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1 CORINTHIANS CHAPTERS 2 & 3 KJV WEB See previous page 1Cor 2,1-5 (56h) Paradox >> Opposites >> He must increase, but I must decrease – Paul stripped away all the glamour of his speech and spoke in simple terms so as not to obscure the gospel. His demeanor was not a man of power and prestige and great persuasion, but one of weakness and fear and much trembling. He did this to prove that his message originated from God and not from his flesh. However, preachers today use much pageantry in their speech, glamorizing the gospel as though it proved that God was using them. In contrast, Paul wanted to dissociate himself from the glorious message he brought and be content as a mere vehicle upon which God would transport the gospel throughout the world. The power that God wanted to demonstrate among the people was in Paul's boldness to take the gospel in places that put him at risk of injury and death, and through that boldness proved his words originated from heaven. This manner of delivering the gospel had the effect of focusing people’s attention on the message of Christ, and directing people's attention from Paul, resulting in reaching a higher percentage of people in the known world than anyone before or after him. The fact that there are not statues of him erected on every street corner is a tribute to Paul’s dedication to remain below the radar. Paul was born with zeal in his blood, so when God combined His power with the Paul’s character, He got an evangelist who left the world in a different state than he found it. This was an act of God, and Paul played a part in it, being willing to become the person of God’s vision. Knowing the power at Paul’s disposal, he knew that people would be tempted to glorify him instead of Christ, so he was careful not to draw attention to himself but always exalted Christ. He did everything in his power to become transparent in order that the glory of Christ might manifest through him, as John the Baptist said, “I must decrease, but He must increase,” and as Paul said, “So that your faith should not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.” (66i) Authority >> Jesus’ authority >> Jesus is the power of God >> Demonstration of His Spirit – Demonstration of the Spirit does not necessarily pertain to signs, wonders and miracles, though it may play a part in it; the demonstration of the Spirit was the manner in which Paul preached the gospel. There is a saying, ‘It is not what you say; it is how you say it.’ Paul came to people mostly who viewed themselves as poor in terms of how society viewed them. The rich view themselves with great pompous, and since that view is taken, the poor got the opposing view that they were useful as slaves to work in the rich man's sweatshops. Paul, in contrast, came and said to them, ‘I probably have less money than you, yet I don’t feel that way about myself, and here’s why....' Paul was a man without money, honor and authority, except for what God gave him, which was all the wealth, honor and authority of Christ. He came demonstrating the gospel in weakness and fear and much trembling, saying, ‘This is the gospel outwardly, but inwardly is a God who loves us that transcends anything the world can offer, all the wealth and riches of Christ, in addition to the hope of eternal life. (85g) Thy kingdom come >> Words that are spoken in faith >> Testify of God’s works – Paul wasn’t trying to impress anybody with his knowledge; had he come to the Corinthians like so many of their philosophers, the poor would have assumed the gospel was not for them and closed their ears to the message. Instead, he came with a simple gospel to the poor on their level according to the wisdom of God, who were the very people that God had in mind for salvation and become part of His heavenly kingdom, and he preached the message of Christ crucified, raised from the dead, those believing in Him obtaining eternal life. Had he come to them with superiority of speech, people would have thought that only those of high intellect were welcome to the gospel or understand its message. (96h) Thy kingdom come >> Attitude >> Having an attitude of humility (115e) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Working the grace of God >> Through your ministry >> By the word of God (129b) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Bearing the fruit of evangelism >> Spiritual fruit (129k) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Unity >> Being in one accord >> Single minded >> Determination – Paul determined to know nothing but Jesus Christ and Him crucified. He determined not to get involved in conversations rambling about peripheral issues unrelated to the gospel, but came as a preacher of righteousness, unswayed from his purpose. He wanted people to know that nothing else mattered to him; he had no temporal interests or hobbies. When people saw Paul, all they could see was the gospel of Jesus Christ, because there was noting else about him. The point that Paul wanted to convey was that this should be the level of commitment that others should have too. Although this may never happen, at least Paul set the standard of faith, commitment, loyalty and conscience. He was a single lump of dough, no added ingredients, no special sauce or seasoning, just Paul and the gospel of Christ. (147i) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Works of the Church bear witness to Jesus >> Evangelism >> Solemnly testify about Jesus (148d) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Works of the Church bear witness to Jesus >> Evangelism >> Natural advantage in the flesh regarding evangelism – Paul was a highly talented person, but he was also gifted, and Paul chose to emphasize his gifts over his talents. His natural born talents are what allowed him to speak in different languages and to understand the word of God better than the greatest theologians of our time. He was a Pharisee of Pharisees. He had gone to school for years, learning the Law of Moses inside-out, fully committed to God’s word as a zealot of zealots. These were his talents, and he used them to persecute the Church before he met Christ. Once he met Jesus, he received spiritual-born gifts that God used in him to turn the world upside down for Christ. Paul was God’s right-hand man, who went from persecutor of the saints to leader of God’s Church in the blink of an eye. (227i) Kingdom of God >> God’s kingdom is a living organism >> God working in you >> Dependence on Jesus >> Depending on Jesus to impart His gifts into us >> He gives us what we give to the world 1Cor 2-1 (166e) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Wisdom of the world >> Nature Of Man’s Wisdom >> Man’s wisdom is fixed on gaining personal advantage KJV WEB / Navigation Bar 1Cor 2,2-8 (89h) Thy kingdom come >> Fear of God is the beginning of wisdom >> Wisdom of the Spirit 1Cor 2-2 (37h) Judgment >> Redemption of man >> His blood delivered us from destruction (216c) Sovereignty >> God overrides the will of man >> God’s will over man >> Compelled by the Spirit >> God takes advantage of your love for Him >> He forces you by your desire for His calling – Paul said in 1Cor 9-16, “Woe is me if I do not preach the gospel.” That is what a drug addict would say, ‘Woe is me if I do not pump heroin into my veins.’ When Paul came to Corinth with the gospel, he put his life on the line and placed himself at their mercy. Had they been unresponsive to the gospel, all Paul’s efforts would have been in vain. They could have reported him to the authorities, and he would have been publicly beaten and then jailed, yet if Paul did not preach the gospel, his life would be utterly meaningless to him. He was brutalized many times, yet he was compelled to continue; it was not his call to suspend his ministry. He was as though addicted to preaching the gospel, and the only way to get a fix was to tell someone about Jesus. Seeing people getting saved was worth the risk of the beatings he received and the extended jail times; the drug of the Holy Spirit would pump through his veins again and his life would return to him as he opened his mouth in the proclamation of the gospel. 1Cor 2,3-5 (53m) Paradox >> Opposites >> God is made strong in our weakness (62j) Paradox >> Anomalies >> Being clever >> Let the Holy Spirit vindicate you 1Cor 2-4,5 (111b) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Spirit and the word >> Spirit and evangelism – The Holy Spirit is the persuader of truth, and for this reason Paul didn’t come to persuade anybody with fancy words. If he could persuade them to believe in Jesus, someone else could dissuade them. Instead, he came with the demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so if anyone tried later to dissuade them from the truth, they would remember that it was God who talked them into believing in Jesus and not Paul. While Paul demonstrated the Kingdom of God in the weakness of human flesh, the Holy Spirit worked in the minds and hearts of his listeners. Paul wasn’t interested in assuming the Holy Spirit’s role as persuader of truth, for persuasive people are usually charlatans, and Paul was unwilling to give the impression of a fraud. People destined for heaven know the difference between a polished act and one who speaks by the Spirit of God. (123a) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Boldness to speak the word by the Spirit 1Cor 2-4 (71a) Authority >> Believer’s authority >> We have authority from God to evangelize the world >> We have an anointing to preach the gospel – Paul had a ministry of evangelism to the world, which is the only ministry of the Church dedicated to the world; all other ministries and resources are directed to the Church so the saints can grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ, and part of that resource is prayer. Jesus did not waste His prayers on the world in His high priestly prayer, but prayed only for those who belonged to Him (Jn 17-9), but the world belongs to the Father (Jn 3-16). This means when evangelists go into the world and preach Jesus among the lost, they are performing the ministry of the Father, and for this reason the ministry of evangelism can be very powerful, often associated with signs, wonders and miracles; the world needs these things to believe. (246e) Demonstration of God’s Kingdom (Key verse) (246f) Kingdom of God >> Spirit realm imposed on the natural realm >> Demonstration of God’s kingdom >> God demonstrates His glory >> Demonstration of the Spirit – How often do we see the demonstration of God’s Kingdom through the power of the Spirit? Some people say that we have entered a new dispensation when miracles don’t happen anymore. What is more likely is that the Church doesn’t know the truth anymore and is too disobedient for God to work with them. Still, many have prayed over the sick and seen them are healed. Performing miracles through the Spirit is not the only way to demonstrate the Kingdom of God. We might know the truth, but to effectively speak the word when the opportunity arises requires the Holy Spirit's anointing. When we are around certain people and we’re trying to tell them about Jesus and the words just don’t come, we must stop and think about every phrase. There’s no flow. There are other times when we open our mouth and the word of God comes cascading from our lips. This is just as much a demonstration of the Spirit as performing miracles, and they can be life-changing moments, both for the listener and the speaker. Whenever we sense the flow of the Spirit, we should flow with Him in whatever He is saying. 