I did not come with eloquence
or superior wisdom.
—1 Corinthians 2:1
William Boyd Carpenter (1841–1918), a Church of England cleric and Queen Victoria’s favorite preacher, was asked if he was nervous when preaching to the Queen. He said he never considered that he was singularly addressing Her Majesty. “Glancing around the Chapel Royal I see, not only the Queen, but the servants, down to the scullery-maid. I then concentrate on the scullery-maid.”
The “greatest of these” have no more sensitivity to spiritual matters than the “least of these.” The uneducated comprehend and respond to the gospel expressed in understandable language.
Showmanship or scholarship dressed up to impress the erudite obscures God’s message. The apostle Paul requested prayers that he might proclaim God’s message clearly (Col 4:4). God’s message, not Paul’s message. God’s message, not our message.
Good News isn’t good news when dressed
in un-understandable language.