Daily Manna

The Cross, God’s Power and Wisdom
1Cor 1: 18 For the word of the cross is to those who areperishing foolishness, but to us who are being saved it is thepower of God. 23 But we preach Christ crucified, to Jews astumbling block, and to Gentiles foolishness, 24 But tothose who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the powerof God and the wisdom of God.
Words of Ministry: In the cross of Christ we see God's power. It takes the powerof God to defeat Satan, the world, sin, fallen man, the flesh,the natural life, the old creation, and the ordinances. Whatother power is greater than Christ crucified as God's power?What other power can destroy Satan or overcome the world? OnlyGod has the power to accomplish these things. This power isnot that of doing things by speaking, such as the power Godexercised in creation. Rather, it is the power of crucifixion,the power of the wonderful death of Christ. This means thatthe crucifixion of Christ has become the power of God. Thedeath of Christ has become God's power to destroy Satan, tosolve the problem of the world, to eliminate sin, and toterminate fallen man, the flesh, the natural life, and the oldcreation. By this power God is able also to solve the problemof the ordinances. By one death, the death of Christ, all theproblems in the universe have been cleared. Thus, Christcrucified is God's power to abolish all negative things andcarry out His plan.
This crucified Christ is also God's wisdom. In order toaccomplish anything, we need both power and wisdom. We havepointed out that wisdom is for planning and purposing, whereaspower is for carrying out and accomplishing what is plannedand purposed. In God's economy Christ crucified is both God's
power and His wisdom. It is possible for us to have power orstrength without having wisdom or the way. If we have powerwithout wisdom, we may use our strength in a foolish way.Therefore, we need Christ as both power and wisdom.