you you you Yeah. you you you you As we gather back, I just want to take a moment to share with you an opportunity that you already know about, probably with the flyer that is in your bag. But on June 11th and 12th, in Denton, Texas at Denton Bible Church. We're going to be having a conference called Wokeness in the Gospel. We have some of the guys that are here now. Owen is going to be with us there. I'm going to be there as well. Daryl Harrison, who is a part of the Just Thinking podcast. And Tommy Nelson has been a pastor there for 50 years. Just to kind of let you know, why would you want to go to this? It's June 11th and 12th. You've come to this conference. It may be that you don't necessarily are able to attend, but one of the things I think that I've seen at this conference is most of you that are here are already somewhat in the know of the problems that critical race theory and wokeness are causing in the church. Tommy Nelson says in 50 years of ministry that it's the biggest, as we've heard up here, he says the same thing, the biggest threat to the gospel that he's seen in 50 years of ministry. That's saying a lot by someone like himself and Dr. MacArthur said the same thing, both of them being in ministry that long. So what I think that is helpful about this conference we have coming up is a couple of things. One, more people need to know about this. And there are a lot of people that aren't as informed as you are about theological things and care about theological importances in the gospel of Christ and understand them in the church. But there's a lot of folks that maybe don't. So what we would encourage you to do is let others know about the work. Just come and join us. We invite you to come and be a part of it. But this could be an opportunity for you to bring someone with you. We're asking earlier about what you can do to help inform your church and take some church members, maybe encourage some of your pastors or staff to go and be a part of the conference. It's in the Dallas Metroplex. It'll be easy to get in and get out if people are traveling, obviously, by plane. and a large metroplex of where people need to hear, your average church members need to hear about the importance of this issue and the threat that it is to the church. So that's June 11th and 12th. It's a fairly reasonable price for the conference and it'll be that Friday and that Saturday and all the information that you need is on the flyer. And I hope that if you are able to come, come and bring someone with you. If you aren't able to come, encourage others who need to hear this important message to know how to respond. As Owen said, we need to get equipped, and this is what that conference is for, just like this one is, but it's another opportunity for people to get equipped with understanding and arming themselves with the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ against this threat. Thanks for being here this week, and it's been a privilege for me to be here as well. I think we're gonna sing and then hear from Conrad. I invite you all to stand with us again and sing Facing a Task Unfinished. This song is to the tune of the Church's One Foundation, so it should be real familiar for us, but it's a wonderful hymn about the Church's call to the gospel to spread the good news and make disciples of all the nations. Facing a task unfinished that drives us to our knees, a need that undiminished rebukes our slothful ease. We who rejoice to know Thee Renew before Thy throne. Thy solemn pledge we owe Thee, To go and make Thee known. Where other lords beside her Hold their unhindered sway? Where forces that defy thee Defy thee still today With none to heed their crying For life and love and life Unnumbered souls are dying And passing through the night We go to call the world With kingdom hope conferred No other name has power to save But Jesus Christ, the Lord Prepare the torch that flaming fell from the hands of those who gave their lives proclaiming that Jesus died and rose. Ours is the same God, same but by the same we go with me no other has power to save, but Jesus Christ alone. O Father, who sustained them, O Spirit who inspires, Savior whose love constrains them to toil with zeal untied. From cowardice defend us, from lethargy away. Lord, on Thy errands send us to labor for Thy sake. We go to all the world with kingdom hope unfurled. we go to all the world with kingdom hope unfurl no other name as party say but Jesus Christ the Lord may be seated Our next guest is someone I've just met this weekend for the first time. I've known about Conrad and Bewe for a long time. He's known as the Spurgeon of Africa. I've heard him preach a couple times, and he's one of these men that you don't think you'd ever be a friend to, and you don't ever think you'd be in the same car together. But on our ride from the airport to the hotel, what I learned in just a short amount of time about someone that you know their name, but you don't know them, and in your mind they're kind of bigger than life, and they're maybe a celebrity in your mind. that there's something true about every Christian. If they're a newborn Christian, I have a nephew who's just been converted, just a week or two, or someone like Conrad that everybody knows, there's Christ in them. And that's sweet. And it didn't take long before the Christ that I believe is in me, that I believe in is my nephew, that was clearly exhibited in Conrad. And that's what makes a man great. It's not that he's a doctor in any way. It's not that he's written a lot of books. It's not that he's been pastoring for years. It's that he has Christ in him, and it was demonstrated quickly. And I like him better now. And I had no reason not to like him before the car ride. But he's a man that I want to listen to, a man that I want to hear. And what I'm amazed, he saw my drop when I learned that through his church that they planted 30 churches. 