1Cor 2-5 (86e) Thy kingdom come >> Belief >> God’s works act as evidence to support our beliefs – The world’s value system has a ceiling that cannot rise above the value of money, but God wants us to value Him in a way that far exceeds the value system of this world. When Paul came and offered the Corinthians the gospel, he did not teach them how to be millionaires or how to be successful in this world. He came to offer them the hope of eternal life. We have the Spirit of promise dwelling in us, who teaches us about God and guides us into all the truth and leads us into unity with the brethren. Our hope is that others will give their lives to Jesus, that Christianity will flourish in the world and many souls will be saved. Paul didn’t want to give the impression that he came to offer the Corinthians something that would help them succeed in this world. Instead, he wanted them to understand that with enough food, clothing and shelter they can be content. We may be poor by the world’s standard, yet we are whole and complete. God promises to provide our basic needs as one of the many benefits of believing in Jesus. Therefore, if any Christian suffers hunger or exposure to the elements, he should know that God is not punishing him. On the contrary, when this life ends, his eternal reward in heaven will be greater because of the suffering he faithfully endured. 1Cor 2,6-16 (156h) Witness >> Validity of the believer >> Evidence of salvation >> Understanding wisdom is evidence of salvation – Paul speaks wisdom to those who are mature with the hope of maturity. There are many Christians who don’t have an interest in wisdom or learning about their eternal salvation. However, being that wisdom is evidence of salvation, we should not consider them Christians who do not seek the wisdom of God. It is not good enough just to say we are Christians; we must also show evidence of it, and if there is no evidence, then we shouldn't believe they are Christians. The biggest issue between brothers is trust; if we can’t trust one another, we can’t build unity. We may inhabit the same building, but without unity we might as well be in different towns. God didn’t create the Church for people to fellowship apart from each other. The only way the Church will flourish is through unity, and unity is foremostly built on trust, and trust is based on evidence of faith, and one of the evidences of salvation is our love of the truth. KJV WEB / Navigation Bar 1Cor 2,6-8 (19g) Sin >> Having the mental disease of the world >> Man’s twisted understanding -- These verses go with verse 14 (26j) Sin >> Consequences of sin >> Curse >> Deeds that return to the doer >> Sin backfires on you (61i) Paradox >> Two implied meanings >> The rulers of this age do not understand the wisdom of God: Human authorities / Demonic authorities – There is wisdom among those who are mature in Christ that transcends the wisdom of this age. When Paul mentioned this wisdom that even the rulers of this age didn’t understand, he was referring not only to human authorities, but also to demonic principalities and powers. Not even the demons understand God's wisdom. They claim to have superior knowledge, yet they do not understand the wisdom of God, reducing their so-called knowledge to mere lies. This suggests that when the demons deceive mankind, they are filling their minds full of junk that they (the demons) actually believe. They do not understand God's wisdom any more than the Jews understood God’s plan to sacrifice the Son of God during Old Testament times. It is a wisdom hidden in plain sight. Paul said that this wisdom is in Christ, who discloses Himself to those who believe Him through the Holy Spirit. (71b) Authority >> Believer’s authority >> We have authority in the wisdom of God (109h) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Spirit and the word >> Spirit the teacher >> Spirit teaches us about the word of God >> Spirit teaches us about Jesus – What is this mysterious wisdom that only the mature can understand? It is the anointing! It is the very substance of Christianity, making the many concerns of the Church peripheral by comparison. The anointing is something that only the mature can receive, bringing every aspect of Christianity into singularity with the Holy Spirit. Doing this requires knowledge, faith and obedience; that is, it requires a deep understanding of the truth. Jesus reiterated this statement in the Book of Revelation seven times: “He who has an ear to hear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the Churches.” Nevertheless, there are many who opt out of possessing this spiritual knowledge, yet the only people who are fulfilling their calling from God are those who faithfully acquire this knowledge and walk in it. How else can we know the truth unless we let God speak to us? Once we develop a well-rounded understanding of the Scriptures, we seek His personal will by listening for Him and doing what He says, and in that process we will learn the many mysteries of God. This is the trademark of the true Christian: the one who has a deep understanding of the Bible (that's good), the one who has a close walk with God (that's better). The one who obeys the Holy Spirit has both and is equipped to fulfill his calling and truly knows God, but there are very few in the Church today matching this description, very few indeed who even know about these things, much less are doing them. (134c) Abortion (Key verse) (135d) Temple >> Your body is the temple of God >> Sins of the body >> Abortion >> Consequences of abortion >> People have abortions for the same reason they crucified Jesus Christ (138a) Temple >> Building the temple (with hands) >> Maturity >> Maturing by the word of God (154e) Witness >> Validity of the Father >> God bears witness against the world >> Witness that the world is godless >> Witness that the world hates God (156l) Witness >> Validity of the believer >> Evidence of being hell-bound >> Living an ungodly lifestyle >> Associating with the world -- These verses go with verse 14 (164i) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> The world is at enmity with God >> The world hates God – The wisdom of God teaches to live for the life to come and not for this life. We hear the wisdom of God in the Sermon on the Mount in so many things Jesus said that fly in the face of conventional wisdom. Paul compared the wisdom of God to the rulers of this age and found them deficient (Daniel 5-27). The wisdom of the world says that the strong are strong and the weak are weak and that appearances are real, but the wisdom of God says that the strong are weak in faith and the world is just a facade. For example, the strong are weak in hope of obtaining a body that cannot die, and the strong are weak in love for God’s children. In short, they are weak in the knowledge of God. They only understand the wisdom of the flesh and the passing pleasures of sin that are propelled by demonic forces. That is, the things we enjoy the most in this life are addictive and seek to enslave us, such as seeking power, pleasure and prestige, creating circumstances that combat against God and turn us in the opposite direction of His will, until our lives begin to unravel, but the wisdom of God leads us in ways that satisfy the soul, but the world cannot satisfy the flesh, much less the soul. The Spirit of God leads us in ways that we will enjoy in heaven, a life of joy and peace, but living this way comes at a cost; we must crucify the wisdom of this world that we naturally understand that conflicts with the wisdom of God. While we are going in the opposite direction of the world, people scratch their heads and wonder what we are doing, because they don’t understand anything spiritual about us. They ask, ‘You are living contrary to the world because of faith in a god that supposedly exists?’ We know that they know there is a God, and so the atheist lies to his own heart. He knows that life cannot spontaneously generate, even if they are able to get amino acids to combine in a laboratory. This does not prove that life can create itself through time and chance, and for this reason the Bible says that the atheist is a fool (Psalm 14-1). (166f) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Wisdom of the world >> Nature Of Man’s Wisdom >> Man’s wisdom does not know God -- These verses go with verse 14. Man is unwilling to admit that he is ignorant of God's wisdom, that he is incapable of comprehending it, that it is off-limits to him. Unbelievers are slaves to their darkness. They don’t have an option to understand the light of God’s truth. They think they could read the Bible and understand it if they wanted, but it would do them no good. They think their rejection is based on unbelief, but their rejection is actually based on ignorance. The wisdom of God is locked from them, protected from their minds until they give their heart to Jesus and commit their lives to following Him and doing His will; then God will release His truth and wisdom to their hearts so they can believe it. Jesus said in Mat 7-6, “Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine.” Unbelievers cannot understand the wisdom of God because they don’t have His Spirit. His Spirit is what unlocks the wisdom of God. Unbelievers can read the Bible, but it is the Spirit who must reveal the truth to them. It is the combination of the Spirit and the word that brings about the wisdom of God, not the Spirit only and not the word only, but both working together, and only His believers understand this, because only they possess His Spirit. (167g) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Carnality/Secularism (mindset of the world) >> The carnal mind does not receive the things of God >> It does not understand the word of God -- These verses go with verse 14 (169g) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> The world is blind to God >> God blinds their eyes (177i) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Presumption (Hinduism) >> Misunderstanding the word of God (183k) Works of the devil >> The origin of lawlessness >> Spirit of Error (Anti-Christ / Anti-Semitism) >> Truth is the enemy of the spirit of error >> Spirit of error rejects the truth (199i) Denying Christ >> Man chooses his own destiny apart from God >> Rejecting Christ >> World rejects God because it does not know Him (212e) Sovereignty >> God is infinite >> He is the creator >> Evolution (Defaming God) >> The scientific mind cannot know God (221d) Kingdom of God >> The elusive Kingdom of Heaven >> Kingdom hidden behind the veil from the world >> God hides from the mind of man >> He hides behind man’s intellect -- These verses go with verse 14. The wisdom we have from God is above the wisdom of the world. Many say they are simply not interested in God; they say they don’t know much about the Bible because they never really studied it, but studying the Bible and possessing the wisdom of God are two different things. Actually, many unbelievers study the Bible, but they don’t understand what they are reading, for if they did, they would get saved. Even if we taught unbelievers the wisdom of God, they wouldn't get it, because the Spirit Himself must reveal Christ to them. We belong to a kingdom that is hidden from the world and revealed only to His children through the Spirit. (223f) Kingdom of God >> The elusive Kingdom of Heaven >> Miss God >> Missing the point >> Miss the meaning of the truth (230k) Kingdom of God >> God’s kingdom is a living organism >> Mystery of godliness >> Solving the mystery of godliness >> The love of Christ is the mystery of godliness – This mysterious wisdom can