I want to understand 1 Corinthians 2:4-5 better please.
Let’s take a look at those verses, but I also want to include verses 1-3 so that we ensure we have the full context. 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 reads, “And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.“ (NKJV)
By all accounts, Paul would, in human terms, have been considered a wise man in his time; therefore when he was among the Corinthians, he could have prepared a very intelligently written speech that would have been very impressive. However, he points out that he did not do that and, instead, he relies entirely upon the Holy Spirit to bring forth the words that he should say. A couple more verses that we should reference are Matthew 10:19-20, where the Lord Jesus is speaking to his disciples and tells them, “But when they deliver you up, do not worry about how or what you should speak. For it will be given to you in that hour what you should speak; for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.” The Lord was very clear that Holy Spirit would indwell them and help them. In John 14:16-17, the Lord says, “And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever—the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.”. This does not only apply to those disciples, but to every person that has accepted the Lord Jesus as their personal savior.
As a believer, our duty is to share the Word of God and let the Holy Spirit persuade others to believe. If someone could be persuaded by the words or intellect of man, they could easily be persuaded in the other direction as well. “For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” (2 Cor 4:6 – NKJV). All human ability and power cannot persuade one person to trust Christ as Savior. Only the power of the Holy Spirit can break through to the soul. “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the POWER OF GOD TO SALVATION for everyone who believes” (Rom 1:16).
This makes it clear that we are not required to be experts in theology or philosophy to bring others to Christ, all we need to know is the gospel message. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23). Every natural born man and woman has fallen short of the righteous requirement of a Holy God; therefore, all are in need of a Savior. “For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,” (1 Cor 15:2-3). Jesus took the place that was rightfully ours when he died upon the cross. And, God the Father confirmed that he was satisfied with His sacrifice when he raised Jesus from the dead. Our message need not be more than this and was no more than the message delivered by Paul. (192.8) (JW)