30 churches. Man, and my prayer is that, he's an old man now, my prayer, my prayer is that you got 30 more in you. In fact, let's pray that for them. Wouldn't that be amazing? Go out swinging, brother. Let us all emulate that. Let's go big. Let's shoot for the moon. Let's plant churches. Let's train men. Let our name be lost in the process. There's another generation to come up after us. My father handed me a stick, and I'm to run around the track once, and I'm gonna hand it, hopefully, to my kids. And I pray that they hand it to my grandkids. That's what we need to be doing. So let's pray for this brother and for his ministry there in Zambia, the church that he's done, African Christian College that he's over. Let's pray for these ministries and for his ministry to us tonight. Lord, it's truly Christ in us that we rejoice in. Who are we but feeble vessels? Who are we but dust? Who are we but unworthy recipients of grace. And there's really one man that we love who is humble. He is wise, who is great, who is righteous, who is perfect and kind in every way. There's no fault in him. Lord, he's the one who died for us. We worship that man, Jesus Christ. His name is worthy to serve. His name is worthy to praise. His name is worthy to defend. Lord, we want to die for that man. He's our Savior. He's our Lord. He's our King. He's our God. He's everything to us. We are nothing without the Lord Jesus. His word is precious to our sight. His truth gives us life. We pray that, Lord, you would speak to us through your vessel, through your man. Through Conrad, I pray dear Lord that the Christ is in him would be exhibited in his preaching. Lord, we pray for his ministry, the work there at the university that he oversees, the church that he pastors and all these church plants that he's involved in. Lord, would you give him 30 more? Let the last section of his ministry be more productive than the first. Lord, we would rejoice to see churches spread throughout the continent of Africa, not just Zambia, but all over the place. Lord, we know we may need missionaries from Africa one day to come here to evangelize our great-grandkids. So we pray for the work that's going on there. Let your name be great on all continents, in every country, every language. You're worthy that your name and your glory be a global entity. We pray that you'll give us ears to hear today in this last session. Give us the physical strength to endure one more session and let it be profitable to our souls. This we pray in your son's name, amen. Well, brethren, it's a real joy for me to be with you on this occasion at this conference. I'm definitely very grateful for the opportunity that's been given to me to do two things. First of all, it is that of learning. I have sat under the men that have preached here, especially yesterday, at least half of them. and part of that today, and it's been eye-opening for me as to the issues that you brethren are wrestling with over here. But also a privilege to speak, to preach into this context, as I will be doing in a few minutes. This year, that is the year 2021, marks for me 25 years of coming over to preach in the USA I first came out in 1996, green between the ears as they say And one of the things that I've often noted is that as I have been coming over the years, it's, you know, there have been different issues that have occupied the church that have been a battleground for the Christian church in this part of the world. And in a way, it's been very helpful to me because of the fact that what I have seen here are church leaders who are willing to put up a gallant fight for the cause of Christ. And therefore, I go back into Africa, into Zambia, into my own situation, not only refreshed but reinvigorated. to go and also fight the great fight of the faith with the instruments that God has given to us. I remember not long ago coming over and at that time most of the noise had to do with the emergent church and the sort of seeker-friendly kind of issues. It was the big thing in those days. And again, there were voices that were constantly warning against that. In the recent past, not primarily because of me coming here, but also because Vodibokum is in Zambia and he's got one foot in America and the other one. on African soil, and every so often you find him boiling over what's happening in motherland, and I'm thinking, all right, so what's this really all about? So in that sense, I've been learning that there's another wind that is blowing in your part of the world. And so sitting here and learning about wokeness and the intersectionality and all these other words that were bad words, but now hearing a little bit more concerning their content, the critical race theory, and so on, has been a good opportunity for me, and in many ways grieving me as well as I'm listening to what is happening in the church that is dear to me. Now, in one sense, I'm an outsider coming in, and people will often say, you know, you don't know what is happening here, so sort of shut up and sort of go home. Now, I'm quick to say that, yes, there's something of that, but do not quickly dismiss me for a number of reasons. I mean, first