In this post
we are going to look at a section of scripture in which Paul is explaining to
the Corinthians his call to preach the gospel.
Paul loved the Jewish people, but God called him specifically to a
ministry to the Gentile peoples—a
term referencing all non-Jewish people.
1Corinthians 1:23-24 But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock,
and unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and
Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.
The majority
of Jewish people in Paul’s day refused to accept Jesus as the Messiah God had
promised to send the people of Israel.
This has remained true of the Jewish people as a whole up until this
very day. For Paul to preach the gospel
declaring Jesus Christ as Savior and Redeemer was a stumblingblock to the Jews;
they just couldn’t accept it.
On the other
hand, the Greeks or Gentiles considered the gospel message pure
foolishness. The prevailing thought
throughout the Roman Empire established Caesar as God and acknowledged a
pantheon of other “gods” with different areas of influence and varying degrees
of power and authority.
Paul then identifies another subgroup of people that
included both Jews and Gentiles—“the called.”
Who are those called?
Romans 8:29-30
For whom he did foreknow, he also did
predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the
firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also
called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified,
them he also glorified.
Hebrews 13:20 Now the God of peace, that
brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus….
As God, He knew from the beginning who would choose to
follow Him in faith. His Word is full of
the truth that He is not willing that any should perish.
Ezekiel 18:32 For I have no pleasure in the death
of him that dieth, saith the Lord GOD: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.
2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning
his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not
willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
I just take
the Lord at His word. God called those
whom he knew would choose Him. He didn’t
create people for the purpose of condemnation.
Neither did He refuse to create those who would choose to reject
Him. He created all and has done
everything possible to cause man to choose to follow Him in faith and
obedience.
The message of Christ crucified is a message of the power
and wisdom of God. Only the Son of God
could have willingly laid aside His deity and clothed Himself with humanity to
become the perfect, sinless man who could qualify as the blood sacrifice required
to pay for “my” sin. Only through the
power of the Father to raise Him from the dead could that sacrifice be declared
acceptable.
Romans 4:24b-25 …if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the
dead; Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our
justification.
Romans 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy
mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him
from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
1Corinthians 1:25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the
weakness of God is stronger than men.
If these words weren’t breathed into Paul through the Holy
Spirit, I would say that Paul had made a mistake here. How could any action of God be called
foolish? How could God ever be
considered as weak in any area? Since
the purpose of scripture is to communicate truth to man and reveal God to man,
the Spirit seems to be making a point from man’s point of view. It certainly seems foolish in my eyes as a
parent to think of sacrificing my child to save someone else—especially knowing
that sacrifice would cause that child to be ridiculed and tortured—especially
knowing that sacrifice would be rejected by so many.
It seems “weak” that God has allowed the god of this world
to exert his influence for so long (from man’s perspective) as God waits for
man to repent and turn to Him in faith because He is not willing that any
should perish. The key is found in the
book of Isaiah:
Isaiah 55:8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my
ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so
are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
God does not think and act in ways that man can truly
understand. I feel like I get a glimmer
from time to time—but only a glimmer. We
are sinful; He is holy and righteous. We
are selfish; He is loving and merciful.
We are impatient; He is patient and longsuffering. We are so caught up in the “now”; “now” is
not a relevant term to Him; He is outside of time. We are living in a finite world; He is—always
has been and always will be. Our
understanding is based on our knowledge base, which is limited; His knowledge
base is unlimited; He knows everything there is to know.
Because God through His Son chose to appear foolish and
weak to men by willingly coming to this earth in humility as a man and
submitting to the cross, we have the opportunity to experience a restored
relationship with the Creator. His
wisdom and power were declared as the Father resurrected the Son in victory
over sin and the grave.
1Peter 1:3
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his
abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of
Jesus Christ from the dead,
Romans 1:3-4 Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the
seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God
with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the
dead:
1Cor. 1:26-29 For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men
after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to
confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound
the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are
despised, hath God chosen, yea, and
things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should
glory in his presence.
Reminder, Paul is talking to “brethren,” fellow
believers. “Ye see your calling” seems
to be a way of saying, “Look who makes up this body of believers.” Evidently, the group didn’t include many that
were considered wise or strong or noble in the eyes of man. Why would that be? Generally speaking, those who are wise,
strong and noble have a hard time recognizing that they have a need; or if they
do recognize it, are too proud to admit it.
