<1 Co 2> 1 And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. 2 For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3 I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. 4 My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, 5 so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.

1. Resist the temptation to exalt human wisdom.

1) Temptation to flaunt our own wisdom.

2) Temptation to seek and trust human wisdom.

2. The single focus on “Christ and Him crucified”.

• The Person and Work of Christ.

1) Difficulty of just sticking to one topic – “Christ and Him crucified”.

• The problem of distractions.
• Crucifixion is abhorrent to most people.

2) Yet, “Christ and Him crucified” is central message of the gospel.

• Atonement for our sins.
• Opposing belief – “justification by death” (as R.C. Sproul put it)
  • Upon death, automatically go to heaven.
  • Lopsided understanding of God’s character (only love but neglect holiness)
  • The sure thing that death brings us is judgment, not justification.
    • <Heb 9:27> Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.

[Main pt 2 too long, break into 2 or more slides]

2) Yet, “Christ and Him crucified” is central message of the gospel.

• Realise the heavy price of sin.
• Realise need for Christ.
• Assurance of forgiveness.
• Make us hate sins.
• “Christ and Him crucified” captures the complete gospel message without skewness.
  • Christ’s cross is where God’s mercy and righteousness met.
• “Christ and Him crucified” can unite Christians.

3. Weakness, great fear and trembling  The Spirit’s power.

• Weakness and fear cannot be an excuse.
• God’s power is made perfect in (human) weakness <2 Co 12:9>.
• Our talents and strengths do nothing to add on to the power of the gospel.
• <v5> “so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power”.
• What it means to believe in the crucified Christ?
  • Die to worldliness and sin.
  • <Gal 6:14> May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.
  • <Ro 6:6> For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin.