New Life Bible Fellowship Church
2/15/2026

      • Psalm 95:1–3KJV1900

  • Fill Me Now
  • How Great the Wisdom

      • Proverbs 12KJV1900

  • Introduction:

    For five weeks now, Paul has been relentlessly critiquing wisdom. The word of the cross is foolishness to the perishing (1:18). God chose the foolish to shame the wise (1:27). Paul came not with lofty speech or wisdom (2:1). His message was not in persuasive words of wisdom (2:4). Week after week, wisdom has been on trial, under indictment, exposed as bankrupt.
    And now Paul says this: "Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom" (2:6).
    Wait—what? After all that, Paul does speak wisdom?
    This is the crucial turn in Paul's argument. He is not anti-intellectual. He is not against wisdom per se. He is against a particular kind of wisdom—the wisdom of this age, the wisdom of the rulers of this age, human wisdom operating independently of divine revelation. That wisdom is indeed bankrupt. That wisdom crucified the Lord of glory. That wisdom cannot find God.
    But there is another wisdom—God's wisdom, secret and hidden, decreed before the ages for our glory. This wisdom was not discovered by human investigation; it was revealed by the Spirit. Eye has not seen it, ear has not heard it, the human heart has not imagined it. But God has disclosed it—to us, through His Spirit.
    This morning’s passage answers a question that has been lurking beneath the surface: If human wisdom cannot find God, how does anyone come to know Him? If the natural mind sees the cross as foolishness, how does anyone see it as power? Paul's answer is the Holy Spirit. The Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. The Spirit reveals what no human faculty could discover. The Spirit gives us the very mind of Christ.
    Here is the great divide in humanity—not between educated and uneducated, sophisticated and simple, but between the "natural person" (ψυχικός) who cannot receive the things of the Spirit and the "spiritual person" (πνευματικός) who discerns them. The difference is not IQ; it is illumination. The difference is not achievement; it is gift.
    So Paul has not been attacking wisdom itself. He has been clearing the ground—demolishing the pretensions of human wisdom so that we might receive the true wisdom that comes only from God, only through the Spirit, only in Christ.
    Today we discover what that wisdom is, where it comes from, and how we receive it.

    Text: 1 Corinthians 2:6-16

    1 Corinthians 2:6–16 ESV
    6 Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away. 7 But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. 8 None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9 But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”— 10 these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. 11 For who knows a person’s thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. 13 And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. 14 The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. 15 The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. 16 “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.

    Main Idea: Since true wisdom is God's hidden plan, it is therefore revealed by the Spirit to those who have the mind of Christ.

    Background:

    Paul's use of "mystery" draws on Jewish apocalyptic tradition—God's hidden plan, long concealed, now revealed in Christ and openly proclaimed. The "rulers of this age" who crucified Jesus were likely both human authorities and the demonic powers behind them.
    The quotation in verse 9, summarizes the Old Testament theme that God's blessings exceed all human discovery—only divine revelation can disclose them.
    Paul's contrast between the "natural person" (ψυχικός) and the "spiritual person" (πνευματικός) is not about intellect or morality but about whether one has received the Spirit who alone enables perception of divine truth.
    The Spirit searches God's depths, reveals what cannot otherwise be known, and grants believers "the mind of Christ"—the capacity to see reality from Christ's perspective. This is not enhanced human intelligence but a fundamentally new way of knowing, available only through the Spirit's gift.

