1. 1 Cor. 1: Verse 1 - Paul called to be an Apostle of Christ Jesus. Verse 2 - To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be His holy people. A Beautiful Mess

2. 1 Corinthians “The church was in the world as it should be. But that the world was now in the church as it should not be.” A Beautiful Mess

3. Proclaiming Christ Crucified! 1 Corinthians 2:1-5

4. 1 Cor. 2:1-5 A Beautiful Mess 2 negative statements, how Paul did not come to Corinth. 2 positive statements, how Paul did come to Corinth. The reason why he came the way He did The goal of why he came the way he did.

5. 2 Negative Statements Verse 1: "When I came to you, brothers and sisters, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God." Verse 4: "My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words." A Beautiful Mess

6. 2 Positive Statements A Beautiful Mess Verse 3: "I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling.” Verse 4. After saying that his message and preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, he goes on to say positively, that his message and preaching came "with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power."

7. Paul’s Weakness 2 Cor. 10:10 Galatians 4:13-14 2 Cor. 12:9 A Beautiful Mess

8. Paul’s Fear & Trembling No proud air about him. No swagger or vanity, no flashiness or arrogance Meekness His great inadequacy and the high importance of the Gospel message. He was a frail insufficient human being and that the stakes were eternally high. The reality of physical danger. A Beautiful Mess

9. The Reason Why? Verse 2 "because I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified." A Beautiful Mess

10. Power Verses 4 and 5 where Paul says that his message came with a "demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on the wisdom of men but on the power of God." 1 Cor. 1:17, "Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel - not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power." A Beautiful Mess

11. Application Jesus died on the Cross so that we can live in comfort. “Jesus was soaked in blood so that I can soak in a Jacuzzi. And the bigger the Jacuzzi, the more we honour the cross.” Luke 9:23, "If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily and follow Me." A Beautiful Mess

12. Application For the Christian the cross of Christ is not merely a past place of substitution. It is also a present place of daily execution. Never let the cross lose its crucifying power in your life! Never let it slip into the past as though Christ died for sinners so that you can live for pleasure. A Beautiful Mess

13. Paul’s Goal To get out of the way of the power of God. The thought that anyone might pin their hope or their faith on his eloquence or wisdom was a dreadful thought to Paul. All he wanted was to proclaim Christ crucified so that the power of the cross could save sinners. A Beautiful Mess