The Apostle had a single focus in his mission. He proclaimed in I Corinthians 2:2, “For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” In his pagan culture he emphasized this primary doctrine at the very outset. He also described this message was not his own but he was speaking through the Spirit of Christ. He described in 2:4, “And my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power.”

The book of First Corinthians was written to a people in a pagan culture that is not much different than our own. The Apostle Paul was called to plant a church in Corinth that had very little Jewish and Christian background. It was a strategic commercial city between two seaports with a reputation for worldliness and licentiousness. His mission was to teach the truths of Christ as their relationships and worship were in serious disarray. The method for church growth that Paul used was the theological evangelism of the cross of Christ and Him crucified. This is the same emphatic approach that is needed today in our pagan and secular culture.

Paul first appeals to the leaders of the church to be united in the name of Christ. He says in 1:10, “I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.” A clear sign that a church has departed from the truth of Scripture is when the leadership is focused on people and individual perspectives instead of on Christ. In Corinth some followed Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or Christ. Paul recognized this problem immediately and asked in 1:13, “Is Christ divided? Was Paul baptized for you?” He understood that divisions in leadership are devastating to the life of the church. They needed to be “united in the same mind” with the teachings of Christ, as divisiveness is a Spiritual cancer that will destroy the message of Christ.

A united leadership in Christ is necessary to clarify the unique message of Christ. There is only one way of salvation and this is through Christ alone. The message of the self-sacrifice of Christ was particularly offensive to the hedonistic lifestyles of the Corinthians. But Paul explains in 1:18 that the gospel is foolishness to the world, “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” To consider that a Jewish carpenter from Nazareth who was executed on a Roman cross could be the Savior of the world was complete nonsense to them. And so it has been in every culture since then as well.

Paul then describes in 1:27, “But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong.” Jesus was a complete failure in the Corinthian’s eyes, yet they were lost and needed a Savior that could forgive their sins and give them a new Spiritual nature. They did not see this Spiritual reality and they needed the risen Christ with the message of eternal life. The church still needs to be united in proclaiming this Christ who is foolish in the contemporary culture but has the message of eternal life.

The Apostle had a single focus in his mission. He proclaimed in 2:2, “For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” In his pagan culture he emphasized this primary doctrine at the very outset. He also described this message was not his own but he was speaking through the Spirit of Christ. He described in 2:4, “And my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power.” Why would this be? Paul continued in 2:5, “so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” The way of the natural man is to persuade people by the wisdom of the world and the eloquence of men. He further explained in 2:13, “And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual.” Paul’s message was not his own but from God, and this was confirmed by the Spirit of God.

Even more, Paul described in 2:14, “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.” From this it is clear that people must first be spiritually regenerated to understand the truth of Christ. All men naturally trust in their own strength and achievements in the world, for they are dead spiritually. Paul’s unflinching message however focused on proclaiming the foolishness of Christ, and that all people must first be awakened to the truth of Christ. From this point all ministries in the church can grow and blossom.

The gospel of Christ is the power that can regenerate and sanctify men to God. It is essential that there be unity in church leadership to proclaim this truth, which is the mind and judgment of Christ. First Corinthians calls the church to center its message in proclaiming the salvation of Jesus Christ, and to not trust in the strength of men or the ways of the world. It is the gospel of foolishness to the world, but it is the wisdom of God in Christ. This truth is needed in all cultures, and especially today in the Presbyterian Church in America; to ensure its own preservation, and to bring the Light of Christ to the world.

David C. Massee is a member and ruling elder in Christ Covenant Reformed Church. He is the author of The Truth Appeal: Discovering the Eternal Light for Living in Christian Faith