    I. A Secret Wisdom for the Mature (6-9)

    6 Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away.
    Yet - The conjunction δέ marks a transition—and here, a surprising one. After relentlessly critiquing wisdom in 1:18-2:5, Paul now says he does speak wisdom. The δέ signals a qualification: "Yet, on the other hand, we do speak wisdom..."
    This is not a contradiction but a clarification. Paul has been attacking worldly wisdom, human wisdom, wisdom of this age. He is not against wisdom as such. There is a true wisdom—God's wisdom—and Paul does proclaim it.
    among the mature - most likely, in the context of this passage and the next, this refers to All Christians: Every believer who has received the Spirit is "mature" in the sense of being initiated into divine wisdom. This would contrast Christians (the mature) with non-Christians (the natural person of v. 14).
    we do impart - The verb λαλέω means "to speak, to talk, to utter." It is a common word for verbal communication. The present tense indicates ongoing action: "We speak, we keep speaking, this is what we do." The first person plural ("we") includes Paul and his apostolic colleagues—those who proclaim the gospel.
    wisdom - The word σοφία appears first in the sentence for emphasis. After all the negative statements about wisdom, Paul now affirms: "Wisdom—yes, wisdom—we do speak."
    although it is not a wisdom of this age - Paul immediately qualifies what kind of wisdom he means. He speaks wisdom—but not the wisdom he has been critiquing. The repetition of σοφίαν is emphatic: "Wisdom we speak... wisdom, however, not of this age."
    or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away - The present tense is significant: the rulers are being brought to nothing. The process is underway. The cross has already inaugurated their defeat, even if the final consummation awaits.
    The passive voice indicates that God is the agent. God is nullifying these powers.
    The rulers of this age appear powerful. They crucified Jesus. They oppose the gospel. But they are already being dismantled. Their wisdom is already obsolete. Their authority is already undermined.
    7 But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory.
    But - The strong adversative marks the contrast with verse 6b. Not the wisdom of this age, but God's wisdom.
    we impart - Again, the verb λαλέω means "to speak, to talk, to utter”, is now going to declare what kind of wisdom they are speaking of:
    secret and hidden - The idea is that the wisdom Paul proclaims has the character of mystery—it was hidden and is now revealed. The hiddenness was purposeful, it is not self-evident to human reason; it required divine disclosure.
    wisdom of God - θεοῦ σοφίαν (theou sophian) — "God's wisdom" The word order places θεοῦ ("of God") before σοφίαν ("wisdom") for emphasis: "God's wisdom we speak." The genitive θεοῦ indicates:
    Source: Wisdom from God
    Possession: Wisdom belonging to God
    Character: Wisdom that is divine, not human
    which God decreed before the ages - This phrase takes us back before time began—before the ages of human history unfolded. God's wisdom is not a reaction to human sin or a Plan B. It was decreed in eternity, before creation. This emphasizes:
    The sovereignty of God: Nothing catches Him off guard. The cross was not an accident but an eternal purpose.
    The glory of the gospel: This is not a human invention but a divine design from before time.
    The stability of salvation: What God decreed before the ages cannot be undone by events within the ages.
    for our glory - This is striking. Elsewhere Paul says we have "fallen short of the glory of God" (Rom 3:23). Human beings have lost the glory they were meant to bear. But God's plan is to restore that glory.
    Romans 8:29–30 ESV
    29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.
    2 Corinthians 3:18 ESV
    18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.
    God's wisdom—the plan of redemption through Christ crucified—was designed from eternity to result in our glorification. We are destined for glory, not shame. The cross, which looks like shame, leads to glory.
    In contrast, Paul now says:
    8 None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
    None of the rulers of this age understood this - The statement is absolute: no one among the rulers understood. Not a single one. Their ignorance was complete.
    The verb γινώσκω means "to know, to understand, to recognize." The perfect tense indicates a state of knowledge (or here, non-knowledge) that continues: the rulers have not known and still do not know this wisdom.
    This is not mere intellectual ignorance. It is a failure to recognize, to perceive, to grasp the significance of God's plan, how do we know that…
    for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory
    The Contrary-to-Fact Conditional
    "If they had known" (but they didn't)
    "They would not have crucified" (but they did)
    The grammar makes clear: the rulers did not know, and they did crucify. Their ignorance led directly to their action.
    Jesus is the Lord of glory—the one in whom divine radiance dwells, the glorious one, the majestic one.
    The irony is devastating. The rulers, in their "wisdom," crucified the Lord of glory. They thought they were eliminating a threat. Instead, they were executing the divine plan, killing the source of all glory, and ensuring their own defeat.
    Had they truly understood, they would never have done it. The cross was their undoing—the very act that sealed their doom. Their wisdom led them to destroy themselves. Their wisdom was based on what Paul describes next:
    9 But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”—
    as it is written (καθὼς γέγραπται) is Paul's standard formula for introducing Scripture as authoritative witness. The perfect tense emphasizes the abiding authority: what was written stands written—it remains in force. Is 64:4
    Isaiah 64:4 ESV
    4 From of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear, no eye has seen a God besides you, who acts for those who wait for him.
    This quotation from the Old Testament summarizes the theme of God's incomprehensible blessings.
    What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined - The quotation uses three human faculties to emphasize what cannot access God's prepared blessings:
    Eye (ὀφθαλμός): Represents empirical observation, what we can see and perceive directly.
    Ear (οὖς): Represents what we learn from others, teaching, tradition, report.
    Heart (καρδία): In Hebrew thought, the heart is the center of intellect, will, and imagination—not merely emotion. "What the heart of man has not conceived" means what has not arisen in human thought, what imagination has not grasped.
    Together, these three cover all avenues of human knowledge:
    Direct observation (eye)
    Transmitted knowledge (ear)
    Imaginative conception (heart)
    what God has prepared for those who love him
    God has prepared - Given the context of verse 7 (predestined before the ages), God's preparation is eternal. These blessings were not an afterthought but part of the eternal plan.
    those who love him - These are believers—those who have responded to God's love with answering love, who have been called (Rom 8:28: "those who love God, who are called according to his purpose").
    However, even the called did not figure it out themselves, it took divine intervention since…