of all, back home a few years ago when I was going through university, Marxism particularly was a course we had to study in first year, all of us. And so in listening to what has been said, I could easily pick a lot of the Marxist, not just terms, but the agenda and so on coming through what was being said. But having said that, the message I have been preaching as I've come to the U.S. over the last 25 years, it's basically the same message that I'll still preach today. Whatever the issues are, ultimately it is that we have the good old book that's been given by the wisdom of God, and that all that we need is here, and then more than that, the centerpiece of the scriptures is Christ. And again, I want to preach Him. There's one thing that can certainly be said, and it is the fact that I am not ignorant of Him, and I would love to share Him. So do turn with me to 1 Corinthians and chapter 1. And the reason why I'm taking you there is because there's nothing new under the sun. Whatever it is that is threatening the Christian church one way or the other, whether it's Gnosticism in the first century or wokeness in the 21st century, or what we have just mentioned in passing, the emergent movement, or liberation theology that was a main issue once upon a time in Southern America, specifically, to a large extent. Whatever it might be, the bottom line is that there's nothing new under the sun. And once you get to Scripture, you begin to see why it is that what we desperately need is Christ. What I want to share with you will most likely take us right through chapter 1, chapter 2, and chapter 3. But let me begin by just reading verse 10 of chapter 1 up to verse 17 purely as a starting point. My message is entitled, Christ, the only wisdom and power of God. And notice, I don't just have the definite article, the, but I also have that exclusive phrase only. Christ, the only wisdom and power of God. And I pray that by the time we come to the end of this conference and go home, that's what we will go with, that's what we will desire above all. The Apostle Paul makes his appeal. 1 Corinthians 1 and verse 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 may be united in the same mind and the same judgment. For it has been reported to me by Chloe's people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers. What I mean is that each one of you says, I follow Paul, or I follow Apollos, or I follow Cephas, or I follow Christ. Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, so that no one may say that you were baptized in my name. I did baptize also the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else. For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power." I find back home that a context that we often have to deal with there is one that gives a fairly good parallel with the things that you might be wrestling with here in the USA. And in our context, it's largely tribalism. the separation and fighting that takes place in the community between individuals who are in different tribes. Now, you might not appreciate it here, but if I was to say to you that almost one million people were slaughtered in Rwanda, primarily because of the issue of tribe, that already begins to say to you, it's real. And again, the question arises, how do people in that context get over such a past and really experience not only unity but real healing? I want to suggest to you that from the passage that we will be looking at today, that the answer is the Bible is sufficient and Christ is sufficient. And that we as a Christian church should provide that example in the world in which we are that defies all human reasoning. And the only way in which individuals can appreciate what has taken place within the context of the church is when they bring God himself into the picture And that's what we see in 1 Corinthians chapter 1, 2, 3, in fact all the way to chapter 4 The background of this being that the Apostle Paul had been involved in planting the church in Corinth, and a time came when leaders of that church came to visit him. And when they came to visit him, they brought basically a shopping list, a number of issues that were taking place within the context of the church upon which they needed his counsel, they needed his wisdom. And the issue of disunity was definitely one of them. But there were many others. There were issues to do with immorality in the context of the church, individuals suing one another. There were issues to do with marriage, issues to do with gifts of the spirit, issues to do with the resurrection, and so on. There were quite a number of issues that they needed his counsel on, the Lord's Supper, and so forth, and the Apostle Paul spent time counselling the leaders but went further to pen down his thoughts so that they could be read by the leaders to the church in Corinth We don't know what they presented to him first But we know what he responded to first. And it was the issue of the disunity that was there within the context of this church. And as I hope to show, it's something that the Apostle Paul was grieved about. It grieved him to no small extent. And therefore, he immediately jumped into this particular issue. We've already noted from the reading that the individuals in the church were lining themselves up behind different leaders who had passed through this church and ministered through it. Now, the very first point I want us to appreciate answers the question, why was that the case? Why did individuals in Corinth think that this is the way they ought