Mark 2:16-17 And when the scribes and Pharisees saw him eat with publicans and
sinners, they said unto his disciples, How is it that he eateth and drinketh
with publicans and sinners? When Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that
are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to
call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
These verses build directly on the previous verse. I think the point being made is that man has
to realize that in and of himself there is no salvation. God’s perfect plan made clear that only
through the work of Christ can man have hope for the future. Man cannot guarantee his eternal well being
through plans of his own making using his own wisdom. The most powerful man on earth cannot effect
his own salvation. God is no respecter
of persons. No matter how high the level
of society in which you are born or how rich you are, you cannot “command”
salvation of God nor can you expect salvation just because of who you are.
Although the
wording makes it sound like the Lord is trying to keep people from experiencing
salvation, He is really expressing a beautiful truth. Nothing man can do can accomplish his
salvation. The provision has been made
for us. It’s provided as a gift to those
who are willing to recognize their position as a sinner before Almighty God and
repent and accept His wonderful gift.
Ephesians 2:8-9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of
yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.
There are some verses in Jeremiah that support this
section of scripture:
Jeremiah 9:23-24 Thus saith the LORD, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: But let him that glorieth glory in
this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the LORD which exercise
lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things
I delight, saith the LORD.
Even the three groups of people referenced seem to match
with verse 26. No man will be able to stand
before God and glory in and of himself for any reason. It is only through the gifting and
empowerment of God that one is wise,
mighty, or noble/rich to begin with.
It is only because of the provision of God through His Son in His mercy
that we can have a hope for the future.
We were created for the glory of God and for His good
pleasure.
Isaiah 43:7 Even every one that is called by my
name: for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made
him.
Revelation 4:11 Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory
and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure
they are and were created.
We have been deceived into
thinking that it is the other way around—that God is around to honor us and
make our life wonderful.
1Corinthians 1:30-31 But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us
wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:
“of him” – This is referencing God the Father as the One
Who made it possible for us to be “in Christ Jesus.” It was the Father Who gave the Son as a
sacrifice for my sin; the Son was
willing and obedient. Yet, Father and
Son are One. Through the Father, Jesus
is the One that embodies and personifies the following:
1. “wisdom”
– The Greek includes both spiritual and worldly wisdom. Webster = “The quality of being wise;
knowledge, and the capacity to make due use of it; knowledge of the best ends
and the best means; discernment and judgment; discretion; sagacity; skill;
dexterity.”
Psalm 111:10 The fear of
the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do
his commandments….
Proverbs 9:10 The fear of
the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is
understanding.
2. “righteousness”
– The Greek includes equity of character, innocent and holy. Webster = “The state of being right with God;
justification; the work of Christ, which is the ground of justification.”
3. “sanctification”
– The Greek states, “properly, purification, i.e. (the state) purity;
concretely (by Hebraism) a purifier:—holiness, sanctification.” Webster = “The act of God’s grace by which
the affections of men are purified, or alienated from sin and the world, and
exalted to a supreme love to God; also, the state of being thus purified or sanctified.”
4. “redemption”
– The Greek states, “ransom in full, redemption and deliverance.” Webster = “The procuring of God’s favor by
the sufferings and death of Christ; the ransom or deliverance of sinners from
the bondage of sin and the penalties of God’s violated law.”
I’m gaining quite a respect for good ole Webster.
It is through Jesus that we can begin to “know” the
Father. As I continue to contemplate
this verse, the order seems odd. I would
think first in order of redemption that produces righteousness and puts us in a
position to become sanctified and wise.
This verse seems to be referencing Jeremiah 9:24 (quoted
above). All through the scripture the
Spirit emphasizes that God’s word is always fulfilled. God’s plan is very specific to ensure that
ALL glory belongs to God. Every ability
man has is a gift from God. Man’s
redemption is completely dependent upon the work of God through His Son,
Jesus. Even when we become a child of
God through faith in Jesus, we can only accomplish His purpose for us through
the empowerment and direction of the Holy Spirit. Man has absolutely nothing about which to boast
except that “he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord.”
No comments:
Post a Comment