be summed up in a single word: Love. It is the fullness of God’s mystery. The love of God is as much a mystery to demons as it is to mankind, "for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory." Love is the wisdom of God. We understand emotional and erotic love, and we understand loving someone who loves us, but loving our enemies is incomprehensible to the natural mind. It is abhorrent to our flesh, and is very difficult to manifest even as Christians. It clashes with our worldly understanding and fleshly impulses, yet it is the greatest testimony of God’s truth in the world. If the mystery of God is love, then the mystery of Babylon, mentioned in Rev 17,5-8, is the absence of love. Satan epitomizes the opposite of God’s mystery, involving a level of hatred of all creation, especially of mankind and including self, which rivals the human imagination, and that is saying a lot! Jesus, who came to show us the love of God, epitomizes this mysterious wisdom. Had people been fascinated by the love of Christ in a way that they will be dazzled by the antichrist when he comes, there would be hope for the world, but that the world was unimpressed by the love of Christ compared to the antichrist exposes the darkness of this world and explains all the blood that was shed throughout the ages. 1Cor 2-6,7 (214e) Sovereignty >> God controls time >> God’s timing >> Dispensation of God’s revelations >> Dispensations of revelation knowledge (220a) Sovereignty >> God overrides the will of man >> Predestination >> Predestined before the foundation of the world – Paul opened a can of worms when he said, “Had [they] understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory,” in that he implied the word "predestination". That is, Jesus was predestined to be crucified, and the fact that the rulers of this age did not understand this was the cause of them crucifying Him. In other words, the result of their ignorance was the crucifixion of Christ, meaning their ignorance was predestined. Unbelief produces disobedience, and these two feed on each other, so that the only thing they are able to accept are principles based on them. The opposite is also true, which is what Paul hypothesized: had the leaders of this age understood the wisdom of God, "they would not have crucified the Lord of glory." This paints a completely different picture of the world, a mural that is virtually opposite from the one that we see today, a world where people are obedient and faithful to God and love one another from the heart. Had Jesus come to a world like this, they would have accepted and received Him. 1Cor 2-6 (170f) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Outward appearance >> Temporary >> Whatever is temporary will perish KJV WEB / Navigation Bar 1Cor 2,7-13 (109c) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Revelations of the Holy Spirit >> Things revealed by the Spirit – Paul said that God’s wisdom is a mystery, hidden and predestined to our glory. These two words: “mystery” and hidden, appear in Jesus’ explanation for speaking in parables. When He finished speaking to the people, they were just as clueless as they were before His speeches. He spoke in parables because He knew they would not believe His words if He spoke plainly to them, and so there was no point in talking to them at all, except that the Old Testament prophesied He would. So He was obligated to speak to the people, according to the will of His Father, but He was not obligated to speak plainly to them. In fact, the psalmist prophesied He would speak in parables, “I will open my mouth in a parable; I will tell riddles of old” (Psalm 78-2). Moreover, in His Sermon on the Mount He said, “Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces” (Mat 7-6). This is what happens when we preach the gospel to unbelievers who reject our message; for this cause Paul was mercilessly beaten many times. The mystery of the wisdom of God that is hidden from the world is this: God has prepared a place for us called paradise where we will live with Him forever, a place so perfect and beautiful that no one can conceptualize it. Encased in sinful flesh, we can hardly appreciate it, but with a soul that has been regenerated by the Holy Spirit and given a body that cannot sin, we will forever enjoy God and His world that He has made for us. 1Cor 2-9,10 (132f) Temple >> Your body is the temple of God >> Holy Spirit is in God’s people >> God gives his spirit as a pledge >> God pledges His Spirit -- These verses go with verse 16. Paul talks about some of the wonders of God’s love and all that He has prepared for those who love Him. He says we can enjoy fellowship with Him, that we can experience the better part of heaven in this life. We have the opportunity to experience heaven on earth, not physically but spiritually, for the physical wonders of heaven are sure to pale against the spiritual wonders of knowing God. We have been called to get a head start knowing Him through the Spirit that He has given us, “for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God.” Since the Holy Spirit searches the depths of God and knows the thoughts of the Father, then the Holy Spirit truly is God, who lives in our spirit. His purpose in our heart is to reveal the mind of God; we have all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge abiding in us, and it is up to us to pull them out and have a look at them through the word of God and prayer. This is the means by which we have fellowship with Him; and as we do, He will disclose Himself to us. 1Cor 2-9 (74e) Thy kingdom come >> Heart is man’s central value system >> Where man interprets worth (226d) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Rewards of the Kingdom of Heaven >> Reserved in heaven >> Our inheritance is reserved in heaven (243l) Kingdom of God >> The eternal kingdom >> There shall be no end to His increase >> God's kingdom is Infinite >> We will reign with Christ forever KJV WEB / Navigation Bar 1Cor 2,10-16 (6i) Responsibility >> Ministering to people by being in the Spirit – Everyone who is a believer in Christ has a responsibility to manage his own unique ministry in the Church, but these verses describe our primary ministry in our relationship with God. We all have a duty to minister to Him before we minister to anyone else; and when we do, He will reveal His mind to us, that we may disclose it to others and help them grow in the faith. This word “spiritual” has the connotation of mysticism, but that is not at all what we mean by “spiritual”. Nevertheless, when confusion replaces knowledge, people attribute “spirituality” to the darkness of their understanding. God has caused us to understand all things through the Spirit. Before we became Christians we were separate from the spiritual realm, but since we were born-again and were introduced to the Spirit of God, He began to reveal Himself to us. Prior to the apostles’ demise they wrote the New Testament from the Spirit of God within them, and Paul described this indwelling as the pledge of our inheritance (2Cor 1-22), meaning there is more to come in eternity. (69b) Authority >> Discernment >> Discerning the Truth 1Cor 2,10-13 (33l) Gift of God >> Believers are special to God >> He has given us all things – On the day of our death when we breathe our last and our soul is evicted from the body, we will go somewhere else, and those of us who are born-again, who have the Spirit of God, will have the honor of an angelic escort into the Kingdom of Heaven. This retrieving angel is a gift freely given to us by God. Once in heaven we will meet many people we used to know and many others we will meet for the first time, all of whom believed in Jesus in this life and were born-again, and there will be many missing we expected to be there. At some point we will meet Jesus, who will formally receive us into His kingdom, again because of the Spirit of God who dwells in us. This too is a gift freely given to us by God. It is very likely that the moment we meet Jesus we will go through the believers’ judgment, which will amount to comparing His plan that He had in mind for us, with what we actually did in this life, and where those paths run parallel, He will reward us; and where they deviate, we will lose reward. So there will be a loss of reward at the believer’s judgment. Some will walk away with nothing, but they will still have heaven, which is more than anyone could possibly ask, while others will come away with a jewel-studded crown, which will be yet another gift that we received through the Spirit who dwells in us. God will append our reward to our resurrected bodies, and it will cause us to shine with the glory of God at a luminosity conditional to our reward. See also: God Judges the wicked through the cross; Mat 12-41,42; 40a (35f) Gift of God >> God gives Himself to us >> Father sends the Holy Spirit (68f) Authority >> Jesus delegates the Holy Spirit to us >> He guides you into all truth – This is our assignment: put the thoughts of God into words. Sometimes we feel the Spirit of God welling deep inside us, and we want to splash exhortations onto everyone to help build them in the faith, but we can’t find the words. Our job as Christians is to bring them to the surface, and convert them into words so that we may comprehend their meaning, and we do this also for the purpose of sharing His thoughts which are now our thoughts. The way to understand the thoughts of God is to commit ourselves to the word of God and prayer, giving time and energy to them, pouring over the Scriptures, until His word becomes part of us. Then things will surface. God wants our heart and His word to converge so there is no disparity between who we are and whom He has given us, and prayer is the only way to become spiritual. (110l) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Spirit and the word >> Spiritual substance and truth >> Spiritual substance follows the truth – It is no coincidence that Paul combined spiritual thoughts with spiritual words, in that the Holy Spirit and the word of God within the same context is reiterated innumerous times, creating a major theme that runs throughout the New Testament. God works in us as we study His word through an attitude of prayer. If we remain diligent, we will develop gifts to help us live for God the way He intended, and we will be prepared to accomplish whatever He calls us to do. This is what transpires in the mind of a mature Christian: he combines spiritual thoughts with spiritual words. Until then, we don’t yet know what we are thinking. Often we feel thoughts, but we can’t quite put them into words, but this is our assignment from God: to put His thoughts into words. If we do, we own them. (152i) Witness >> Validity of the Father >> Witnesses of the father >> Prophets >> The Church holds the position of a prophet >> Church operates under a prophetic anointing >> Receiving a prophetic word from God (213e) Sovereignty >> God is infinite >> Jesus owns you >> We are his instruments >> We are tools in the hand of God >> We are transmitters of His kingdom – The Spirit of a man knows his own thoughts and so does God, and He has given us His Spirit, so we may know His thoughts, and every thought in the mind of God is an aspect of His wisdom. He doesn’t have regular thoughts as we do. Our knowledge is based on fact and fiction, but His knowledge is based on Truth, which is a higher form of knowledge. Only God knows the Truth, and those to whom He has chosen to reveal Himself. Man claims to know the truth, but all of man’s truth is overruled by God’s Truth. Man has a tiny mound of knowledge that cannot rise above an anthill, compared to God’s truth, which is higher than Mount Everest. When we compare the two and plot them on a graph, we see man’s truth as a mere bump, indicating that he knows nothing compared to God. Man has a lot of facts and information that will one day become obsolete even by his own standards, but God’s Truth is eternal. He never has to go back and amend His knowledge. Everything God knows will remain true forever, and we have the mind of Christ. 