to go? Now, from the text, it's pretty obvious that it was not because of Paul's ministry. Paul was fairly deliberate in wanting people not to make him as someone they would be followers of. So what caused that? Well, here's the point. Our culture is often a blind spot that makes us to seek to make the church fit the mold that is there in our society. Let me say that again. Our culture is often a blind spot. And what I mean by blind spot is that we ourselves are often not conscious of what on earth we are thinking and doing. It's somebody else looking in who is saying now what on But in the process, it makes us seek and push an agenda of making the church fit our mold in society. Now in this particular case, with respect to first century Corinth, they were in the Greco-Roman world where the whole mindset was around great philosophers and great orators. That's where they were coming from. That's what had built Greek civilization. That's what in due season had become tributaries that worked their way into the Roman world. And so you have individuals like Demosthenes, who would have been in the Greek world, and then you also have individuals like Cicero, who were in the Roman world. Great philosophers, great orators. And because of that, individuals lined themselves deliberately behind these great individuals. Well, that's where these believers were coming from That was the background, that was the air they breathed And so, although they had been converted to Christ, and there's no reason why we should doubt that They were not totally sanctified Just as we today are not totally sanctified We get converted and what do we do? We go into the church with truckloads of issues from the cultural world in which we are. Well, that's what was happening here. And so in the process, they began to say, well, look, I am a follower of Paul. He's the guy who came and preached here and got us going. And then others may have said, I'm a follower of Apollos. And there's no doubt, at least from the reading of scripture, that Apollos was probably more eloquent than the Apostle Paul, at least perhaps in terms of appearance and so forth, and others spoke of Peter and others spoke of Christ. That's the background in which they were. The world was informing their thoughts, informing their actions, and in the church, that then became the stream that was bringing about this chaos. That did not end with the first century. It continues with us, and I'll keep applying it to our African context. It's funny, you can go into a church in the heart of Lusaka, and you try to find out who the church leaders are, and Lusaka is a cosmopolitan. It's a place of people from basically every tribe within the nation. And you discover that all the leaders in that church are from one tribe. And we figure, now how on earth did that happen? Well, it's because of, again, this, where we are coming from, you know, that tribe is bad, and that tribe, they are all just thieves, and that's the background that we're coming from, and therefore, that then follows us into the context of the church. This is really what's happening here, and in the process, the spirituality of the church gets affected. And that's something we just need to realize, that often our lack of true, genuine, spiritual, biblical sanctification causes us to bring the things of the world into the context of the church. Now, while the people in the pews may be forgiven about this, those of us who are church leaders, that's an unforgivable kind of lifestyle. Because for us to be church leaders, we must be trained in this book and we must have matured in the things of God. And so when we see that which is part of our world getting a hold of the life of the church, it ought to grieve us. And that's what we find here with the Apostle Paul. Hence, his appeal. 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 might be united in the same mind and in the same judgment. That's the way Paul is beginning. He's going straight in with a heart-rending appeal. Based on what? Christ. Christ. Verse 17. Or maybe the questions he asked a little earlier on. Verse 13. Is Christ divided? In other words, when I was among you, did I preach a Christ? that is that divided so the church should go into these different cleavages? Was Paul crucified for you? When I was preaching among you, did I ever mention anything that is so special that I have done for you? Or is it only Christ, Christ, Christ? So that all of you should be speaking in terms of allegiance to Christ. Or as he puts it further here, or were you baptized into the name of Paul? Was I the door by which you were added to this body, the body that is the church, the body of Christ? Was I the door? And of course the answer is no. The Apostle Paul, in speaking about baptism for a moment, surely shows that it was not a major issue because he doesn't even remember who he baptized there. The main thing he says is that I was called to do one thing, to preach the gospel. He says there, for Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel. And even in that, he is quick to say, And not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power." Now that's a very deliberate statement he makes there. Because again, of the thought forms of the philosophers of the Greco-Roman world. He's saying, even in preaching the gospel, I was deliberately careful not to fit it into this mold of the world in which I was coming to proclaim Christ. And it is this latter point that the Apostle Paul develops in contrasting Christianity literally with