1Corinthians 1-2; Psalms 141

Greetings from Paul

1This letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and from our brother Sosthenes.G3972G2822G652G2424G5547G1223G2307G2316G2532G4988G80

2I am writing to God's church in Corinth

, to you who have been called by God to be his own holy people. He made you holy by means of Christ Jesus, just as he did for all people everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours.G1577G2316G3588G5607G1722G2882G37G1722G5547G2424G2822G40G4862G3956G1722G3956G5117G1941G3686G2424G5547G2257G2962G5037G846G2532G2257

3May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.G5485G5213G2532G1515G575G2316G2257G3962G2532G2962G2424G5547

Paul Gives Thanks to God

4I always thank my God for you and for the gracious gifts he has given you, now that you belong to Christ Jesus.G2168G3450G2316G3842G4012G5216G4012G1909G5485G2316G3588G1325G5213G1722G2424G5547

5Through him, God has enriched your church in every way—with all of your eloquent words and all of your knowledge.G3754G1722G3956G4148G1722G846G1722G3956G3056G2532G3956G1108

6This confirms that what I told you about Christ is true.G2531G3142G5547G950G1722G5213

7Now you have every spiritual gift you need as you eagerly wait for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ.G5620G5209G5302G1722G3361G3367G5486G553G602G2257G2962G2424G5547

8He will keep you strong to the end so that you will be free from all blame on the day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns.G3739G950G2532G950G5209G2193G5056G410G1722G2250G2257G2962G2424G5547

9God will do this, for he is faithful to do what he says, and he has invited you into partnership with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.G2316G4103G1223G3739G2564G1519G2842G846G5207G2424G5547G2257G2962

Divisions in the Church

10I appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters

, by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, to live in harmony with each other. Let there be no divisions in the church. Rather, be of one mind, united in thought and purpose.G1161G3870G5209G80G1223G3686G2257G2962G2424G5547G2443G3004G3956G3004G846G2532G5600G3361G4978G1722G5213G1161G5600G2675G1722G846G3563G2532G1722G846G1106

11For some members of Chloe's household have told me about your quarrels, my dear brothers and sisters.G1063G1213G3427G4012G5216G3450G80G5259G3588G5514G3754G1526G2054G1722G5213

12Some of you are saying, "I am a follower of Paul." Others are saying, "I follow Apollos," or "I follow Peter

," or "I follow only Christ."G1161G5124G3004G3754G1538G5216G3004G1473G3303G1510G3972G1161G1473G625G1161G1473G2786G1161G1473G5547

13Has Christ been divided into factions? Was I, Paul, crucified for you? Were any of you baptized in the name of Paul? Of course not!G3307G5547G3307G3361G4717G3972G4717G5228G5216G2228G907G1519G3686G3972

14I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius,G2168G2316G3754G907G3762G5216G1508G2921G2532G1050

15for now no one can say they were baptized in my name.G3363G5100G2036G3754G907G1519G1699G3686

16(Oh yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas, but I don't remember baptizing anyone else.)G1161G907G2532G3624G4734G3063G1492G3756G907G1536G243

17For Christ didn't send me to baptize, but to preach the Good News—and not with clever speech, for fear that the cross of Christ would lose its power.G1063G5547G649G3165G3756G907G235G2097G3756G1722G4678G3056G3363G4716G5547G2758

The Wisdom of God

18The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God.G1063G3056G4716G2076G3303G622G3472G1161G2254G4982G2076G1411G2316

19As the Scriptures say, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and discard the intelligence of the intelligent."

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20So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world's brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish.G4226G4680G4226G1122G4226G4804G5127G165G3471G3780G2316G3471G4678G5127G2889

21Since God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe.G1063G1894G1722G4678G2316G2889G1223G4678G1097G3756G2316G2106G2316G1223G3472G2782G4982G4100

22It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven. And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom.G2532G1894G2453G154G4592G2532G1672G2212G4678

23So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it's all nonsense.G1161G2249G2784G5547G4717G2453G3303G4625G1161G1672G3472

24But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles

, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God.G1161G846G3588G2822G5037G2453G2532G1672G5547G1411G2316G2532G4678G2316

25This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God's weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength.G3754G3474G2316G2076G4680G444G2532G772G2316G2076G2478G444

26Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world's eyes or powerful or wealthy

when God called you.G1063G991G5216G2821G80G3754G3756G4183G4680G2596G4561G3756G4183G1415G3756G4183G2104

27Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful.G235G2316G1586G3474G2889G2443G2617G4680G2532G2316G1586G772G2889G2443G2617G2478

28God chose things despised by the world

, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important.G2532G36G2889G2532G1848G1586G2316G1586G2532G3588G5607G3361G2443G2673G5607

29As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God.G3704G3361G3956G4561G2744G1799G846

30God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin.G1161G1537G846G2075G5210G1722G5547G2424G3739G575G2316G1096G2254G5037G4678G1343G2532G38G2532G629

31Therefore, as the Scriptures say, "If you want to boast, boast only about the LORD."

