. We do speak wisdom. What I'm
preaching is wisdom. We do preach wisdom. We speak
wisdom. Look at it carefully now, verse
6. How be it? We speak wisdom. among them that
are mature. Perfect is mature. People who
are mature in spiritual matters recognize what I'm preaching
tonight is wisdom. This is wisdom. Wisdom. Now listen, it's not the wisdom
of this world, nor the princes of this world
that come to know it. Now listen to me a moment, three
things I want you to hear. The wisdom of this world comes
to naught. It comes to naught because it's
forever changing. Isn't this right? Do you have any books in your
courses that date back 500 years or 400 years? I'm glad my doctor
doesn't study those books 500 years ago. Aren't you? They're out of date. I'm glad
my optician doesn't study books that are 200 years old. I'm glad that the people who
build ships and all are not building them like they did 200 years
ago. Everything's changing. The wisdom
of man comes to naught because he keeps outdating what he knows
now. Isn't that true? It comes to naught. Something is learned that makes
that out of date. Secondly, it comes to naught
because it brings you things you can't keep. It brings you things you can't
keep. You people here who are in your middle eighties, you remember everything you've
learned? What happened to it? It's gone, isn't it? be a pretty good math student,
but I couldn't work a problem in algebra now if he was going
to shoot me in the morning at sunrise. I studied geometry,
algebra, trigonometry. I don't want to think about those
things. I've forgotten. That's what we forget. John,
you forget, don't you? I'll tell you there's one thing
I don't forget, and that's who my Redeemer is and how He redeemed
me. But this other stuff, I learned
things I've learned all my life. And I'm forgetting them now.
And after a while, I just probably won't know any of these things.
I'll have to sit down here and let somebody else up here. The
other day I was preaching here, I think it was, and forgot totally
where I was in the book, not where I was in my message. So it comes to now because one,
it's forever changing. Two, we're forever forgetting. And three, Three, one bump on the head would
take it all away. I had a friend who was in an
automobile accident, and I've known him since he was
a little boy. And I went to the hospital to see him, and he looked
at me with a very blank expression. And after a while, the corners
of his mouth turned up, and his mom says, I think he knows you.
Now you think about this, man, 40 years old, I think he knows
you. Isn't that something? I think he knows. He's back where
he was when he was six months old. One bump on the head. The
wisdom of this world comes to naught. Am I telling the truth? Charles Spurgeon told this story. Charles Spurgeon was a brilliant,
brilliant young man. Pastored that big church when
he was 18 years old, 19. But he said he had a teacher.
When he was young, his parents recognized him to be an unusual
child. They gave him over to a headmaster,
to a tutor. He said all of the secular knowledge
he had he learned from this man. Didn't give his name. But he
said this man was his tutor, his headmaster, his teacher. He said, I had the unhappy experience
of standing in front of that man's house from whom I learned
everything I knew as a teenager and as a child. I learned everything
I knew from that man. I stood in his yard and watched
the police come and handcuff him and put him in a padded wagon
and take him away insane. Insane. Now let me tell you, that's the
wisdom of this world. This scripture says here, the
wisdom I'm preaching is not the wisdom of this world that comes
to naught. Verse 7, but I speak the wisdom
of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom which God ordained
before the world under our glory. What is this mystery? Wisdom
that's in a mystery. Turn back one page in your Bible
to Romans 16, verse 25. Romans 16, 25. Here it is. Here's the mystery revealed. This is the wisdom of God. Now,
to him that is of the power to establish you according to my
gospel, Romans 16, 25, and the preaching of Jesus Christ according
to the revelation of the mystery. that's kept secret since the
world began. There it is. You know it. The mystery. Verse 7 again, let's look at
it. We speak the wisdom of God in a mystery. It's the hidden
wisdom. In Him are hid all the riches
of God's truth and love and grace, which God ordained before the
world unto our glory. And now unto him, Romans 16,
25, have the power, ability to establish you immovable according to my gospel and the
preaching of Jesus Christ according to the revelation of the mystery
which was kept secret since the world began. I thought, I looked
at this message and Christ the power of God, Christ the wisdom
of God, How can I define the wisdom of God? And I thought, well, the wisdom
and power of God in His covenant mercies, eternal covenant of
grace, the Lamb of God chosen in Christ before the foundation