every other understanding of life that would have been there or a way in which we can reach utopia. And for us to appreciate that, there are four words or two pairs of words that we keep finding from verse 17 all the way down to verse 25. And the two pairs are folly and wisdom, and then weakness and power. Folly and wisdom, weakness and power. It's quite deliberate on the part of the Apostle Paul. Because what he is seeking to show is that although the philosophers, the orators, may on one hand convince you intellectually concerning what they are saying, whatever it is they are saying is totally impotent in changing your hearts. Totally impotent. There's only one message that gives you wisdom, true wisdom, and there's only one message that transforms you from the inside out to make you what God wants you to be, the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Period. And that's what he goes on to deal with here. Before we get into the way Paul handles it, I wonder whether that's the way we speak as Christian leaders. I mean, I can forgive young believers, back home that is, who will be saying to me, You cannot get married to a person from that tribe because those people are bad. For a young believer, I'll be saying, well, he's got quite somewhere to go in sanctification. But I think there's something wrong if, for me, as a Christian leader, I begin to move people into one direction, and that direction is not Christ. There's something seriously wrong. Because ultimately, that should be my work. It is to point people to Christ, because He alone is the wisdom and the power of God. Can people say that about you? When you drop dead and you're in a casket, your remains about to be laid to rest in some grave somewhere, that this person pointed us to nothing but Christ. And we are what we are because we embraced Him. What is it that the Apostle Paul goes on to show as he does this interplay between folly and wisdom, between weakness and power? First of all, it is this, that in the world's groaning after utopia, God has ensured that its messiahs fell miserably. Let me say that again. In the midst of the world's groaning for utopia, the perfect world, the dream world that is in our souls' longings, God has ensured, deliberately so, that its messiahs, its great men and women, its great architects, fell miserably. The Apostle Paul goes on to handle this from verse 18 to verse 20. For the word of the cross is folly, there is the word, to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. There is the other word that is a contrast with weakness. The point he's making there is that there is a critical divide, an irreconcilable divide between the way in which the world views our message and what our message actually does and accomplishes. And it accomplishes that for those whom the Lord has chosen. We shall see that in a moment. For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart. Notice it's God doing it. It's not just some accident happening. Some philosophers who don't seem to have their heads screwed on properly. So perhaps someone else is going to get us out of this mess. God himself has determined that worldly wisdom will be like pulling one foot out of sand and the other one sinking twice deeper. And without naming names, Paul challenges them to say what their great orators had achieved He asks the question, where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Now he's not asking concerning their geographical location What he's saying is this, where is their achievement? Show me. Show me. Where is that which you can say, yes, this is what they were saying, this was the theory or philosophy they came up with, and look at what it has achieved. These questions betray a silent answer. And the answer is, they are nowhere. We are still where we were when they began to make their noise. Now, there's no doubt about it. At a superficial level, there was development in the Greek world, in the Roman world. In many ways, on the outside, you could say that there had been advancement. These were great empires. However, it was skin deep. They were morally In fact, it is often said that Rome basically collapsed from the inside because of the fact that all these great architects of their society were individuals that ultimately completely fell. The Apostle Paul goes on to put that clear, isn't it, in the same verse 20, has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? And brethren, he has. Anybody who reads world history who notice how we have had individuals rising either as great army generals or great presidents or great philosophers or great orators and they have been at the center stage of the public media. Fast forward a few years afterwards and it becomes clear that they themselves were morally bankrupt. They couldn't even sustain a marriage, let alone be at peace with perhaps even their own children. Individuals in the Roman world who died from sexually transmitted diseases who were supposed to be big names, great orators, leaders of entire nations and empires. morally bankrupt. Let's try and answer this question, brethren. Why do all these worldly philosophies and their philosophers fail? Why? There are two answers. Number one, they are godless. God is not at the center of the thinking. It's not God's revelation from which they are drawing those principles. It's human cleverness. That's it. Human cleverness. And in the end, when you fail to have God at the center, all things fail. And God is deliberate about that. Verse 21, For since in the wisdom of God the world