    II. The Spirit Reveals God's Depths (10-13)

    10 these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.
    these things God has revealed to us - What is inaccessible to natural human faculties has been disclosed to "us"—to Paul and his fellow believers.
    through the Spirit - The Spirit is the revealer—the one through whom God's hidden wisdom is disclosed. Without the Spirit, the wisdom remains hidden. With the Spirit, it is unveiled.
    For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God
    βάθος (bathos) — "Depth": The noun refers to deep insight;. "The depths of God" suggests:
    The innermost being of God
    The profoundest aspects of God's nature and plan
    What is most hidden and inaccessible
    The claim is staggering. The Spirit searches the depths of God—the infinite, incomprehensible, inexhaustible riches of the divine being.
    The Spirit's unique access to God's depths is the basis for revelation. Because the Spirit is and knows God exhaustively, the Spirit can reveal what no human faculty could discover.
    Paul now further explains by using an analogy:
    11 For who knows a person’s thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. - The Analogy
    For who knows a person’s thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? - Paul uses an analogy from human experience to explain the Spirit's knowledge of God.
    A person's inner thoughts are private
    No outsider can directly access them
    Only the person's own spirit—their inner self—knows their thoughts
    This spirit is "in" the person (τὸ ἐν αὐτῷ)
    This is common human experience. We cannot read minds. We do not know another's thoughts unless they reveal them (communication). Only I know what I'm thinking inside.
    So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. - Just as the human spirit alone knows the human person's inner life, so the Spirit of God alone knows God's inner life. This refers to:
    God's thoughts, intentions, plans
    God's hidden wisdom
    The depths of God (v. 10)
    What God has prepared for those who love Him (v. 9)
    This is the Holy Spirit—the third person of the Trinity. The Spirit is to God what the human spirit is to the human person: the one who knows the inner life.
    But the analogy has limits. The human spirit is part of the human person, not a separate entity. The Spirit of God, however, is a distinct person within the Godhead—yet so intimately one with the Father and Son that He knows the divine depths exhaustively.
    Paul now brings this home to us by a further contrast:
    12 Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.
    Now we have received not the spirit of the world - Paul does not elaborate, but the contrast makes the meaning clear: we did not receive whatever animates the world's thinking. We received something else.
    but the Spirit who is from God - This emphasizes the Spirit's divine origin. The Spirit we received is not merely a human spirit, not a worldly spirit, but the Spirit from God—sent by God, originating in God, bearing God's own character.
    that (ina [purpose conjunction]) we might understand the things freely given ("to give freely, to grant as a favor, to bestow graciously.") us by God - The emphasis is on gift. What we have received from God. The Spirit enables us to understand grace—to perceive what we have been given, to grasp the gift. Paul now connects to this gift as the basis of our communication:
    13 And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual.
    And we impart this in words - The relative pronoun ἅ refers back to "the things graciously given us by God" (v. 12). Paul now describes how he communicates these things. The καί ("also") emphasizes: we not only know these things (v. 12) but speak them (v. 13).
    not taught by human wisdom - Paul does not use human wisdom as his source.
    but taught by the Spirit - Paul's vocabulary, concepts, and manner of expression are taught by the Spirit, not by human education. This does not mean Paul ignores grammar or language skills. But the content and shaping of his message comes from the Spirit.
    interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual - interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual, emphasizing that the medium matches the message—spiritual content requires Spirit-taught words. Paul communicates spiritual truths in Spirit-given words to Spirit-enabled people.
    So Paul once again explains to us why there is this great divide as he shows us…

