And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.  I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling.

This text could be said to be the preachers manual.  Pastors, evangelistis, Bible teachers, bloggers and more.  Can we answer these questions?

1) Do we use bigger words on our platform than we do in everyday conversation?

Are we trying to impress?  The Bible was written in Koine Greek, the language of the people.  Not the fancy, literary language.

“I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God” (v. 1).

2). Will pay say that our message is so focused on the cross of Christ that it gets annoying?

Paul resolved to know nothing except the cross of Christ.  Granted, there are many ways to approach the cross – the sacrifice fulfilled, the fulfillment of the OT prophecy, the payment for our sins, suffering with joy set before him, and more.

But at the center of all the preaching was the cross of Christ.  Can the cross be considered the center of all we say and do?

“For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (v. 2).

3). Do we approach people with great humility?

Paul, the fierce persecuted of the people and the former rising superstar Pharisee who did not lack intelligence or eloquence came with great humility.  He did not set up himself as a powerhouse, but rather as a deeply humbled and humble servant of God.

It’s not that we don’t speak clearly, articulately, and with boldness as we see in Peter, Paul and others, but what is our posturing?  Are we coming with genuine humility?

“I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling” (v. 3)