did not know God through wisdom. The world did not know God through wisdom. That's the first reason why. And as a Christian, When you are listening, it doesn't matter what philosophy it might be, what new movement it might be. When you are listening, and what you're listening to is human cleverness. Just know that God is opposed to this. It's a matter of time. Because ultimately, it is only that which is from him which is through him, which is to him, which is to his glory. And when we are now with our own prideful way of doing things, it doesn't matter what it is. It's a matter of time. It will hit a dead end, if not a tragic end. But that's the first reason only The second is that there's a failure to recognize the fall of Genesis chapter 3 The failure to recognize that there was something that took place at the beginning of human history in the Garden of Eden when sin entered the world. And when sin entered the world, it corrupted us totally. In other words, nothing short of a complete overhaul of a human being from the inside out will produce that utopia. Nothing! Now those of us who are Christians, we obviously should be saying yes, amen, that's true, because that's what the Bible says. But often, again, whatever this background might be, is what tends to inform our thinking. And in the process, we end up with, those are the bad guys. Those are the ones who are infected by this, but not the other. And in the end, we come up with theories which we think will work, and we destroy ourselves. I'm going to give you the example, for instance, of socialism, which then grew into communism. And in the end, some of you may have read the book Animal Farm. Some animals became what? some animals became more equal than others. That phrase is meaningless, of course, you can't be more equal, but it was still conveying really what was happening in the communist world in the eastern part of the world, Russia and so on. Ultimately, those who then end up with the power in their hands because their hearts have not been turned and changed, all that happens is that they bring in another form of evil. So the first is this, is there a God in this? Is this coming from His Word? And that's not by manipulating verses. No, no, no, no. Allowing Scripture to speak for itself as we've already heard in previous messages. Honest exposition of God's Word with the meaning that was intended by the original writer to the original listener. In other words, is it truly God's word that we are passing on? And then the second is, has this addressed the reality that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God? All have sinned. that the human heart is desperately evil. And you will inevitably find that those two are never part of the equation in so many of these philosophies. Now, I need to hurry on, because the Apostle Paul goes on to make a point which is valid here, and it's this, that only in the message of Christ and Him crucified can sinners be changed from the inside out. Only in the message of Christ and Him crucified can sinners be changed from the inside out. The Apostle Paul says, we go back to our text there, verse 22 downwards, for Jews demand signs, let me begin from verse 21, for since in the wisdom of God the world did not know God through wisdom, It pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews, and folly to Gentiles. But to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power of God, and the wisdom of God. And he finishes by saying, again, a play on those words, for the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. Two weak points before we proceed from here. The person who is speaking was not some ignorant guy from the back streets of life. Paul was highly educated, both in Judaism and also as a Roman citizen. Highly educated. And guess what he does? He shoves all that aside and says, Christ. Number two, he does that knowing very well that this will not sit well with the mindset of the culture around him, both with the Jews and also with the Greeks. He says there that the Jews demand science. In other words, in their mindset, the utopia they were looking forward to was going to be arrived at through a Messiah who is able to do miracles that will finally defeat all these oppressors, to borrow the phrase that we've been hearing here over the weekend. And finally, we'll be liberated, Moses style. But note that after healing a few sick people, feeding a few thousands, he then goes to a cross and dies. Nah, nah, nah, that's nonsense. We're not expecting you to be telling us of our great savior hanging on a Roman cross that way. Well, what about the Greeks? We are told they seek wisdom. They want somebody with some new philosophy of life. who will be teaching it with the kind of eloquence that makes a Cicero bow his head in shame. That's the one we want. Not some stammering preacher telling us about some Jew that was crucified on the cross as our only hope. Totally dismissing this as irrelevant, useless, not worth occupying our time with. Culturally not fitting in. But while being dismissed by the world that way, the media is not interested in you. This is not the kind of stuff that gels with them. The message is doing something. And that's what he mentions here. He says, but we preach Christ crucified, stumbling block to Jews, yes, folly to Gentiles, yes, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power of God and the wisdom of God. In other words, the point is this, that with this message, it is God acting. Now, I wish there was a way I could convince you brethren in the Western world that God is still actively saving sinners, transforming them from the inside out. And that's what he means there when he says, but to those who are called. Called by who? God. and called in the present moment. Look at the way he puts it in the last paragraph of this chapter. He says there in verse 26, for consider your calling, brothers. Not many of you were wise according to the worldly standards. Again, notice the way he keeps bringing in this worldly, worldly philosophy, worldly understanding. Not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth, but here it is. 