The Apostle Paul’s determination “not to know anything among you, except Jesus Christ, and him crucified” made him weak, afraid, and shaky; however, it was this which enabled Paul to demonstrate the power of the Holy Spirit rather than the “enticing words of man’s wisdom” beloved by ancient Greeks that would be the basis of their faith (1 Corinthians 2:2-5).
In refusing the signs required by Jews and the wisdom prized by Greeks, Paul chose a way that pleased neither culture and put himself on the line! You and I have the courage to choose to do as Paul did by putting ourselves ‘at risk’ in situations where we are so dependent on God that we find ourselves praying, “Lord, if you don’t turn up, I’m in trouble!” This is daring and can be dangerous! (The proviso being that we are where the Lord has led us, not just where we are of our own will.)
It helps us that the Apostle Paul ministered “in weakness, in fear, and in trembling” (the Greek word translated “fear” is “phobos”: the root of the English word “phobia” which defines phoney fear). If you do not feel afraid before you speak, then maybe you are preaching what people want rather than what they need. We should not allow the expectations of people to determine the content of our message or the ways in which we minister.
There is a place where we are at our weakest and God is at His strongest in and through us — a place where we fear that we might fail God, and are physically shaken by the choices we make in the full view of those who are observing. God does not anoint our strengths but our weaknesses. The paradox is that we are strongest at our weakest! (2 Corinthians 12:9) Our strength comes when “the power of Christ” “rests” on us (or, as the NT Greek puts it, “encloses us like a tent”).
When it does, weakness, fear and anxiety vanish and you and I preach “as one never sure to preach again, and as a dying man to dying men.” (Richard Baxter) In the anointing of the Spirit of God we do things we never dreamed of doing! “And the Spirit of the Lord shall come upon you, and you … shall be turned into another man.” (1 Samuel 10:6) The newly-anointed Saul would prophesy with the prophets!
Some believers have innate conservatism that restrains them from acting without conscious forethought when situations demand that things be done to solve them. The truth is that you and I can only be as free in the Spirit of God as we are in ourselves, spiritually.
I am not referring to demonic bondages, but rather to inherited or acquired inhibitions that make us think twice instead of acting on what the Lord has put in our heart to do. First thoughts from the Lord bring boldness, but are cancelled by second thoughts, leaving us wondering what might have happened had we moved when prompted by the Spirit of God.
It will take courage to do what the Lord is saying rather than what your mind is fearing, but if you wish to experience the power that establishes others in the faith, you will need to be prepared to put yourself at risk — the risk being the fear that you might embarrass yourself.
Are you willing to risk everything, as Paul did by trusting God when, in spite of his human weaknesses, he took a stand for the truth and preached a message that neither party wanted to hear? Are you willing to walk the hidden path of God’s wisdom by allowing Him to work strongly when — or maybe even because — you are at your very weakest? You are? Then more power to you!