Articles
THE WISDOM OF MEN
In 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 the great apostle Paul solidly stated the firm foundation upon which he
stood. He made it crystal clear that the preaching of the cross would cause men to place their faith
in the power of God instead of the nebulous wisdom of men. Today we continually need this exact
emphasis. High sounding theological arguments or towering monuments of sophistry will not save
the sin burdened souls of mankind. Plain, thrilling, uncontaminated truth is the basic ingredient
missing in so many lives and so many sermons. America and the world stand on the very threshold
of damnation and utter ruin because of the glaring lack of dynamic, straight-forward, uncompro-
mising Bible preaching. Elbert Hubbard was very perceptive when he stated: "Theology is an at-
tempt to explain a subject by men who do not understand it. The intent is not to tell the truth but to
satisfy the questioner." If you have ever listened to a man who knows a lot of homiletics, philoso-
phy and textural criticism but very little about the Bible you can well appreciate the foregoing
statement. Far too many preachers today are studying what men say about the Bible rather than
what the good Book says about men!
In James, chapter 3, we read the vivid contrast between man's wisdom and God's wisdom. There is
a chasm vast and wide and the wisdom of the world shuns the power of the gospel because it is just
not sophisticated enough for the arrogant leaders of society . However, the very message they
reject will rise up to haunt them in judgment (John 12:48; Romans 2:16). We ought always to
rem.ember the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. When any man, who claims to be a gospel
preacher, refuses to proclaim the simple message of Christianity he chooses a course that will
condemn him and his audience. When anyone sells his mind to Satan for use in teaching error or
veiling truth he becomes a mental prostitute. There can be no crime more serious. We may live in a
highly educated, secularized and mobilized age but it still takes p lain vanilla (Mark 16:16, Acts
2:38 and Galatians 3:27) to sm·e a soul. While the souls of men are dy ing in sin for want of gospel
preaching let us not be found at the shrine of theology drooling over vague and conflicting dogmas
that may sound eve:r so brilliant. The tremendous vocabulary of a university professor may be the
source of pride for some people but it has seldom been the cause of conversion for anyone.
I have actually listened to some men on lectureship programs who speak in such high-sounding
terms that one would think it was an unknown tongue. Such orators would probably name their
stray dog Phydeaux (that's French for Fido, don't you see?)
- Johnny Ramsey: Fulton County Gospel News, February 1989
