Corinthians 1 Chapter 2

How powerful is this?

¹Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly–mere infants in Christ. ²I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. ³You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere men? ⁴For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere men?

We are all mere infants. We are constantly falling, constantly tripping on our sins. We are still worldly. When we ascend to join God in Heaven, then we are no longer infants. Then we truly know God. But remember, you are always learning, just like a child. You will never know everything about God. Always keep an open mind about what you're reading or studying, especially if you're in a study group.

¹²If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, ¹³his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work. ¹⁴If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. ¹⁵If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.

God has already laid a foundation for you to build upon. It is up to you to build a home that will shelter you against the sins of this world. Not only you, but your spiritual family as well, as you are responsible for them, as they are for you. If fire (sin) comes, and your house burns down, then you are burnt, but you survive, with scars. Scars are permanent reminders of your failures.

Corinthians 1 Chapter 2

The first part of this is from Chapter 1, The next from Chapter 2;

God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. ²⁸He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things - and the things that are not - to nullify the things that are, ²⁹so that no one may boast before him. ³⁰It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God–that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. ³¹Therefore, as it is written: “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.”

¹When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. ²For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. ³I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. ⁴My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, ⁵so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.

God tells us that he doesn't want us to try and be strong on our own. He knows that our strength is greater when it is His own. The hardest part of this is letting God have control of our lives.

¹⁵The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man's judgment: ¹⁶“For who has known the mind of the Lord
that he may instruct him?”But we have the mind of Christ.

This is very confusing. I think it means that a spiritual man makes judgements on what he does, and what he is, not on others. This also ties in with the next part. He is not subject to what other people think is good, but only what he knows, through God, is good. If we let God show us what is right, then we have good judgement, but if we use the values and morals of man, then we make flawed judgements.

Corinthians1 Chapter 1

Starting with Chapter 1.
The first part of this is addressing the Church, the second part is Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is a very important part of our relationship with Christ. We so often ask for things, that we forget to thank Him for what He has already given us. I, for one, am thankful for His work in my life in the past few days. In the words of Paul:

⁴I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. ⁵For in him you have been enriched in every way–in all your speaking and in all your knowledge

The next part is Paul reminding the Church that it must remain unified. If the church is divided, then it cannot spread its message. How does a man whose hands do one thing while his mouth speaks another gain credibility? It doesn't.

¹³Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul?

The same goes for your teachings. If you are trying to witness, do not claim to love the Spirit, then act against His will. Remember, everything you do, anything you do may be seen by someone who is open to the Lord. Do what is right by His Word, and they will remember that.
The next paragraph makes a very bold statement:

¹⁸For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. ¹⁹For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;
the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.”

Those who aren't blessed by the Holy Spirit will not understand these words. Those who choose to not know the Lord will be blind and deaf to whatever teachings you give them. Isn't this awesome? Even the most intelligent people will be stupid to the Lords word. They will not understand it, try as they might.
Also, remember that you are a member of Christ, but that doesn't make you higher. All men have the chance to know God. Do not look down upon those who do not believe. Will that help them see that they are wanted in God's Church? No. Do not judge, that is His duty, not your own.
I, as does almost everyone else, have a problem with this. It is so easy to judge, so easy to assign 'titles' to people. The girl in the short skirt may instantly be a 'slut,' the man on the corner, a bum, when he is in truth down on his luck. Paul leaves good words for us:

²⁸He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things - and the things that are not - to nullify the things that are, ²⁹so that no one may boast before him.

You are not God, you are a servant of God. Remember this, in all you do, for the servants actions reflect on the name of his Master.