Good morning children of God!
1 love 1 Corinthians, chapter 2 – It talks about the contrast between the spirit of the world and THE SPIRIT OF GOD.
I adore the fact that even though Paul was a Hebrew scholar, he tells us in Philippians 3 that the things that were gain to him, he counted as loss for the excellency of knowing Christ Jesus. He actually goes on to say that all of his pedigree and religious training are now like rubbish. Why did Paul say this? Because they were worth nothing in comparison to the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus his Lord.
“Well, couldn’t he just have kept all of his religious training and high status in the Jewish community and STILL go after Christ Jesus?” Apparently not! The Scripture declares that our God is a jealous God (Exodus 20:5). He doesn’t want us half in and half out. As a matter of fact, Revelation 3:15-16 says,
- “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were cold or not. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of My mouth.
Oh boy – There’s one thing that the Lord doesn’t like and that’s having false gods. You may say, “Well, I don’t serve idols.” You would be amazed at what God considers idolatry today.
The definition of idolotry is the excessive devotion to, or reverence for some person or thing. An idol is anything that replaces the One True God. I exhort today to make sure that nothing and nobody replaces the true worship that belongs to God alone. See, idolotry is a matter of the heart – Pride, self-centeredness, greed, gluttony, and the love of possessions are considered idolotry. Is it any wonder God hates it? These take the place that God wants in your heart.
1 Corinthains 2:5 exhorts us in this,
- …that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men, but in the power and ability of God.
See, in Isaiah 64:4, God tells us that,
- Since the beginning of the world men have not heard nor perceived by the ear, not has the eye seen…
It is such a glorious fact that because the Holy Spirit lives in us, God has been able to reveal to us the things that He has prepared for those who love Him, who hold Him in affectionate reverence, who obey Him, and who gratefully recognize the benefits that He has bestowed (see 1 Corinthians 2:9, AMPC).
See, THE SPIRIT OF GOD searches all the depths of God (v. 10). Paul explains it this way: Who is acquainted with a man except the spirit of that man that is in Him? (Verse 11). The Holy Spirit lives in us, so God can reveal things to us by His Spirit. If we’re acquainted with the Holy Spirit, we are acquainted with God. We can actually KNOW what has been graciously given to us by God.
In our highly intellectual world today, we must be very careful that we can discern the difference the spirit of the world and THE SPIRIT OF GOD. “Why?”, you may ask? Because our natural, physical man cannot receive the things of THE SPIRIT OF GOD (v. 14). They are stupidity to him. We cannot understand the things of God with our minds – We must understand the things of God with our born-again, recreated spirits.
As new creations in Christ Jesus, we are to examine, scrutinize, investigate and study the Word of God. 2 Timothy 2:15 says,
- Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the world of truth.
According to John 14:27 we read,
- However, the helper, THE HOLY SPIRIT, Whom the Father will send in My Name, WILL TEACH YOU EVERYTHYING. He will remind you of everything that I have ever told you.
The last verse in 1 Corinthians 2 states,
- For, “who has known the mind (or the SPIRIT) of the LORD that he may instruct Him?” But we have have the mind of Christ, the anointed.
Praise God! When this reality dawns on your spirit, there won’t be any problem too big or impossible for you to solve. Just consult with THE SPIRIT OF GOD Who lives in you, and you will find all the answers you could every possibly need. Hallelujah!
Always seeking Him,
Lisa Gordon
Jesus City Church
Glastonbury, CT