2You'll remember, friends, that when I first came to you to let you in on God's master stroke, I didn't try to impress you with polished speeches and the latest philosophy.G2504G80G2064G4314G5209G2064G3756G2596G5247G3056G2228G4678G2605G5213G3142G23162I deliberately kept it plain and simple: first Jesus and who he is; then Jesus and what he did—Jesus crucified.G1063G2919G3756G1492G5100G1722G5213G1508G2424G5547G2532G5126G47173I was unsure of how to go about this, and felt totally inadequate—I was scared to death, if you want the truth of it—G2532G1473G1096G4314G5209G1722G769G2532G1722G5401G2532G1722G4183G51564and so nothing I said could have impressed you or anyone else. But the Message came through anyway. God's Spirit and God's power did it,G2532G3450G3056G2532G3450G2782G3756G1722G3981G3056G442G4678G235G1722G585G4151G2532G14115which made it clear that your life of faith is a response to God's power, not to some fancy mental or emotional footwork by me or anyone else.G2443G5216G4102G5600G3361G5600G1722G4678G444G235G1722G1411G23166We, of course, have plenty of wisdom to pass on to you once you get your feet on firm spiritual ground, but it's not popular wisdom, the fashionable wisdom of high-priced experts that will be out-of-date in a year or so.G1161G2980G4678G1722G5046G1161G3756G4678G5127G165G3761G758G5127G165G26737God's wisdom is something mysterious that goes deep into the interior of his purposes. You don't find it lying around on the surface. It's not the latest message, but more like the oldest—what God determined as the way to bring out his best in us, long before we ever arrived on the scene.G235G2980G4678G2316G1722G3466G613G3739G2316G4309G4253G165G1519G2257G13918The experts of our day haven't a clue about what this eternal plan is. If they had, they wouldn't have killed the Master of the God-designed life on a cross.G3739G3762G758G5127G165G1097G1487G1063G1097G302G4717G3756G4717G2962G13919That's why we have this Scripture text: No one's ever seen or heard anything like this, Never so much as imagined anything quite like it— What God has arranged for those who love him.G235G2531G1125G3739G3788G1492G3756G1492G2532G3756G3775G191G2532G3756G305G1909G2588G444G3739G2316G2090G25G84610But you've seen and heard it because God by his Spirit has brought it all out into the open before you. The Spirit, not content to flit around on the surface, dives into the depths of God, and brings out what God planned all along.G1161G2316G601G2254G1223G846G4151G1063G4151G2045G3956G2532G899G231611Who ever knows what you're thinking and planning except you yourself? The same with God—except that he not only knows what he's thinking,G1063G5101G444G1492G3588G444G1508G4151G444G3588G1722G846G2532G3779G3588G2316G1492G3762G1508G4151G231612but he lets us in on it. God offers a full report on the gifts of life and salvation that he is giving us.G1161G2249G2983G3756G4151G2889G235G4151G3588G1537G2316G2443G1492G5483G2254G5259G231613We don't have to rely on the world's guesses and opinions. We didn't learn this by reading books or going to school; we learned it from God, who taught us person-to-person through Jesus, and we're passing it on to you in the same firsthand, personal way.G3739G2532G2980G3756G1722G3056G442G4678G1318G235G40G4151G1722G1318G4793G4152G415214The unspiritual self, just as it is by nature, can't receive the gifts of God's Spirit. There's no capacity for them. They seem like so much silliness. Spirit can be known only by spirit—God's Spirit and our spirits in open communion.G1161G5591G444G1209G3756G3588G4151G2316G1063G2076G3472G846G2532G3756G1410G1097G3754G4153G35015Spiritually alive, we have access to everything God's Spirit is doing, and can't be judged by unspiritual critics.G1161G4152G350G3303G3956G1161G846G350G5259G376216Isaiah's question, "Is there anyone around who knows God's Spirit, anyone who knows what he is doing?" has been answered: Christ knows, and we have Christ's Spirit.G1063G5101G1097G3563G2962G3739G4822G846G1161G2249G2192G3563G5547
Prayer Tents is a Christian mission organization that serves Christians around the world and their local bodies to make disciples ("evangelize") more effectively in their communities. Prayer Tents provides resources to enable Christians to form discipleship-focused small groups and make their gatherings known so that other "interested" people may participate and experience Christ in their midst. Our Vision is to make disciples in all nations through the local churches so that anyone seeking God can come to know Him through relationships with other Christians near them.
Columbus, OH
