When the Apostle Paul wrote a letter to the believers in Corinth he told them that he had determine
d to not impress them with his knowledge.
“And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God. For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.” 1 Corinthians 2:1, 2
Paul was not saying, there is something to be accomplished by remaining ignorant. However, he was saying that unless the knowledge of Jesus Christ and His crucifixion so outweighs all other knowledge that by comparison it is all meaningless, then Christ does not have the correct place in our hearts.
Make no mistake, the humility that accompanies salvation is not something that just happens, Paul said that he determined to know nothing. It was not that Paul was not involved in the process of setting his priorities right. God made it clear that Paul’s knowledge of the world and worldly things was not all important, furthermore, God put Paul in trials to test his faith, and increase him in the power of God.
At the same time, Paul was faced with
making a decision, would he sti
ll cling to the things that he once trusted to make him successful, or would he trust Christ as God was leading him too. I can’t say I understand divine sovereignty and human responsibility, but I know they co-exist.
“But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ…” Philippians 3:7, 8