    III. The Natural vs. Spiritual Person (14-16)

    14 The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.
    The natural person (ψυχικός (psychikos) — "Natural / Soulish") does not accept the things of the Spirit of God - This refers to everything the Spirit communicates:
    The gospel
    God's wisdom
    Spiritual truths
    What God has prepared for those who love Him
    for they are folly to him - The problem is not that spiritual things are objectively foolish. They are μωρία to him (αὐτῷ)—in his perception, from his perspective, given his limited capacity.
    he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned
    The problem is incapacity. Without the Spirit, the equipment for understanding is missing. It is like asking a blind person to see colors—not a moral failure but a functional impossibility.
    The reason the natural person cannot understand is that understanding requires spiritual capacity they lack. You cannot spiritually discern without the Spirit.
    The verse describes a closed loop: without the Spirit, spiritual things cannot be discerned. The natural person is locked out by their own incapacity. But in contrast…
    15 The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one.
    The spiritual person judges all things - ὁ πνευματικός (ho pneumatikos) — "The spiritual person"
    This is the contrast to ψυχικός (v. 14). The πνευματικός is the person who has the Spirit—the believer indwelt by God's Spirit. Remember Romans 8:9
    Romans 8:9 ESV
    9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.
    judges - ἀνακρίνει πάντα (anakrinei panta) — "Discerns all things"
    The same verb from verse 14. The spiritual person can do what the natural person cannot: examine, discern, judge spiritual realities.
    "All things" (πάντα) is comprehensive:
    Spiritual truths
    God's wisdom
    The things of the Spirit
    Even matters of life and conduct
    The Spirit gives capacity for comprehensive discernment.
    but is himself to be judged by no one - Paul is not saying that no one will judge us, but that the spiritual person—operating by the Spirit—is not subject to the incompetent assessment of the natural person. These judgments are meaningless…they hold no eternal weight.
    Romans 8:31–33 ESV
    31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? 33 Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.
    The Spirit creates a new knowledge capacity. Those who have it can evaluate all things; those who lack it cannot evaluate them. Paul now drives this home with a rhetorical question…
    16 “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
    For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him? - Paul maybe quoting from Paul Isaiah 40:13:
    Isaiah 40:13 ESV
    13 Who has measured the Spirit of the Lord, or what man shows him his counsel?
    Isaiah's point was God's incomparability. No one can fathom God; no one can advise Him. God's wisdom is beyond human capacity to assess or augment.
    The rhetorical question expects the answer: "No one." No human being has understood God's mind so as to be His instructor.
    But we have the mind of Christ. - The Stunning Claim
    After the rhetorical question expecting "no one," Paul adds: "But we have the mind of Christ."
    No one can instruct God. But we—through the Spirit—have Christ's own mind. To have "the mind of Christ" means:
    To share Christ's perspective
    To think as Christ thinks
    To evaluate as Christ evaluates
    To understand as Christ understands
    This is possible because:
    Christ is the wisdom of God (1:24, 30)
    The Spirit of Christ indwells believers
    The Spirit reveals the depths of God
    The context suggests all Spirit-indwelt believers are included as those who communicate this wisdom.
    In Summary:
    Clarification: We do speak wisdom—but God's hidden wisdom
    Proof of hiddenness: The rulers did not understand it
    The problem: human incapacity: What eye, ear, heart cannot access
    The solution: divine revelation: God has revealed to us through the Spirit
    The Spirit's unique competence: The Spirit searches God's depths
    The gift and its purpose: We received the Spirit to understand
    Spirit-enabled communication: We speak in Spirit-taught words
    The incapacity of the unregenerate: The natural person cannot receive
    The capacity of the regenerate: The spiritual person discerns all
    The climax: sharing Christ's perspective: We have the mind of Christ

    So What?

    Do we understand the immense value the Spirit's work?
    Without the Spirit, we would be as blind as the rulers of this age.
    Every insight into divine truth is a gift. Thank God for the Spirit.
    Do we understand that we are not to rely on human wisdom to understand God?
    Study is good, but the source of understanding is the Spirit, not the library. Pray for illumination.
    Do we understand that we should expect the world to see the gospel as foolishness?
    This is not failure; it is predicted. The natural person cannot receive. Our job is to proclaim faithfully; the Spirit must open eyes.
    Do we understand that we have been given the mind of Christ and therefore have the ability to exercise spiritual discernment?
    You have the Spirit. You can discern. Use this gift—in evaluating teaching, making decisions, navigating life.
    You have access to Christ's perspective. Ask: How does Christ see this situation? What does Christ's wisdom say? Let His mind shape yours.

      • 1 Corinthians 2:6–16ESV

      • 1 Corinthians 2:6ESV

      • 1 Corinthians 2:7ESV

      • Romans 8:29–30ESV

      • 2 Corinthians 3:18ESV

      • 1 Corinthians 2:8ESV

      • 1 Corinthians 2:9ESV

      • Isaiah 64:4ESV

      • 1 Corinthians 2:10ESV

      • 1 Corinthians 2:11ESV

      • 1 Corinthians 2:12ESV

      • 1 Corinthians 2:13ESV

      • 1 Corinthians 2:14ESV

      • 1 Corinthians 2:15ESV

      • Romans 8:9ESV

      • Romans 8:31–33ESV

      • 1 Corinthians 2:16ESV

      • Isaiah 40:13ESV

  • All I Have Is Christ
New Life Bible Fellowship Church
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