of the world, oh, the wisdom of God. And then I thought the
wisdom of creation, power, the wisdom of incarnation, God became
a man. How? the wisdom and power of
his redemptive work, how that Christ, like I said a few nights
ago, how could he be all man and yet God? How could he restrain
or refrain or be limited in feeding himself, in being tested and
tempted? That's beyond me. The wisdom
of the law honored, justice satisfied, the wisdom and the power of God
in regeneration, the wisdom of God in glorification, the wisdom
and power of God in the new heavens and new earth. When he said,
I'll make all things new, there's so much to the wisdom of God. But one word defines the wisdom
of God, Christ. Christ is the wisdom of God.
Christ is. And I want you, as I close, to
turn to Proverbs 8. Proverbs 8. And I'll tell you
this, this is it right here, Proverbs chapter 8. Let's turn
over there and look at it together. Proverbs chapter 8. Christ is
the wisdom of God, and which the princes and leaders
of this world didn't know or they wouldn't have crucified
him. The Herod Pontius Pilate The very leaders, the scholars,
the religious leaders, the princes of this world, all agreed to
kill Jesus Christ. Every one of them. Didn't any
of them know Him? None of them. Now look at Proverbs
8. Doth not wisdom cry, understanding
put forth her voice? She standeth in the top of the
high places, by the way in the places of the past. She crieth
at the gates, at the entry of the city, at the coming in at
the doors. Unto you, O men, I call. My voice
is to the sons of man. O ye simple, understand wisdom. And you fools, be ye of an understanding
heart. Here I will speak of excellent
things, and the opening of my lips shall be right things. For
my mouth shall speak truth, and wickedness is an abomination
to my lips. All the words of my mouth are
in righteousness. There is nothing forward or perverse
in them. They are all plain to him that
understandeth, and right to them that find knowledge. Receive
my instruction, and not silver, and knowledge rather than choice
gold. For wisdom is better than rubies, and all the things that
may be desired are not to be compared to it. Our wisdom dwell
with prudence. I find out knowledge of witty
inventions. The fear of the Lord is to hate
evil. Pride and arrogance in the evil way and the forward
mouth do I hate. Counsel is mine and sound wisdom. I am understanding. I have power. By me kings reign, princes decree
justice. By me princes rule and nobles,
even all the judges in the earth. I love them that love me. Those
that seek me early will find me. Riches and honor are with
me, yea, durable riches and righteousness. My fruit is better than gold,
yea, than fine gold, my revenue than choice silver. I lead in
the way of righteousness in the midst of the paths of judgment
that I may cause those that love me to inherit substance and I
will fill their treasures. The Lord begat me in the beginning
of his way, possessed me, begat me, before his works of old.
I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning wherever the
earth was. When there were no depths, I was brought forth.
When there were no fountains abounding with water, before
the mountains were settled, before the hills was I brought forth.
While as yet he had not made the earth, nor the fields, nor
the highest part of the dust of the world, when he prepared
the heavens, I was there. when he set a compass upon the
face of the depth, when he established the clouds above, when he strengthened
the fountains of the deep, when he gave to the sea his decree
that the waters should not pass his commandment, when he appointed
the foundations of the earth, then I was by him, as one brought
up with him, and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always
before him." Who is this? Christ. Christ, read on, rejoicing
in the habitable part of his earth, and my delights were with
the sons of men. Now therefore, hearken unto me,
O ye children. Blessed are they that keep my
ways. Here's wisdom. Hear instruction
and be wise and don't refuse it. Blessed is the man that heareth
me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the post of my doors.
Whoso findeth me findeth life, and shall obtain favor of the
Lord. And he that sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul. And all they that hate me love
death." Christ, the wisdom of God, the
power of God.

Christ, The Wisdom and the Power of God

What does the Bible say about the power of God?

How do we know Christ is the wisdom of God?

Why is preaching Christ central to the Christian faith?

How does Christ enable God to save sinners?

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Christ, The Wisdom and the Power of God

What does the Bible say about the power of God?

How do we know Christ is the wisdom of God?

Why is preaching Christ central to the Christian faith?

How does Christ enable God to save sinners?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

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