“For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom,”
How are we convinced unto salvation? Essentially, the Jews wanted a sign in order to believe and the Greeks wanted wisdom in order to believe.
Remarkably, although both signs and wisdom were offered, it wasn’t sufficient, and many did not believe.
Because salvation is through the power of the word and the Holy Spirit, and “by His doing” (1 Cor 1:30).
Signs and Miracles
The Jews constantly asked Jesus for a sign. In Luke 16:19-31, the rich man in Hades, seeing Lazarus in Abraham’s bosom asks Abraham to “…’ send Lazarus to my father’s house…so that they will not also come to this place of torment’…but Abraham said to him, ‘if they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.'”
In fact, the Jews claimed that the miracles of Jesus were really through the power of Satan (Matthew 12:24).
Signs and miracles were insufficient to convince.
The Greeks, or non-Jews, were always wanting wisdom to convince them of the truth.
1 Corinthians 2:14 thwarts that desire when it states “But a natural man does not accept the depts of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually examined.”
In fact, in 1 Corinthians 1:26-27, Paul says, “…consider your calling…there were not many wise…not many mighty, not many noble. But God has chosen the foolish…the weak…and the base things of the world…so that no flesh may boast before God.”
The wisdom of the Bible was not sufficient because it was perceived as foolishness.
Consistently, salvation is a sovereign work of God, not of man, so that God gets the glory.
Salvation, however, is available – Mark 1:15 “…repent and believe in the gospel.”