Now I
beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak
the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be
perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. 1 Corinthians 1:10 NKJV
I
don’t know about you but speaking of myself, I was always the one sitting in
the back of the classroom hoping I wouldn’t be called on to answer a
question. It wasn’t that I didn’t know
the answer, but rather I always held the opinion “why run the risk of possibly
being wrong”? Besides, how many of us
really liked those who were always raising their hands and showing off how much
they knew? Now I confess that was what I
was thinking as a child and as I grew and matured, my feelings began to change. Yet the one thing I noticed that never seemed
to change was the desire of certain people to be looked upon as smarter than
everyone else.
When
you begin a study of this letter by the apostle Paul to the church at Corinth,
you immediately find that this very problem was running rampant within the
church body. It seems everyone was
taking sides and basically arguing over who was smarter by virtue of their
interpretation concerning certain schools of thought. This had resulted in a totally dysfunctional
body which was more concerned with arguing over who was right rather than being
united in sharing the Gospel of Christ with an unbelieving world, which
according to Paul, was the whole reason we are called in the first place.
God is
faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ
our Lord. Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord
Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions
among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in
the same judgment. For it has been declared to me concerning you, my
brethren, by those of Chloe’s household, that there are contentions among you.
Now I
say this, that each of you says, “I am of Paul,” or “I am of Apollos,” or “I am
of Cephas,” or “I am of Christ.” Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for
you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?
1 Corinthians 1:9-13 NKJV
One
of the first things I noticed about what Paul has to say here is that he
identifies the different factions by naming the person they profess to believe
rather than what it is they are trying to teach. The second thing which becomes apparent when
you read the entire chapter is that the subject is wisdom; specifically the wisdom
of God as opposed to the wisdom of men.
As I thought about this it began to appear to me that what was going on
in this church was more along the lines of a popularity contest rather than an
honest disagreement over theology.
Paul
never shied away from correcting false doctrine so it seems to me that what he
is confronting here is the problem of certain individuals taking pride in
seemingly being smarter than others. Paul
immediately takes them to task and attempts to redirect their focus on the
purpose for which the body was created.
This is, of course, the preaching of the gospel of Christ and the
sufficiency of the cross for our salvation.
Paul states that this is what he was called by God to do, and any “wisdom
of words” on his part would only take away from the message of the
cross.
For
Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of
words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. For the preaching of
the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is
the power of God. 1 Corinthians
1:17-18 NKJV
It
is unfortunate that this lesson is still one which many people within the body
have failed to learn or appreciate for this same problem can be found today in
many different forums. In the past, as
well as currently, I have had the unfortunate opportunity to watch as Christian
discussion sites have been created, blossomed, and then slowly wither away as
they change from true believers sharing with each other to petty bickering over
who is right and who is wrong on any given theological stand. Eventually all that is left are those who
choose to speak the loudest and listen the least, and I can’t help but wonder
if they have never read the words of Paul in this chapter to the church at
Corinth?
For it
is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And bring to nothing the
understanding of the prudent.” Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where
is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?
For since, in the
wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God
through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. 1 Corinthians 1:19-21 NKJV
“If you torture the
data long enough, you can get it to confess to anything”.
What
I like most about this quote which I heard many years ago is just how
applicable it is within the Church today.
How easy is it to take a portion of scripture and force it to say
whatever you want it to. Yet that takes
work, and Paul makes it clear that the cross of Christ and the salvation it
offers is a message of simple faith, which to the world seems foolish. Yet in the end, God will show that the wisdom
of men is really foolishness, and faith in the power of the cross is the wisdom
which will save. In their desire to be
seen as wise, some people simply become fools.
Because
the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger
than men. 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 has
chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has
chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are
mighty; 1 Corinthians 1:25-27 NKJV
Have
you been looking for a complex answer to the meaning of life? Does the message of salvation through the
sacrifice of Jesus for our sins on the cross seem too simple or easy? God chose to make the gift of eternal life for
a sinful world as easy as making a choice to believe in the payment made for us
on the cross by Jesus Christ, His only son.
If you have never made this choice, I urge you to do it today. Just pray a simple prayer like this one and
become one who has chosen to believe the wisdom of God.
Jesus I know I am a sinner in need
of salvation. I believe you sent your Son Jesus to die on the cross for my sin,
and I ask you now to forgive me of my sins. I want to receive your gift of
salvation so please come into my heart and help me to live and follow you as my
Lord and Savior. In Jesus' name, Amen.
But of
Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and
righteousness and sanctification and redemption— that, as it is
written, “He who glories, let him glory in the LORD.” 1 Corinthians 1:30-31 NKJV
Keep watching.
