1 Corinthians 1 Devotional

Wisdom That Looks Like Foolishness

“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”1 Corinthians 1:18 (BSB)

Paul opens with thanks before he says anything hard. The Corinthians lack no spiritual gift, and God, who called them into fellowship with his Son, will keep them steady to the end (1:7-9). Then the trouble surfaces. They are splitting into camps around favorite leaders, and Paul asks whether Christ has been divided, or whether Paul was the one crucified for them (1:12-13).

His answer is the cross. A crucified Savior sounds like nonsense to a world that prizes signs and clever arguments, yet to those God calls, Christ is God's power and God's wisdom (1:22-24). God even chose people the world overlooks, the weak and the lowly, so that no one could boast before him (1:27-29). Every good thing believers have, their righteousness, holiness and redemption, comes because God placed them in Christ (1:30). That leaves nothing to compete over. Whatever standing you lack by the world's measure, you can stop trying to prove yourself and let your only boast be what the Lord has done.

To think about: Where are you still trying to prove your worth, and what would change if your only boast were in what God has done?