1Cor 2,10-12 (255f) Trinity >> Father, Son and Holy Spirit >> The process of imparting the substance of God >> Father discloses the word by the Spirit -- These verses go with verse 16 1Cor 2-10 (213a) Sovereignty >> God is infinite >> God is all knowing >> God knows everything about everything KJV WEB / Navigation Bar 1Cor 2-12 (119b) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Freedom >> Law of the spirit >> Law of the Spirit of truth -- This verse goes with verse 16 (132a) Temple >> Your body is the temple of God >> Holy Spirit is in God’s people >> Spirit of God in the spirit of man >> Spirit of the Father – Whenever the Bible uses the generic word “God,” it is referring to the Father. In other places it speaks about the Spirit of Jesus, suggesting that the Holy Spirit refers to both the Father and the Son, but in this case Paul is speaking about the Father. It says that we have received the Spirit of God so that we may comprehend our eternal inheritance; His purpose is to disclose to us what we have freely received from God. Paul said in another passage that the believer possesses all things. Our inheritance encompasses the new heavens and the new earth in eternity; in fact, Paul said that we are the first fruits of the new creation. Therefore, our inheritance from God consists of literally everything! We own everything, but our first possession is the Spirit of God Himself, which means that everything we possess after Him comes through Him. (183g) Works of the devil >> The origin of lawlessness >> Spirit of error (anti-Christ / anti-Semitism) >> Spirit of the broad road >> Spirit of the world (225a) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Description of heaven >> The holy of holies >> The Kingdom of God is in your spirit – The Holy Spirit will forever dwell in us, and He will continue to lead us and forever reward us for our faithfulness. Faithfulness is our greatest badge of honor, daunting all other honors that He will bestow on us, because we served Him in faith. In heaven we won’t need faith, because heaven is made of faith, just like there is no need for gold, for the streets will be made of gold. As God continues to unfold His plan for us in eternity, all the things we will receive from Him will freely come through the Spirit who dwells in us. How important is the indwelling Holy Spirit? He is our ticket to heaven, our ticket to everything. 1Cor 2-14,15 (17c) Sin >> Unrighteous judgment >> Judging in the flesh >> Evaluating circumstances by the carnal mind – Worldly people like to judge us, but they do it by the flesh. The judgment calls that the godless heathen places on those who are faithful in Jesus are completely hollow even if their estimates are correct, for in the eyes of God it is no different than judging Christ, and Jesus doesn’t care what the heathen think of Him. They might have all kinds of excuses for rejecting Him at the White Throne Judgment, but none of their excuses will hold under scrutiny when Jesus opens the books and reads their long list of sins and asks them a lot of embarrassing questions, and then sends them to their designated place. 1Cor 2-14 (19g) Sin >> Having the mental disease of the world >> Man’s twisted understanding -- This verse goes with verses 6-8. Paul was not just talking about worldly people who have rejected the message of the gospel; he was also talking about those in the Church who do no listen to Him. For this reason even they remain in the natural realm of the flesh, bound to the earth, because they do not believe in the voice of the Holy Spirit who seeks their faithfulness. The one who listens to Him and does what He says, this one is spiritually up-raised. (64j) Paradox >> Anomalies >> Weaknesses of God >> Foolishness of God (156l) Witness >> Validity of the believer >> Evidence of being hell-bound >> Living an ungodly lifestyle >> Associating with the world -- This verse goes with verses 6-8 (166f) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Wisdom of the world >> Nature Of Man’s Wisdom >> Man’s wisdom does not know God -- This verse goes with verses 6-8. Tell these things to someone who does not believe in God, and he will reject what we say under the premise that we cannot prove any of our assertions, but the unbeliever is a hypocrite in that neither can he prove any of his assertions against God, but he believes them anyway, because he is not searching for truth, but for a belief system that sits comfortably with his flesh. He looks into the heavens and sees the universe staring at him and rejects God to His face. What more evidence does he need? When God gives us His Spirit and we look to the heavens and see the handiwork of Him who dwells in us, we are grateful what God has done. It scarcely takes any faith to believe in God, “but the natural mind does not accept the things of the Spirit, for they are foolishness to him,” not from a lack of evidence, but from a spirit of error so strong that the unbeliever actually believes the spirit of unbelief. This creates a paradox in his soul and hardens his heart to the true faith. They cannot believe, because the spirit of error will not let them. (167g) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Carnality/Secularism (mindset of the world) >> The carnal mind does not receive the things of God >> It does not understand the word of God -- This verse goes with verses 6-8 (221d) Kingdom of God >> The elusive Kingdom of Heaven >> Kingdom hidden behind the veil from the world >> God hides from the mind of man >> He hides behind man’s intellect -- This verse goes with verses 6-8. The unbeliever prides himself in knowledge, so when we say he is unable to understand the wisdom of God but we do, it enrages them. They might complain that we are describing the gospel as it were an exclusive club for members only, and they would be exactly right! All this time they thought they were rejecting God and then discover that God has rejected them. They want the upper hand; they want to be the ones to reject God; it makes them feel powerful, like they’re stronger than God. This is the only thing man has over Him, but in the life to come there will be hell to pay. They think they are exercising authority over Him, but when we tell them that God has chosen us and that we are predestined to receive eternal life and the rest of mankind is slated for eternal damnation, that the decision it is really up to God who goes to heaven and who doesn't, it enrages them. They say that God is evil because He has taken away their will to choose, but this is merely a matter of perspective, for there is another perspective that says man is deeply involved in his salvation or rejection of God, and both standpoints are equally true, though they seem contradictory. KJV WEB / Navigation Bar 1Cor 2-15,16 (35g) Gift of God >> God gives Himself to us >> Jesus sends the Holy Spirit 1Cor 2-15 (6e) Being Spiritual / Ministering to God (Key verse) – To be spiritual is to be spiritually minded and spiritually guided. To be spiritually minded is to saturate your mind with the word of God, and to be spiritually guided is to be led by the Holy Spirit in all aspects of life through the agency of prayer. Although this topic is found in the chapter "Responsibility", it is an Old Testament priesthood term and would fit just as well in the "Temple of God" chapter. It makes perfect sense that we have a responsibility to minister to God, but it makes just as much sense that our ministry to Him describes our priestly duties. Going back to the Old Testament, the priests would perform all the designated rituals within the temple keeping with old covenant laws and regulations. Although the days are over for sacrificing heifers, doves and goats, the time when it was done was used as a representation of the kind of new covenant ministry that we now enjoy through the knowledge of God's word and prayer. (69i) Authority >> Righteous judgment (Outcome of Discernment) >> Judging the flesh by the Spirit – The NASB phrases it like this: “he who is spiritual appraises all things.” That word “appraise” is most often used nowadays to determine the value of a house, and Paul is using it the same way to determine the value of "all things," yet we who are spiritual are judged by no one. In a practical sense people judge us all the time, but in a spiritual sense, God recognizes none of their judgments. We are to place a value on everything, determining what is worthless and what is priceless according to God’s set of priorities. Knowing what is valuable and what isn’t takes discernment, which is a spiritual gift, and spiritual gifts are incomprehensible to the flesh. We cannot value spiritual things by the flesh, yet people regularly place value on worldly things using their fleshly minds as a standard, centering mostly around money and materialism as a top priority. Paul is urging us to appraise all things by the Spirit as a way to stop the flesh from assigning inflated values to things of little or no importance. The moment we point out our flesh and name its sin, we put it under arrest, because then we can no longer perform its works with a clear conscience. That is, the moment we judge the flesh by the Spirit, we must repent or our sins will take us down with them. 1Cor 2-16 (42i) Judgment >> Satan destroyed >> Transformed >> Conform to the mind of Christ (59h) Paradox >> Two implied meanings >> Knowledge of the written word / Knowledge of the heavenly word (78h) Thy kingdom come >> Renewing your mind by the word of God >> Be of one mind, his mind (119b) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Freedom >> Law of the spirit >> Law of the Spirit of truth -- This verse goes with verse 12. We can discern the thoughts of God, and with this knowledge judge all things, yet we are judged by no one. People have a right to judge us in the flesh, though the spiritual side of us is immune to their censorship. They may not believe it, but God overrules their judgments. (132f) Temple >> Your body is the temple of God >> Holy Spirit is in God’s people >> God gives his spirit as a pledge >> God pledges His Spirit -- This verse goes with verses 9-10. How do we have the mind of Christ? The Spirit of God dwells in us who also searches the mind of God to the depths of His being. We have His Spirit who knows God in all His intimate details, and His Spirit belongs to us, enabling us to know Him in this life, much more in eternity, for it will take that long to fully understand God. We have an introduction to Him through His grace, and it is this pledge that will continue to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ throughout the eons to come. (255f) Trinity >> Father, Son and Holy Spirit >> The process of imparting the substance of God >> Father discloses the word by the Spirit -- This verse goes with verses 10-12 _________________________________ 1 CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 3 KJV WEB / Navigation Bar 1Cor 3,1-5 (196d) Denying Christ >> Man exercises his will against God >> Immaturity >> Not mature enough to die to self >> Unable to put down the flesh – Paul talked about some of the most profound thoughts about God in the