<p>2:4 <i>And my speech and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power- </i>This is parallel in thought to Paul's idea that he would preach the cross of Christ without any words of human wisdom. The &quot;demonstration of the Spirit and of power&quot; is thus paralleled to the cross of Christ. Here was and is the demonstration of Spirit and power. And yet in what sense can the cross of Christ be so powerful? I would say that the Lord's death was designed and is empowered to produce faith in God within those who accept it. For the Spirit was released as rivers of waters from His slain body. And especially in the first century context of illiteracy, the cross of Christ had power in that it was the motivation for the living examples of Christian sacrifice which were Christianity's best advert.</p><p>The essence of all this is the same today as it was then- the revelation of the person of Jesus isn&rsquo;t solely through Bible reading and getting the interpretation right; it&rsquo;s through a living community, His body. It is there that we will see His Spirit / personality in action. I don&rsquo;t refer to miraculous gifts- but to the spirit / mind / disposition / essence of the Lord, man and saviour Jesus.</p>