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. God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are. And on and on he goes so that no one may boast before him. all glory finally goes back to God. So when individuals who are claiming to be Christians come with all kinds of, this is now the way in which we will have either a good church or a good neighborhood or a good world and It's not God acting. Through our weakness and through the message of the gospel, throw it away. Throw it away. The glory of the Christian message that has enabled the Christian church to gallop across the ages and transform the world is God acting through the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. To borrow the words in Romans 1, The gospel is the power of God. It's the power of God bringing about a complete transformation. Just before coming in here, I sent a quick message to our elders. I said, look, I'll soon be preaching here. How many tribes have we got in our eldership? And one of them quickly put the figures together and sent them to me. And there we were, five different tribes. Now, here's the first point. I didn't even know that. Why? Well, the gospel is what has brought us together. And so, it's God who has done it. And we tend to think primarily in terms of the great agenda of God across history. But when you just get off into the streets, you find, yes, the cleavage is happening there. And we ought to be salt and light in the world. Now, how does that happen? Well, the Apostle Paul, speaking to the Ephesians, puts it this way, concerning those who call themselves the circumcision and looking down on those others. How does he put it? He says, well, you know, he is creating one new man out of the two. All of us are coming in as beggars in need of grace, centering our all on Christ. We're coming through that door. It makes all our other differences pale into utter insignificance, completely. That's the glory of the Christian church. And by the way, that's why the Apostle Paul, beginning of chapter two, could say, and verse two, for I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. He's talking about the time he went into Corinth. Verse one, and I, when I came to you brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testament of God with lofty speech or wisdom. In other words, again, with the approach of the Greco-Roman world. I didn't do that. In fact, it says I deliberately allowed myself, for lack of a better term, to look stupid. Because I didn't occupy my mind with what your people were occupying themselves with. I came in, as I often like illustrating, with a one-stringed banjo. Christ and him crucified. Christ and him crucified. Christ and him crucified. And then he's saying, and now look at the fruit. So what am I learning from this? I don't need to convince you, do I? That the Bible is sufficient. It is. It is sufficient. May I add, Christ is enough. That's what Paul is saying here. transforming us individually and giving us a hope that defies all things. In chapter 3, towards the middle, the apostle Paul says something that I always use when I'm autographing my books, and that is 1 Corinthians 3.11. I love it. For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. If we are going to build high, this is the foundation we need. You need it for your personal life. You need it for your family. You need it for your career. You need it for your church. You need it for your community. You need it for whatever institution you might be. You need to lay the foundation of Christ. Other than that, it is sinking sand. That's really what the Apostle Paul is saying here. And therefore, I make the appeal that he indeed makes in verse 18. If you forget everything else I've said today, here it is. Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, Let him become a fool that he may become wise. That's the point. Let the world laugh if they please, but may our names perish and Christ's name live forever. That's the vanguard of civilization. That's the hope, the only hope of the human race. It's Christ, the wisdom of God, Christ, the power of God. And one day, we will be no more, but we will appear before the judgment seat of God. And trust me, at that point, nothing else will matter. except Christ and Him crucified. And you will be glad that He is the one you commended to your own generation without holding anything back. Let them laugh as they please, but that which you are doing is what will show that this and this alone is wisdom, and wisdom from God. I appeal to you as the Apostle Paul says there at the end of chapter 3, so let no one boast in men. And by that, it doesn't just mean human beings, but including their so-called learning and philosophies. For all things are yours, whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or the present, or the future. And here's the point. All are yours, and you are Christ's. And Christ is God's. Oh brethren, may