Verses 1-5
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In sharing the gospel with others, don't worry about seeming weak or unintelligent.
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Keep the message simple, focus it on who Jesus is and what He did, and know that God's power will do the persuading.
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God has given the Holy Spirit to demonstrate His power. Sometimes this shows in a person's heart and sometimes through miracles. Simply trust that God will give what is needed.
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Verses 6-8
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There are times when we must learn and teach things that are of greater wisdom, but it is God's wisdom from His Word, not human wisdom.
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This kind of wisdom is appropriate for believers who have greater understanding or maturity.
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Know that as a person's understanding of the Word deepens and increases, they have a great responsibility to control their tongue to teach only at a level that their audience will understand. Otherwise, there can be harm caused.
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Practically, speak at a level that your audience can understand, and don't focus on teachings that you don't fully understand.
Verses 9-12
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There are many great things God has in store for us, and they are revealed by the Holy Spirit.
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The Holy Spirit reveals God's wisdom, and deeper, even mysterious wisdom.
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As a believer, you have the Spirit within you. As you grow, the Spirit will reveal more, and your understanding will deepen.
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Verses 13-16
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The deeper wisdom of the Word is revealed by the Holy Spirit, so it is spiritually understood. As such, a person who doesn't have the Holy Spirit (the natural man) can't understand these deeper things.
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For this reason, natural or non-spiritual people (unbelievers) do not receive most of the Word of God, nor do they understand it. It's foolish to them. We can only understand deeper things of the Spirit because we have the Holy Spirit helping us.
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Verse 15. And unbelievers cannot rightly judge or understand a believer, who is led by the Spirit, because they themselves do not have the Holy Spirit. For this reason unbelievers will find believers to be offensive, confusing, and even foolish at times.
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So, if you're talking to unbelievers, avoid talking about anything too deep or spiritual. Keep it simple and focused on practical wisdom and the gospel—the parts that they can understand.
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If you're talking to believers, speak from what the Word says. Teach the Bible with itself—use cross references, for example.
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This way you'll be using spiritual words to teach spiritual things (verse 13).
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