081422     Praxis Class Meeting

1 Corinthians 2:1-12 Title: Faith in the Power

1. Word Prayer (All): "I came to you in weakness—timid and trembling(3)." God, the weakness, fear, and trembling that Paul had are also present in our lives. Forgive us who are still afraid and anxious even though we have to live strongly as children of God. Holy Spirit, forgive us the foolishness of trying to live by our own strength, even though we Christians have to live by the strength that the Holy Spirit gives us. Jesus, just as you boldly faced even the cross of death, help us to become victorious disciples no matter what trials and tribulations come. We pray in the name of Jesus. amen

 

2. Icebreaker: Electricity has power. What can a person do only by borrowing the power of electricity?

 

3. Singing(Hymn): assigned by leader

4. Reading the scripture: 1 Corinthians 2:1-12 (NIV)

1 And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.[a] 2 For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3 I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. 4 My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, 5 so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power. God’s Wisdom Revealed by the Spirit 6 We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. 7 No, we declare God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. 8 None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9 However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived”[b]—the things God has prepared for those who love him— 10 these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. 11 For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. 12 What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us.

 

5. Understanding the Text:

A Christian is a person who lives by faith by receiving the power of God and the power of the Holy Spirit. The center of this powerful Christian is “Jesus Christ and His Cross” (verse 2). In general, successful people are called talented people, talented people. But Christians with skills are different.

First, a competent Christian is someone who resembles Jesus and knows how to put himself down. Although Jesus is God, He came down to this earth in human form. He was also born in a low and lowly stable. He even laid down his life on the cross to save mankind.

The world we live in is a competitive society. The wisdom of the world encourages you to beat your opponents and climb higher as a way to survive the competition. But God's wisdom is different. It teaches you to humble yourself and let go. Living like Jesus in a competitive society where everyone wants to be successful and elevated is not easy. That is why it is a miracle for a person with high social status and wealth to give up on themselves and serve those in need around them.

The book of 1 Corinthians is a church established by Paul as the fruit of his two years of mission. However, serious problems arose among the members of the Corinthian church. In 1 Corinthians 1, Paul is referring to the problem of factions fighting with each other within the Corinthian church. If you put your assertion and stubbornness first, you are bound to fight and divide. To solve this problem, you have to let go of your arguments and stubbornness. Knowing how to put yourself down and be humble is a Christian's skill or ability.

Second, a Christian who has received the power of God is someone who knows how to crucify his problems. After Jesus died on the cross, God resurrected Jesus from the tomb on the third day. The wisdom of the cross is that if we do not receive our problems on the cross, God will resurrect us. That's why Paul said, "I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me" (Galatians 23:20).

Paul confesses in verse 3 that he was weak, afraid, and trembling when he was living with the Corinthians. Behind the strong and courageous Paul was his weakness, fear and anxiety. He said that when he established several churches in Asia Minor and encountered problems within the church, he was stressed and fell into fear and weakness when attacks and persecutions against Paul came. In fact, Paul was no different from us. Whenever he faced weaknesses and fears that all human beings face, Paul was not pressed or caught by them, but rather overcame them wisely and courageously. The secret was “the cross of Jesus Christ”. We must nail all the things that God hates to the cross. If I crucify my weakness, anxiety, trembling, fear, and stress, God provides peace and life. If you do not receive your own weakness and disease on the cross, God will bless you with strength and healing.

 
6. Questions:

6.1. What was Paul determined to know only (v. 2)?

6.2. How did Paul feel while he was among the Corinthians (verse 3)?

6.3. What should the Christian's faith be based on, not on the wisdom of men (v. 5)?

7. Application:

7.1. What did I realize in today's teaching? What words do you think are most important to you?

7.2. What is my spiritual state right now? What is my prayer topic now?

7.3. What do I have to put down like Jesus?

7.4. What do I need to crucify?

Jesus, help us to build our faith in the power of God, not in good words, beautiful words, or persuasive words. Like Paul, give me the determination to know nothing but Jesus Christ and his cross. Give me the power to lay down like Jesus, the wisdom of the world and our pride that stand in the way of our faith. Please give me the courage to crucify the wounds, weaknesses, fears, and worries that make the life of faith difficult. Crucify all these temptations and temptations in the world and let us experience the power that God gives us. Please raise me up as a Christian who obeys the Word with the power of God and overcomes the world. I pray in the name of Jesus. amen.

 

9. Praise/ Announcements/

10. End with Lord's Prayer