first two chapters, and then switched gears and began addressing the immaturity of the Corinthian Church and left the deep things of God behind. Paul would have loved to speak more to them about the greatness of God, but he had to deal with their issues, suggesting that our conduct toward one another is important as our faith. This reveals Paul’s reason for first discussing the vanity of worldly wisdom in chapters one and two. They were using it to construct their distorted viewpoints, eliciting Paul to say that God offers something better, but they were not ready to receive it. Instead of growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, they were quarreling with one another about petty things, steeped in carnality, refusing to renew their minds in the Scriptures. Strange beliefs kept cropping up, and like undisciplined children they were ready to receive them, leaving the truth unpalatable. (199d) Denying Christ >> Man exercises his will against God >> Frustrating the grace of God >> Frustrating Jesus >> Frustrating the apostles 1Cor 3,1-4 (167f) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Carnality/Secularism (mindset of the world) >> The carnal mind is set on the flesh >> Carnal mind is fueled by our emotions (169l) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Seeking the glory of man >> Stepping on people to get to the bottom >> Those who seek their own glory idolize men – In Christendom this is the biggest insult we could give someone: walking like mere men. This is how high a calling from God we have received; no matter how noble or how great a person in this world, the man of God is dimensions higher without the need for social accolades. In this world the highness of our calling is apparent in the values we hold, in the words we speak and in the gospel we believe. This in the eyes of God makes us dimensions higher than mere men (disobedient Christians and unbelievers), but in heaven these simple traits will translate into great power, glory and divine authority, because we were willing to accept a lowly position in a world of high-mindedness, and we have recognized God’s values and priorities as infinitely greater than the elementary principles of the world. (197a) Denying Christ >> Man exercises his will against God >> Spiritual laziness >> Rebelling Against what God wants you to do >> Refusing to renew your mind – Paul asked the Corinthians a question, “Are you not walking like mere men?” Based on that choice of words it seems that God is expecting us to be more than mere men and women; He is expecting us to be superhuman! Well, why not, since we have the Spirit of God abiding in us, isn’t there something more than human about us? God wants us to focus on that which came from heaven that is above our human nature. We need to let it take precedence in our lives so we can rise above our sinful nature and behave like His children. The Corinthians acknowledged the message of eternal life, but that was far as the Corinthians wanted to go with God. They never took sanctification to heart, instead approached the gospel with mental ascent. Theoretically the Kingdom of God was supposed to be growing in their hearts, but they were not devoting any time or energy to make that happen. 1Cor 3-1 (6i) Responsibility >> Spiritual >> Ministering to people by being in the Spirit – Paul called the Corinthians “men of flesh.” They had flesh on their bones, but they were supposed to be something higher than that. God has called us to live above the nature we were given at our birth, by the nature we were given at our second birth. He has called us to become “spiritual”, though that is a catchall term people use without ever defining it. It is a general term that means almost anything we want, and for that reason it means nothing. Being spiritual in the Church today has evolved to mean “religious”, the more religious, the more spiritual, we think. We go to church and if we tithe and shake the pastor’s hand and speak the nomenclature of Christianity, we are being spiritual, but what did Paul mean by spiritual (1Cor 2-15)? There is no one more spiritual than the one who loves his brother in Christ, loves his neighbor as himself, and especially loves his enemies. We are students of God’s word and disciples of prayer, and the fact that we love our enemies proves that these things are real. We are most spiritual at times when no one is watching in our prayer closet, so that our speech is seasoned with grace by an anointing, and through that anointing we love our enemies. This is what it means to be spiritual. Opposite of this is what Paul was accusing the Corinthians; they lived by the principles of their flesh. (196c) Immaturity (Key verse) KJV WEB / Navigation Bar 1Cor 3,3-5 (173d) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Catholicism >> Scripture that contradicts the catholic faith >> Worshipping idols 1Cor 3,5-11 (13d) Servant >> Serve the body >> Promoting its health >> Building up the body of Christ 1Cor 3,6-15 (101l) Thy kingdom come >> Ambitious to promote the Kingdom of God >> Preaching the gospel 1Cor 3,6-11 (150b) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Works of the Church bear witness of Jesus >> Evangelism >> Instructions on evangelism 1Cor 3,6-9 (129d) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Bearing the fruit of evangelism >> Bearing the fruit of the gospel 1Cor 3,6-8 (225i) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Parables about the garden of the kingdom >> Parables about plants – Paul was the planter of seeds, Apollos watered them, and God was in the background causing the growth. We work hard, but God performs miracles through our efforts, changing people’s lives and giving them a new, positive direction. The old saying, ‘people don’t change,’ is mostly true, but with the Holy Spirit they can. That is, a changed life is a miracle, but neither planter nor water-er can change anyone. Paul and Apollos worked with God to do things in them that only God could do. 1Cor 3-6,7 (111k) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Spirit and the word >> Living and active word of God (140g) Temple >> Temple made without hands >> Christ builds the temple from the bricks of the Church – Paul and Apollos were missionaries who journeyed from city to city preaching Jesus to the people, and at His word God called the elect whom He had prepared from eternity past to become His worshippers. They became members of the Corinthian Church that Paul planted in their city, and Apollos taught them the word of God and entrusted the people to faithful servants to continue their progress, such as Silas, Timothy, Titus, Mark and many others, until the new converts could stand on their own. In the meantime, Paul and Apollos traveled to the next town and preached Jesus to fresh ears, and in this way evangelism was a process. See also: Building the Church; 1The 5-24; 91i (229e) Kingdom of God >> God’s kingdom is a living organism >> Kingdom grows by itself >> God causes the growth >> Kingdom grows like crops in a farmer’s field – Paul said that the one who planted and the one who watered were nothing compared to God who caused the growth. This means that if God doesn’t cause the growth, then all their labors are in vain (Psalm 127-1). What they did would be worthless without God’s input, just like the farmer, “who casts seed upon the soil; and he goes to bed at night and gets up by day, and the seed sprouts and grows -how, he himself does not know” (Mk 4-26,27). We can plant and water, but we cannot cause the growth. When we look at the first century and see the tremendous success of the Church, God was faithful in doing His part. We should remember too that the Church did not belong to Paul but to God. Therefore, if any church is not growing spiritually or numerically, we know that God would cause the growth if everything else were in place. If God is not causing the growth, it indicates that the watering phase is broken. We are poisoning God’s field with false teachings, and for that reason we need to get back to the word of God and prayer and rediscover the truth, and then God will cause the growth. What we see in churches these days is stagnation; very few are growing, and the few who are growing are on their own. 1Cor 3-7 (31k) Gift of God >> Gift of His grace >> Grace is the work of God KJV WEB / Navigation Bar 1Cor 3,8-17 (139g) Temple >> Building the temple (with hands) >> We build the temple through Christ – We must be careful how we build upon the foundation of Christ. How careful are we in our teaching of the gospel? How diligently have we studied the Scriptures? We know what the First Century Church taught because it is contained in the New Testament, but what do we teach? What the Church teaches and what the Bible says are often two different things, and some of the differences are fallacious and toxic to building a genuine faith in Jesus Christ. We know that there are many religions and denominations in the world today, and some of them are easy to identify as cults; for example, anyone who would say that Jesus was nothing more than a prophet obviously is a cult. We don’t need to think twice about it, but what about the Mormons, for instance; are they a cult too? What did Paul just say? Jesus Christ is the foundation of the Church! Mormons believe that scoundrels have edited the Holy Bible, and for this reason they don’t believe hell exists, and they cut whole doctrines from the Bible they don’t like using the same premise. If they don’t believe the Bible is reliable, why would they read it? For the most part they don't! They have their own Bible, in which Jesus Christ has been dethroned and another man put in his place, Joseph Smith in all his fanciful writings. Joseph Smith is the foundation of the Mormon Church and not Jesus Christ. No one else believes in Joseph Smith; they are unique in that way, but they have inadvertently become a cult in the process of distinguishing themselves. Any religion that moves Jesus off-center of the gospel is a cult. They should repent of their false teachings and run back to Jesus, who alone can save. He is our Lord and Master; He bought us with His own blood. There are many Christian denominations: Evangelicals, Baptists, Lutherans, Methodists, etc.; they all have Jesus Christ front and center in their faith as their Lord and Savior, and for this reason they are not cults. The unfortunate thing about denominations, though, in these last days it is almost impossible to believe in Jesus apart from a preexistent belief system. For example, there was a time when Evangelicals were independent, but eventually they were labeled as such, and so it is almost impossible to believe in Jesus as a body of believers apart from a denomination. See also: Cults (Mormons); Gal 1-8,9; 106f 1Cor 3-8 (226a) Rewards of Heaven (Key verse) (226i) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Rewards of heaven >> Levels of reward >> God rewards us to the degree of our labors – Paul was in association with his helpers, some who planted and others who watered, but both were considered a single effort in building up the body of Christ, though each will all receive his own reward. Rewards in the Church today are spurned if not condemned, and the reason stems from a fallacy some people believe about the Bible. Many have falsified the significance of works, saying that it plays no part in our faith, so it is impossible to seek rewards from God since works are irrelevant. This is a fallacy that is killing the Church in these last days. Following is just about everybody’s favorite verse in the Bible: “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.” After reading this they say works are irrelevant. If this were the case, then why does the Bible talk so much about faithfulness, diligence and perseverance in the things of God? Can we fits these words into our lives apart from works? This errant position of the Church is based on the misunderstanding of a short list of verses, the leading one already mentioned in Eph 2-8,9. The very next verse (v10) says, “We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” If we do the good works that God prepared for us, there is a reward, but how does that fit with faith? We know that doing good works is not what saves us, but they do complete our faith. What good is an incomplete faith? See also: Working the grace of God (blameless); Jd-24,25; 137k 1Cor 3,9-15 (137b) Temple >> Building the temple (with hands) >> Jesus is the foundation >> Jesus is the rock of the Church’s foundation 1Cor 3,9-11 (225l) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Parables about the body of Christ -- These verses go with verses 16&17. The Church has two foundations, the foundation of the apostles and prophets and the underlying foundation of Jesus Christ. The analogy of the building refers to the old covenant temple of worship. It was constructed according to the specifications that God commanded Moses, suggesting that nobody can lay a foundation other than the one that has already been laid. Our job is to build upon this foundation, and the house that results is the Church. This house also represents the individual believer. Remember Jesus last statement on the Sermon on the Mount; He spoke about a house built on shifting sand on a beach too close to the ocean; it had a spectacular view but way too stormy. Jesus was saying that people should not build their house in the wrong place with a poor foundation, because the edifice won’t remain standing very long, for each foot closer to the sea is another year off the building's life. His parable about a building was with respect to establishing our theology and living according to it. If we build our house on the rock, everything works just fine; our house will remain intact worry-free, even in the most violent weather, but the person with poor theology, who comes to all the wrong conclusions about the Bible and lives accordingly, his structure will not survive the inevitable storms of life, leaving his house in tatters, even if he uses the best materials. If he knew what he was doing, He would have known that the foundation had already been poured, referring to the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross, and that the apostles have finished the foundation, and now we must build our house upon their work. To build the house anywhere else would be foolish, since there is only one foundation though there are many builders. We see then that we are fellow workers building one structure where we will all live together. Each person has a different design in mind, different styles and methods, but when we put all our ideas together, we create an intricate house of worship. God speaks to His people as He spoke to the nation of Israel and commanded them to build a temple according to His specifications. When we think of all the denominations that have resulted from our efforts, there is not one house but many, but Paul said there is only one foundation and one temple of worship, suggesting that Paul was addressing the subject of unity, but if there are multiple houses built on a single platform, it results in a mishmash of religions that will never win the world to Christ. See also: Building the temple; Rev 3,15-18; 94n 1Cor 3,10-15 (137m) Temple >> Building the temple (with hands) >> Maturing with our brothers >> Employing your gifts to mature the body (Spiritual fellowship) – We of the new covenant have the foundation of both the old and New Testaments, and those who teach the word are building on that foundation. In that respect the building that is constructed upon this foundation consists of the ministries of others. 1Cor 3-10 (115e) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Working the grace of God >> Through your ministry >> By the word of God (239l) Kingdom of God >> Pursuing the kingdom >> Pursuing the knowledge of the kingdom >> Teachers >> Let not many of you become teachers >> Teachers incur a stricter judgment – Paul laid the foundation as the seed sower, and Apollos built upon it as he watered the seed, Paul’s contribution to our foundation consisting of all his letters in the New Testament. Therefore, those who would come after them must be careful how they build upon their foundation. Paul says to the teachers of the word who are building upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, and upon Jesus Christ, the cornerstone (Eph 2-20), ‘be careful how you build.’ We must pay careful attention to what we teach, for Jm 3-1 meets the subject head-on, “Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we shall incur a stricter judgment.” They have a greater influence on the Church; hence they have a greater means to lead the Church astray. They also have a greater potential to benefit the Church, and God will reward them accordingly. 1Cor 3-11 (227f) Kingdom of God >> God’s kingdom is a living organism >> God working in you >> Depending on Jesus to have compassion >> Depending on Jesus to receive us KJV WEB / Navigation Bar 1Cor 3,12-15 (5g) Responsibility >> Discipleship tested >> God tests your motives (45c) Judgment >> Believer's Judgment >> God judges our walk in the Spirit >> He rewards us for bearing fruit – Paul addresses the believer’s judgment in these verses. God has forgiven us through the blood of Christ and cleansed us of all unrighteousness, so what occasion is there for judgment? Since God sees no sin in us, why are we still being judged? God adds eternal damnation to the sentence of the wicked in their judgment, whereas in the believers’ judgment He takes away eternal rewards to the degree that we fail to walk on His trail of good works that He has prepared for us. Eph 2-10 says, “We are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” Our reward will be based on the degree to which we walked on this trail. If a man’s entire structure burns to its foundation, he himself will be saved yet as through fire. In other words this judgment does not determine if we should go to hell, but determines our eternal reward in heaven. (48j) Judgment >> Levels of judgment >> Judged by withdrawing rewards – Our toil is not in vain in the Lord (1Cor 15-58), but as for the things we do apart from faith, it is all in vain according to this passage. Once God has used the creation to accomplish His purposes, He will destroy this present universe and build a new one in its place, where everything we did apart from God’s ordained purpose will perish, but the things we did in His name God will reward us, and those rewards will never fade. (88d) Thy kingdom come >> Faith produces works >> The function of works in faith >> Faith doesn’t move God until it is manifested in the natural realm (104c) Thy kingdom come >> Purifying process >> Purified by fire >> Purified through fiery judgment – Man has built glorious cathedrals in pretense for God, investing large amount of time, money and effort into them, but did God call them to do this or did they build them as a poor substitute for doing the will of God. Perhaps their true motive was to seek the glory of man (their choice of building materials being combustible), suggesting their motives were temporal. If so, they will watch as their entire lives burn to the ground, and through the smoldering ruins, God will take them by the hand and usher them into His kingdom, empty-handed. Yet, for God to extend His hand to us at all is our precious and most valuable gift, one we cannot earn by faithfulness, rather by faith. Those whose works are destroyed in the fire will wear a robe in the Kingdom of Heaven purchased by the blood of the Lamb, but they will have no crown to show their appreciation. (113b) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> The anointing >> Heaven’s clothes >> Protection >> Shelter (113h) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> The anointing >> Anointed through obedience (140e) Temple >> Temple made without hands >> Hiding place >> The entrance exam (186a) Works of the devil >> The result of lawlessness >> Blasphemy >> Unwilling to obey the revelation from heaven >> Unwilling to walk in God’s ability (190c) Die to self (Process of substitution) >> Separation from the old man >> Masochism (Self-made martyr) >> Passing through the fire (196k) Denying Christ >> Man exercises his will against God >> Spiritual laziness >> Replacing God’s standard of excellence with yours >> Fattened for the day of slaughter (212h) Sovereignty >> God is infinite >> God is all-knowing >> Nothing hidden >> God exposes things hidden in darkness – On the one hand, the person who is completely dedicated to his faith and to the word of God and to the Church, has invested his entire life into these things, who sells everything he owns and buys gold, silver and precious stones to adorn God’s holy temple, his structure will withstand God’s fiery judgment, and all his efforts will be preserved and celebrated throughout eternity. Many of these people have gone virtually unnoticed by the Church, yet their motives survived the fire of God’s righteous judgment, and they will have an offering they can lay at Jesus’ feet. On the other hand, a person who rarely studied the Bible, never developed a relationship with God, who stood in front of the congregation and preached a gospel that never affected his own life, much less anyone else's, his structure was made from wood, hay and straw. It is better to have a couple nuggets of gold that will last forever, than a huge wooden coliseum to suffer total loss in the flames of God’s fiery judgment. (225p) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Parables about final judgment – It is not our spirit that God calls to persevere under trial (Jm 1-12) but our flesh. Emotions will pass, and if we sin, we can repent and God will forgive us, but what we have said and done will remain with those who witnessed our crude behavior, and it will blemish our reputation. In the believer’s judgment He will call us to account for all the things we have done whether good or bad, and He will subtract from our reward what He wanted to give us. There will be a lot of subtracting for all of us, some more than others, and for some it says their reward will reduce to simply eking into heaven. It says that some people’s works will be burned up, but they themselves will be saved as through fire. (227e) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Rewards of heaven >> God rewards endurance >> Keeping our rewards through endurance (232c) Kingdom of God >> Pursuing the kingdom >> Seeking the kingdom >> Count the cost >> If you must count the cost, the price is always too high (236h) Kingdom of God >> Pursuing the kingdom >> Invest in the kingdom >> Invest your treasures into the kingdom >> Invest everything you value – Building materials such as gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay and straw, are symbolic of building materials we use to establish the truth on the pre-existing foundation of the Scriptures. Whatever building material we use will represent our Christian walk, which God will test by fire. If we selected a combustible material, then it will be reduced to ashes, proving our temporal motives, while those who have selected noncombustible materials proved he had eternity in mind. Whatever is destroyed has judged itself made of the wrong substance, but that which survives the fire, gold, silver and precious stones, will be our reward that will endure eternity and will integrate into the structure of God’s eternal kingdom. 