A verse in 1 Corinthians stood out to me today and I admit that I’m a bit perplexed by it. The verse is 1:17:

“For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel–not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.”

When I think of good preaching, wisdom and eloquence fit nicely within my view. They seem to me to be two great aspects of an effective sermon. However, Paul seems to think that using them (to what extent?) has the potential to empty the cross of its power. That is a pretty in-your-face statement. Wisdom and eloquence could have the potential to cause people to focus on the preacher instead of the God being preached about but it seems like even then those are the people who change my view of God. Andy Stanley comes to mind. He has some of the most insightful thoughts on Scripture that I would naturally classify as wisdom but I’m not sure that Paul would. As of now, I guess I’ll put this in the category of Christ being made powerful in our weakness although I admit that I’m trying to wrap my mind around this concept.