Welcome to Refinery Life Australia.
The Lord’s Prayer.
Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”
This week we continue our study focusing on Paul’s letter to the Corinthians.
Today we are talking about Man’s Eternity, God’s Opportunity.
Text
1 Corinthians 1:25 NKJV
25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
Scripture Reading
1 Corinthians 1:25-31 NKJV
25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
Glory Only in the Lord
26 For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.
27 But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty;
28 and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are,
29 that no flesh should glory in His presence.
30 But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption—
31 that, as it is written, “He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.”
Prayer
In Jesus name we pray.
Amen.
Introduction
The subject of this message is a common cliche used in many facets of life.
Two areas of human ability are compared to the abilities of God.
One is the area of mental abilities, the other is strength.
Of course strength is found in numerous aspects of life.
- First, let’s analyse the passage itself.
The wisdom of the world is not of significance to God.
Salvation comes in connection with the cross.
In verse 18 Paul gave his own testimony.
In the language of the New Testament, salvation is a thing of the past (Romans 8:24) and the present (Ephesians 2:5), a progression (1 Corinthians 15:2), and a future prospect (Romans 13:11).
A historical example refers to Israel.
1 Corinthians 1:19, For it is written:
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
And bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.”
Isaiah 29:14 says, Therefore, behold, I will again do a marvelous work
Among this people,
A marvelous work and a wonder;
For the wisdom of their wise men shall perish,
And the understanding of their prudent men shall be hidden.”
First Corinthians 1 says that Ariel, “The city where David dwelt”, referred to in Isaiah 29:1, despised the Word of God and relied on the wisdom of politics.
The people also made an alliance with Egypt that led to their overthrow.
A major principle is then established.
The world and God at at issue.
Each counts the other as foolish, but God turns their wisdom to foolishness, and His foolishness according to their terminology into wisdom.
Then, after the wisdom of the world has been reduced to ignorance, God, by the foolishness of preaching, saves all who believe.
A person is saved through faith, which the world deems foolish.
The power is seen in the cross.
2. Second, let’s look at some examples from history.
Many biblical references illustrate the text.
The book of Judges records a series of cycles in which humans find themselves at their extremity.
They call on God, and God delivers.
Jonah is a classic example of human extremity.
Paul suffered opposition and found that his extremity was God’s opportunity.
Other examples are the woman with the issue of blood and the man at the pool of Bethesda.
Historical examples support the text.
Society lost in the wickedness of sin is a classic example of being at the extremity.
When a person calls on God, the Lord God answers and shows that human extremity is God’s opportunity.
From time to time people find themselves with disastrous financial situations, health problems, or emotional struggles, and God proves sufficient to deliver.
3. Third, some facts about the extremities of humanity.
It is in Christ that we live, move, and have our being.
Apart from the Lord Jesus, we can do nothing.
We are helpless.
Jesus said in John 15:5, “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.”
Each Christian needs to let go of self and let God have His way.
When a person comes to their extremity, that is God’s opportunity.
God wants each of His children to surrender totally and unconditionally to Him.
Then God makes those who do so His instruments.
Conclusion.
If you have never made a total commitment to the Lord Jesus, now is the time.
I plead with you to do so right now.
Until next time
Stay in the Blessings
I really want to encourage you to be diligent with your Bible study time, because God has so much more for us than we can get from just going to church once or twice a week and hearing someone else talk about the Word.
When you spend time with God, your life will change in amazing ways, because God is a Redeemer.
Theres nothing thats too hard for Him, and He can make you whole, spirit, soul and body!
You’re important to God, and you’re important to us at www.refinerylife.org
When it comes to prayer, we believe that God wants to meet your needs and reveal His promises to you.
So whatever you’re concerned about and need prayer for we want to be here for you! Or even if you just want to say Hi, you can contact us
2022 IS A YEAR OF REPENTANCE AND BLESSINGS
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