1Cor 3,13-17 (173g) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Catholicism >> Unholy sacrifice >> Offering sacrifice without God’s approval >> Sacrifice against the will of God 1Cor 3-13,14 (32g) Gift of God >> Father will honor you if you die to self >> Your faithfulness 1Cor 3-15 (153d) Witness >> Validity of the Father >> God bears witness against the world >> Shame >> Hiding under a cloud of guilt >> Your sin will find you out – The disobedient Christian is an oxymoron. They straddle the fence and test the line to see how far they can go without actually crossing it. Christians nowadays have developed elaborate doctrines that allow them to live like the world and still believe in Jesus. They have invented the doctrine of eternal security, meaning once they’re saved they cannot lose their salvation, so they can live any way we want. According to them, we can choose to serve the Lord, though it is not a requirement; in fact, according to them there are no requirements in Christianity, for requirements resemble laws, and God has done away with the Law. To them how they live is based on their own whimsical, fleshly prerogative, as though salvation were based on believing a set of doctrines, but the Bible doesn’t teach the way of salvation in this way, yet it is the overwhelming teaching in the Church, irrespective of denomination. Paul is saying that there are many people who will make it to heaven by the skin of their teeth, and after God tests their works by fire at the believers’ judgment, whatever is flammable will be consumed, and whatever survives the test of fire will remain. For many people, none of their works will survive, yet they will be saved as through fire. They will have nothing to offer God, no faithfulness, no gratitude for saving them from the flames of hell. It will be a very sad day for them to be in heaven with no proof of faith. They believed in God enough to be saved, but the fact that all their works were consumed proves they never lived for Him. See also: Eternal security? (Doctrine of easy-believism); Tit 2-11,12; 239k (243h) Kingdom of God >> The eternal kingdom >> The indestructible kingdom >> The body of Christ is indestructible >> The new man is indestructible KJV WEB / Navigation Bar 1Cor 3-16,17 (48m) Judgment >> Jesus’ enemies are destroyed >> Enemies of His grace (51c) Judgment >> Judging the Church with the world >> Warning of Wrath >> God warns the Church – The context of these verses is the believer’s judgment; Jesus said that we will all be judged according to our deeds, whatever we have done in the body, whether good or bad (2Cor 5-10). Paul is saying that we are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in us. There is only one possible interpretation to this passage: God will destroy the person in hell who commits suicide. Their fate is sealed; they have lost their salvation; suicide is an unpardonable sin, since it is impossible to repent of it. Suicide forfeits everything God has given him; it is the ultimate expression of a lack of faith and the ultimate slap in the face to God. It says to Him, ‘The life you have given me I hold in contempt; I see no value in it, therefore I throw it away.’ This may be God’s reply to the one who commits suicide, ‘If you think you can do this and expect Me to receive you into My heaven with open arms, think again.’ See also: Suicide; 190bd (132a) Temple >> Your body is the temple of God >> Holy Spirit is in God’s people >> spirit of God in the spirit of man >> Spirit of the Father (133e) Temple >> Your body is the temple of God >> Holiness >> The body of Christ is holy >> The temple of God is holy – There are two interpretations of the temple of God; one refers to the individual and the other refers to the Church. The individual is depicted as the temple of God with the condition that the Spirit of God dwells in him. The Church has the same condition applied, only supplemented with a secondary condition of unity, so that together all Christians everywhere are bricks in God’s temple. (135h) Temple >> Your body is the temple of God >> Sins of the body >> Abortion >> God’s judgment against abortion >> God’s judgment falls on those who abort their own children (189f) Die to self (Process of substitution) >> Separation from the old man >> Martyr >> Martyrs bring about the judgment of God (190db) Die to self (Process of substitution) >> Separation from the old man >> Masochism (Self-made martyr) >> Literal suicide – Paul gives a dire warning about committing suicide or being masochistic to our bodies in any way. Paul does not just warn the man not to commit suicide; he actually threatens him who would destroy his body that God will destroy his eternal soul in hell. There is no other interpretation for these verses. Our body is holy to the Lord; we were made to house His Spirit. Destroying our bodies can obviously mean suicide, but it can also mean various forms of abuse ranging from outright masochism to drug and alcohol addiction; living an immoral lifestyle, contracting a sexually transmitted disease and dying from it, and using our body any way as instruments of sin. All these act as evidence that we do not have the Holy Spirit dwelling in us, thus we are not temples of God and cannot go to heaven. Jesus said in Lk 12-4,5, “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that have no more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear the One who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell; yes, I tell you, fear Him!” See also: Suicide; 51c (207e) Salvation >> God makes promises on His terms >> Eternal security? >> God Himself will tear you down – This to me is perhaps the only verse in the Bible that addresses suicide, condemning it as an act of treason against the purpose of God from which the person can never repent; hence it is a sin from which a person can never be forgiven. According to this verse, any so-called Christian who commits suicide is automatically barred from heaven. Paul said, “If anyone destroys the temple of God,” the temple meaning your body, “God will destroy him” in hell. (213f) Sovereignty >> God is infinite >> Jesus owns you >> We are his instruments >> We are tools in the hand of God >> We are extensions of His body – Paul mentioned in 1Cor 7-4 that neither the wife nor the husband has authority over his or her own body, but the spouse does. In another passage Paul reminded us that we have been bought with a price; our bodies are not our own (1Cor 6-19,20). God has purchased us; we are His property. That might sound crass to some people and others will probably reject it out-of-hand, yet the Bible teaches that He purchased us with His own blood. He now owns us though He values our freedom above all else. He wants to make slaves of us, but not in the sense of taking away our freedom or making our service to Him obligatory. Rather, the slavery He wants for us is self-imposed (Romans chapters 6&7). We belong to Him. By accepting the terms of our salvation through His blood sacrifice we have become His property. He has more rights over us than we do. Our only real choice is to obey Him, for all other choices are grossly inferior. If we rebel, at the judgment we may be saved, but He will demonstrate forever that our temporal lives were wasted on our vain pursuits. He will take everything else from us, for He cannot reward us for what we did not do for Him. (225l) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Parables >> Parables about the body of Christ -- These verses go with verses 9-11 1Cor 3-16 (132a) The Temple Of God — Key verse for the entire chapter – Temple of God is is a unique chapter that deals extensively with the new covenant version of the old covenant temple. Of all the chapters and subjects, this one perhaps means the most in the way it presents our bodies as the outer tabernacle, our soul as the holy place and the indwelling Spirit of God as the holy of holies. The chapter ends with the temple made without hands, a concept so ethereal that it would take years of study to fully comprehend it. Anyone who digs into this treasure trove of truth will discover many wonderful aspects of the Bible. KJV WEB / Navigation Bar 1Cor 3,18-23 (64j) Paradox >> Anomalies >> Weaknesses of God >> Foolishness of God 1Cor 3,18-20 (166f) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Wisdom of the world >> Nature of man’s wisdom >> Man’s wisdom does not know God – Thinking about this verse, we must go all the way back to the original sin to a time before the fall, when Adam walked with God in the Garden of Eden. God and Adam had a relationship based on the premise that Adam knew his place as a created being. After the fall, though, man has been conspiring against God, supplementing it with a flare for inventiveness, having created a modern world, so now he thinks God should give him credit for being like Him. Man said to himself, ‘Who needs God when we have His attributes?’ Once man removes God from the equation, he can do whatever he wants, arguing that his consequences will never transcend his own laws. Then man takes another step further into the darkness of his wisdom and says, ‘Since God doesn’t ever show His face, I must be god, not all these other people,’ hence megalomaniacs rise to power with mass genocide in their hearts. Meanwhile, everyone else is saying the same thing that he too must be a god and not all these other people, and so everybody thinks he is a god and doing whatever they want, and if anyone gets hurt in the process, it doesn’t matter, because 'I am god.' This is what every murderer is thinking when he pulls the trigger; nevertheless, the murderer has a god and his name is Satan; and Satan has a God and his name is Jesus Christ. Man continues sliding down this slippery slope until world wars kill millions of people, and everyone wonders how it all happened. Meanwhile, God has a Bible written by the hands of His prophets that says man’s wisdom is foolishness to God, and He catches them in their craftiness, and He knows their reasonings that they are useless, that their wisdom leads only to war, death and destruction, and to some of the most heinous sins imaginable. This is where man’s wisdom goes every time he thinks he is smarter than God. He is present and recording everything, and He wants man to return to Him under the condition that we recognize Him as the only God and ourselves as created beings made to worship Him. We submit to His authority and worship Him for all the things we cannot do and for all the things we cannot know. Only man is capable of worshipping God. The birds may sing His praises, and in that sense they worship Him, behaving in ways that God created them, but they cannot worship Him as we do, for they do not know what they are doing, whereas we worship God in full knowledge of His existence. We even worship Him for the bad things that happen because he has promised to eliminate suffering in the next world that He creates. See also: Adam wanted to be like God; 1Cor 11-5,6; (190g) KJV WEB / Navigation Bar 1Cor 3-18 (57i) Paradox >> Opposites >> More you profess wisdom, the less you have – Moses was considered the humblest of all men, in that he lived by his humility, and for this reason God honored him. This is more believable than Solomon being the wisest of all men, since he did not live by his wisdom. The only reason God honored Solomon was that he was the son