you tenaciously hold on to Christ, the only wisdom of God, the only power of God, and may you see the church of our Lord Jesus Christ cross the current boisterous waves into the hands of the next generation. they will live to thank God for you. Let's pray. Eternal and gracious God in heaven, thank you for the opportunity you've given me. In many ways as an outsider coming in, listening to the clashing of swords, the cries of warfare. And thank you for giving me the privilege to do what I have done among my American brethren for a quarter of a century now, to point them to the one and only, the blessed one, the altogether lovely one, Christ, the only wisdom and power of God. May they embrace your gospel, live for it, and even die for it. Amen. We ended where we needed to end, the place where we need to begin, on Christ. I want to take a few moments to thank Beryl Baptist Church, Wade Lentz, the pastor here, for opening up their facilities to us in this conference. They're a good church here. We're thankful for their witness that they have in this community and our partnership, Grace Bible Church's partnership and friendship with this church. So we're thankful for Beryl Baptist Church. Also thankful for so many people at Grace Bible Church that has made this conference possible. You can imagine the work that takes place behind the scenes. There was a point in time that I thought to myself, I do not want another text. I don't care if we have Folgers. You know, it's like just a lot of, lot of things that goes in on the conference. But honestly, most of the work was in a sense done and I had no clue who's doing it. And that's because there's a team of workers, people who serve the Lord and are willing to serve the Lord behind the scenes so that you could be comfortable, so you could have some water, so you could have a snack, so that you could be taken care of, and we hope that we've taken care of you. We hope that we've made you feel welcome at this event, and that's because of a lot of work behind the scenes, and one lady in particular that I don't know if we could have done it without Regina Pryor's work. She has been the major coordinator behind the scenes, and I know she's gonna need a lot of vacation time. And we thank her. May the Lord bless her for her work and bless everybody that's volunteered. And thank you if you travel. We've had people from Northern California, from Florida, from all over. One guy from Africa has made it. And we're thankful for everybody that has traveled to be a part of this. And I'm thankful for all the speakers. I feel like we had the best speaker as possible. We're blessed to be under such teaching. We have a lot of books that don't need to be packed up, so go and buy the rest of the books that are on the table. Support a small up-and-coming Reformed Baptist publisher, and you can support such a publisher by buying books. So do that for your service to the Lord. and for the sake of a small posture, yes. I've asked another one of our elders, pastors at Grace Biblical Church to come and give us a benediction and pray. Michael, see you all. Before I pray, I would like to, just with a raise of hands, how many in here are pastors? That's a good showing, it's good to see. Amen. Amen. We're happy to have all of you, not just the pastors, but all of you here for these last two days and hope that you guys have benefited greatly. And I know personally I've benefited from these speakers here. What a blessing it is. Let's go to the Lord in prayer. Our Father in heaven, we are so grateful that we've been blessed, Lord, to sit under this teaching this weekend. Lord, we are thankful for the message we just heard. Christ is our all in all. Lord, we thank you that you are our God, the triune God. Father, for your electing love from all eternity, Lord, you called us out. Lord, the Son of God coming to this evil world to give his life a ransom for us evil haters of God and Holy Spirit for creating in us a new heart, a heart that loves God, a heart that wants to do righteousness. Lord, I thank you for loving us. I thank you for these Christians here, Lord, today. I thank you for each one that has come, Lord. I pray that they've been given something, Lord, this weekend, that they may take back with them, that they were edified, that they were empowered, Lord, to battle against this false philosophy, this false religion that's come upon us, Father. Thank you for this conference. Lord, we pray your blessing on each and every one of the attendees, Lord. We pray, Lord, further, that you would guard your flock, that you would guard your churches. Lord, we see a division happening among Bible-believing evangelical churches. And Lord, it's hard to watch, it's hard to see. But Father, we pray that you would call your sheep away from unfaithful shepherds. and you would bring them into churches that have faithful shepherds, Lord. But even better than that, Lord, we pray that those unfaithful shepherds would repent, that they would awaken, Lord, that you would wake them up, and they would turn back, Lord, unto the pure, unadulterated gospel of Christ. We're grateful, Lord. We pray that you would go with each person here, Lord, back to their places of their churches, back to their places of work, and that you would bless them. We commend them all to you now, in Jesus' name, amen. Receive the Lord's benediction. Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God, our Savior, Be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen. Go in the peace of the Lord. Amen.