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Paul’s Message of Wisdom

2When I first came to you, dear brothers and sisters

, I didn't use lofty words and impressive wisdom to tell you God's secret plan.G2504G80G2064G4314G5209G2064G3756G2596G5247G3056G2228G4678G2605G5213G3142G2316 2For I decided that while I was with you I would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified.G1063G2919G3756G1492G5100G1722G5213G1508G2424G5547G2532G5126G4717 3I came to you in weakness—timid and trembling.G2532G1473G1096G4314G5209G1722G769G2532G1722G5401G2532G1722G4183G5156 4And my message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit.G2532G3450G3056G2532G3450G2782G3756G1722G3981G3056G442G4678G235G1722G585G4151G2532G1411 5I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of God.G2443G5216G4102G5600G3361G5600G1722G4678G444G235G1722G1411G2316 6Yet when I am among mature believers, I do speak with words of wisdom, but not the kind of wisdom that belongs to this world or to the rulers of this world, who are soon forgotten.G1161G2980G4678G1722G5046G1161G3756G4678G5127G165G3761G758G5127G165G2673 7No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God

—his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began.G235G2980G4678G2316G1722G3466G613G3739G2316G4309G4253G165G1519G2257G1391 8But the rulers of this world have not understood it; if they had, they would not have crucified our glorious Lord.G3739G3762G758G5127G165G1097G1487G1063G1097G302G4717G3756G4717G2962G1391 9That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him."

G235G2531G1125G3739G3788G1492G3756G1492G2532G3756G3775G191G2532G3756G305G1909G2588G444G3739G2316G2090G25G846 10But

it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God's deep secrets.G1161G2316G601G2254G1223G846G4151G1063G4151G2045G3956G2532G899G2316 11No one can know a person's thoughts except that person's own spirit, and no one can know God's thoughts except God's own Spirit.G1063G5101G444G1492G3588G444G1508G4151G444G3588G1722G846G2532G3779G3588G2316G1492G3762G1508G4151G2316 12And we have received God's Spirit (not the world's spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.G1161G2249G2983G3756G4151G2889G235G4151G3588G1537G2316G2443G1492G5483G2254G5259G2316 13When we tell you these things, we do not use words that come from human wisdom. Instead, we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit's words to explain spiritual truths

.G3739G2532G2980G3756G1722G3056G442G4678G1318G235G40G4151G1722G1318G4793G4152G4152 14But people who aren't spiritual

can't receive these truths from God's Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can't understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means.G1161G5591G444G1209G3756G3588G4151G2316G1063G2076G3472G846G2532G3756G1410G1097G3754G4153G350 15Those who are spiritual can evaluate all things, but they themselves cannot be evaluated by others.G1161G4152G350G3303G3956G1161G846G350G5259G3762 16For, "Who can know the LORD's thoughts? Who knows enough to teach him?"

But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.G1063G5101G1097G3563G2962G3739G4822G846G1161G2249G2192G3563G5547

141[A psalm of David.] O Lord, I am calling to you. Please hurry! Listen when I cry to you for help!H4210H1732H3068H7121H2363H238H6963H7121 2Accept my prayer as incense offered to you, and my upraised hands as an evening offering.H8605H3559H6440H7004H4864H3709H6153H4503 3Take control of what I say, O Lord, and guard my lips.H7896H8108H3068H6310H5341H1817H8193 4Don’t let me drift toward evil or take part in acts of wickedness. Don’t let me share in the delicacies of those who do wrong.H5186H3820H7451H1697H5953H7562H5949H376H6466H205H3898H4516 5Let the godly strike me! It will be a kindness! If they correct me, it is soothing medicine. Don’t let me refuse it. But I pray constantly against the wicked and their deeds.H6662H1986H2617H3198H7218H8081H5106H7218H8605H7451 6When their leaders are thrown down from a cliff, the wicked will listen to my words and find them true.H8199H8058H5553H3027H8085H561H5276 7Like rocks brought up by a plow, the bones of the wicked will lie scattered without burial

.H6106H6340H7585H6310H6398H1234H776 8I look to you for help, O Sovereign Lord. You are my refuge; don’t them kill me.H5869H3069H136H2620H6168H5315H6168 9Keep me from the traps they have set for me, from the snares of those who do wrong.H8104H3027H6341H3369H4170H6466H205 10Let the wicked fall into their own nets, but let me escape.H7563H5307H4364H3162H5674

1Corinthians 1-2; Psalms 141 - Prayer Tents

Greetings from Paul

Paul Gives Thanks to God

Divisions in the Church

The Wisdom of God

Paul’s Message of Wisdom