of David, and God also wanted to show through Solomon that He can make good come from evil, Solomon being the son of Bathsheba, the wife of David. Solomon wrote the books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, two fabulous books overflowing with wisdom. The problem with Solomon was that he thought he was wise, and that is why he became a fool, marrying foreign women. They led him to worship other gods and sacrifice to their demons, which led to the condemnation of the entire nation of Israel with the result of being deported to Babylon in the late sixth century BC. Solomon was not solely responsible for Israel’s downfall, though he was the seed that led their nation into idol worship. Behind every idol is a demon, which not only led them into further idol worship, but also into anguish and torment, and bondage by other countries with the result of losing their place and their nation. This is all the result of sensing they had arrived at wisdom. The only way to counteract this is through humility. Moses never had any of these problems and he never led Israel in the wrong direction. He only made one mistake due to pride, when he pounded his staff instead of speaking to the rock at the springs of Meribah (Numbers 20,8-13). Moses lost sight for a moment about who was in charge. See also: Solomon; Jm 3-17; 89b (89h) Thy kingdom come >> Fear of God is the beginning of wisdom >> Wisdom of the Spirit – Paul is not referring to the wisdom of God but to the wisdom of the world. God has made His wisdom available to us, and Paul would not deter anyone for pursuing it. On the contrary, if any man thinks he is wise in his own eyes, humiliation is coming, that he may learn to seek the wisdom of God. Man’s wisdom is foolishness to God, primarily because it is rooted in a temporal mindset. Man’s wisdom is on a timer that is ticking; and when it dings, the man who thinks he is wise will die. So much of what people thought was true 200 years ago is now obsolete. So, if we think man’s wisdom was foolish 200 years ago, how foolish does God think of our wisdom today? Eternity itself will test the wisdom of the world and find it lacking. Every man is destined to die, then God will judge him, and those who go to hell are proven foolish by their wisdom that led them there, and those who go to heaven were following the wisdom of the Spirit. Is there a place for man’s wisdom in eternity? It is nullified! (94p) Thy kingdom come >> Perspective >> False perspective in the Church (96g) Thy kingdom come >> Attitude >> Positive attitude about yourself – There is no such thing as a person who is truly wise; therefore, a positive attitude about self is one of humility, which is always open to more wisdom. We don’t like people making fools of us, but once we realize our foolishness, we accept the need to become wise. The person who thinks he is already wise doesn’t seek wisdom, thinking he already has it. 1Cor 1-22 says, “Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom [philosophy].” The Jews didn’t need philosophy; they had their Old Testament. What they wanted was a sign that indicated fulfillment of prophecy. Meanwhile, the gentiles who didn’t believe in the Old Testament sought their own wisdom, and they had no choice but to scribble their knowledge from scratch, and so they made observations, and Satan, the ruler of this world who controls the mind of society, led them to all the wrong conclusions. No one ever happened upon the truth of God without the Holy Spirit leading him. So we have two choices: we either think we are wise, or we understand we are fools. With humility we possess all things and are open to wisdom and develop an objective viewpoint. (181h) Works of the devil >> The origin of lawlessness >> Deception >> Self deception >> Imaginary perception of self >> Distorted perception of self – Paul was saying that the one devoid of humility is self-deceived, and at the root of false wisdom is self-deception (pride), whereas the humble person can learn. We would be wise to run from him, because he intends to hurt us. Humility can discern wisdom. The person who appears to have wisdom minus humility is the most dangerous of all. He sharpens his sword in our presence and brandishes his teeth in his speech, and his only intent is to tear us to pieces and consume us like a lion with a gazelle. Without humility no one has a choice but to abuse every form of knowledge he possesses. Humility can be faked, yet there is one foolproof acid test that divides between true humility and lying deceivers: whether they can receive instruction. If they can learn from us, then we can trust them, but if they reject our sound doctrine, beware of them. (223b) Kingdom of God >> The elusive Kingdom of Heaven >> Conceit >> Thinking you are superior to others >> Having an inflated opinion of self KJV WEB / Navigation Bar 1Cor 3,21-23 (33l) Gift of God >> Believers are special to God >> He has given us all things – We know that Christ is sitting on His Father’s throne, at the right-hand of His power (Eph 1,19-22), and He will seat us with Christ also at His right hand. God’s very throne is something He never offered Lucifer, the prince of angels. In fact, we could even say that this is the reason he fell into sin; he was seeking the throne of God, but He freely offered it to man to spite Lucifer, who is now Satan. Lucifer sought the throne of God and ended up losing everything. God had given him this present creation, the entire universe, by evidence that it is cursed, yet Lucifer could not stop ruminating about God's throne, being the one thing He had not given him, so instead of accepting the fact, he sought to take His throne by force, thus God’s throne was Lucifer’s Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. God spoke to him like He did to Adam: ‘Of the universe you may freely possess, but of my throne you shall not, for in the day that you seek it you shall surely die.’ He convinced a third of the heavenly angels to follow him in this impossible endeavor, and they all lost everything, and they will ultimately find their place in the lake of fire, because of his lack of contentment. See also: Satan wanted to be God; he wanted His throne; Eph 1,3-11; 212a (34a) Believer Owns Everything (Key verse) (34e) Gift of God >> Believer owns everything >> All things belong to us – All things belong to those who belong to Jesus. Not only will we inherit eternity and the Kingdom of Heaven, we will inherit the new creation that God will specially design for his people. It will never pass away. It will be a place where death and destruction, rust and decay do not exist; how can the wisdom of man compete with that? Eternity is more than enough time, and since our inheritance will never end, infinity is more than enough galaxies full of planets supporting life to completely vindicate the children of God and prove their wisdom. Those who refuse to serve the living God and His divine justice, rather, preferring their own ideas and invent their own truth and develop their own wisdom that has an expiration date stamped on it even according to man, will learn the hard way that there is no reward outside of serving God. The world cannot see past its own mortality; if man’s wisdom does not last forever, then it is useless. (35c) Gift of God >> God is willing to Give >> God’s immeasurable generosity – Everything in eternity belongs to us. We are about to enter into eternal life and be ushered into the Kingdom of Heaven, and then everything will be ours. We will not just be guests in His house; we will inherit His entire kingdom as His sons and daughters. As the children inherit their parents estate when they die, so we have inherited the Kingdom of Heaven through the death of Christ, and the fact that He was raised means that He is head of it. No matter how many people inherit the kingdom with us, no matter what is the next phase of God’s plan, God will give us authority over His kingdom and future creations through Christ, for He has seated us on His throne (Eph 1,19-22; 2,4-7). (70ja) Authority >> Believer’s authority >> We have been given authority over all creation >> We are the children of God >> We have a place on His throne – Paul made a list of things that belong to us, but what is not on the list is eternity past. This is not something we will understand, nor will we ever wrap our heads around the fact that God does not have a creator. All other mysteries God will reveal to us in His time, but His past will forever remain a mystery, for how can we know what we cannot experience? The future is another story; Ecclesiastes 3-11 says that God has set eternity in man’s heart. This acknowledgement of eternity is recognition that our soul instinctively knows it will live forever. We can’t fathom this now, but we will when God gives us bodies that cannot die. Then we will be immortal. That is, we will understand eternity after God abolishes death. Unbelievers merely deceive themselves when they ignore the fact that their bodies are slated for the grave. (213i) Sovereignty >> God is infinite >> Jesus owns you >> His will becomes our will >> We are God’s property (238e) Kingdom of God >> Pursuing the kingdom >> Transferring the kingdom >> The kingdom is transferred to the Church >> New creation >> The new creation is our spiritual identity – God will create a new Adam and Eve and place them on the new earth, and this time there won’t be a Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, and He will command them to be fruitful and multiply throughout eternity. They will not just fill the earth but the entire universe, and he will assign us as stewards over them, and they will colonize one planet after another. Since this new race of man will not have the knowledge of evil, God will give us charge over his descendants to teach them about these things. See also: New heavens and a new earth (Church is wife of the Lamb); Mat 22-30; 3e (243l) Kingdom of God >> The eternal kingdom >> There shall be no end to His increase >> God's kingdom is Infinite >> We will reign with Christ forever (253j) Trinity >> Relationship between Father and Son >> Jesus is subject to the Father >> Jesus is under the authority of the Father >> Jesus obtained power through subjection to the Father KJV WEB / Navigation Bar 1Cor 3-21 (77e) Thy kingdom come >> Humility >> Refusing the glory of man >> Refusing to be exalted by men – When Paul said, “all thing belong to us,” it was an all-inclusive statement, meaning God intends to give us literally everything! Therefore, what is the point of boasting in men when everything we possess comes from God? He will one day destroy the present universe, so what we have accomplished in this life and the things we currently possess will be completely destroyed. Then He will create a new heavens and a new earth and give us the new creation as our inheritance. (195f) Denying Christ >> Man exercises his will against God >> Idolatry >> Worshipping men >> Idolizing men – At the end of the workweek our boss hands us a check, and he thinks we are dependent on him, but he owed us our paycheck. Our lives are not hinged on him but on God, who has freely given us our lives and our health…. There is a place prepared for those who don’t believe God is good. It is a place with everything about God taken from it, justifiably called hell. This exemplifies what James said, “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow” (Jm 1-17). Therefore, we know that the Father is the origin of all things, and He has freely given all things to His Son, who in turn freely gives all things to His children who believe in Him. See next page