Something is Amiss

Something is amiss in the way we come to know things.

The Jewish people had Torah, God's own guidance and instruction for them. They had the prophets who interpreted Torah for their unique circumstances and called them to repentance.  And yet, it wasn't enough. Jesus had to to challenge and correct their interpretation. He says, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.”

The Greeks and the Romans had philosophy and rhetoric. They had a tradition of wisdom literature that we continue to study today and masterful expositions of metaphysics and politics. And yet, it wasn't enough.  Paul had to challenge and correct their expectations. He said, “When I came to you, I did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom.”

Neither Jews nor Greeks—gifted in their own ways—arrived naturally at knowledge of the Gospel. None of us does. The sort of knowledge that Jesus and Paul invite us to discover originates from elsewhere and expresses itself in different, surprising—perhaps shocking—ways. Paul says that Gospel knowledge is not “of this age,” not a “spirit of this world,” “not taught by human wisdom,” not understood by “the natural man” or “the rulers of this world.” Rather, its source is the Holy Spirit, its content is Messiah Jesus and him crucified, and its location is in his followers.  

This Sunday, we'll explore a passage from Paul's letter to the Church in Corinth. There, we'll see that the way we know is grounded in who knows us.