As the saying goes, “Talk is cheap.” Or another way to say the same thing is, “Don’t talk the talk if you can’t walk the walk.” We all know that it’s much easier to talk about doing the right thing compared to living the way we should. People are not judging us based on our words alone but on the example we set. 

The Bible says a similar thing in a more polished way. It says that the “kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power.” No doubt Paul had to be referring to the horrible tendency of talking boastfully while not living consistently. His point is to challenge those arrogant believers in Corinth who were bold in their talk but didn’t have the true power of God to live a life worthy of their calling. 

His words are a warning to us all. Beware of the danger of saying one thing while doing another. But it’s more than that. Paul is inviting us to experience Christianity as more than “mere words.” We are invited to receive the very power of God Himself alive in us by His Spirit. Following Jesus as Lord translates to having divine energy animating all areas of our lives.

We need the power of God to resurrect us spiritually because we are dead in our trespasses and sins. As a result of our spiritual death, God designed “good news,” i.e., the Gospel, to be His power to awaken our dead souls. That’s why Paul celebrates the Gospel as he did in the first chapter of the book of Romans: 

¹⁶ For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. ¹⁷ For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

The Gospel is God’s power to awaken the dead sinner.

But more than that, the Gospel gives us spiritual life, and the Holy Spirit brings the power of God to control and guide us on our earthly journey. The Spirit comes in power to transform and fuel our lives so we can live a Christlike life. That’s how Luke describes it in Acts Chapter 1:

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Jesus instructed the disciples to wait for the promised Holy Spirit before attempting to represent Him in the different regions of the world. In Luke 24, He said to them, “I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

Paul told the Corinthians that the effect of his preaching the message of Jesus to them came “in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.”

I can’t wait to study the theme of “Kingdom Power” with you this coming Sunday morning in 1 Corinthians Chapter 4, where Paul said the “kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power.”  

Join me at either the 9AM or the 11AM service. See you then. 

I love good questions. Intelligent people know both how to ask and answer good questions. Christianity introduced me to the best questions that a man is supposed to ask and answer.   Like Paul’s question to the Corinthians in his first letter, chapter 4, verse 7. He asked them, “What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?” Straight to the point and effective, hey?

I’ve no doubt that Paul was thinking about King David’s prayer recorded in 1 Chronicles 29. ^“Therefore David blessed the Lord in the presence of all the assembly. And David said: “Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name. “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you.” David was urging the people of God to support the building of Solomon’s Temple from the resources that were so generously gifted to them. This reality stands as one of the greatest motivations for being a generous giver.

I have no doubt that Paul was thinking about John’s famous response to his disciples when they pointed out that more people were flocking to Jesus than to him. He said, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven.” The simple idea that every privilege and blessing comes from God is fundamental to the life of a Christian. 

The apostle James certainly laboured this truth when he said, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” Every good gift, every perfect gift comes from the gracious heart of God. Remember that Satan’s ancient temptation to Eve was to doubt the goodness of God. His strategy was to lead Eve to entertain the idea that God was somehow holding out on her and her husband. Which was effectively an assault on the idea of the goodness of God.    

As a result of this simple truth, that all good gifts come from God, Paul made three riveting conclusions for the corrupt and divided church at Corinth: remember that judgment is God’s prerogative (He sovereignly decides the circumstances of your life), don’t be “puffed up” against each other, and stop boasting.

A good question is meant to lead to solid conclusions. If you take the sensible approach that all you have is a gift from God, you will be free of man’s assessment, you will not be arrogant toward others, and you will not boast, except in the Cross.

I look forward to seeing you on Sunday at one of our two identical services, 9AM or 11AM. Come prepared to worship and to hear the Word of the Lord to you. Our text is 1 Corinthians 4:1-13.