I. Introduction
A. The foolishness of God
-Last time we looked at man’s view of the message of the cross
-To those who trust in mankind’s wisdom it is foolishness.
-1 Corinthians 1:18 – “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.”
(powerpoint)
-Message = logos, or word
-Foolishness = moria, (mo-ree'-ah) - silly or absurd.
-From which we get the word “moron”
-Better interpreted as “the word of the cross is absurd.”
-God’s message of redemption is ridiculous.
-It is silly.
-Paul calls out the wise and learned men of the city of Corinth (v.20).
-Wants them to respond to God’s message of salvation.
-If you are so wise, what have you come up with to save a man’s soul?
-To reconcile sinful man to a Holy God?
-They don’t have an answer to this question.
-They didn’t then.
-They don’t now. (title powerpoint)
PRAYER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
-Please turn to 1 Corinthians, chapter 1
-Two weeks ago we looked at the supposed foolishness of God.
-We, of course, do not consider God foolish at all.
-To us He is an omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent God.
-He is all knowing, everywhere present, all powerful God.
-He is loving, holy, and just
-Yet the world, in their wisdom, considers His plan of salvation foolishness.
-Today I want to discuss two other topics of foolishness Paul mentions here.
-The foolishness of the message.
-The foolishness of man.
III. The Foolishness Of the Message (v.21-24)
A. Man’s wisdom
-Mankind has a God-given brilliance that is seen in many areas.
-Medical
-Several years ago my younger brother had open heart surgery.
-Cut the sternum, spread the ribcage, work on the heart.
-Organ transplants are a common occurrence.
-Antibiotics cure illnesses that would have been fatal just a couple generations ago.
-Engineering
-Computers infinitely faster and at a fraction of the size then when they first came out.
-Cell phone technology
-Satellite television
-Miscellaneous
-Cloning, flight, the moon landing, the Seven Wonders of the World,etc…
-Great writers, artists, orators
B. Man’s inability
-Yet, in spite of all the wisdom that man can attain, he cannot not truly know God in his own power.
-Consider all of the religions, or “isms”, there are. (6 powerpoints)
-Pantheism - belief that the universe is God.
-Atheism – There is no God.
-Agnosticism - doctrine that we can know nothing beyond the material.
-Ditheism - belief in two equal gods, one good and one evil.
-Hedonism - belief that pleasure is the highest good.
-Polytheism - belief in multiple deities
-There are actually at least 234 separate isms that are believed by many.
-Some very strange.
-Panspermatism - belief in origin of life from extraterrestrial germs
-Anthropotheism - belief that gods are only deified men.
-Mormons
I once heard a story about a young preacher being carefully admonished by a much older preacher. “Young man, the trouble with our world today is all the -isms. Calvinism, Darwinism, Humanism – if something ends in -ism you can just mark it down as unscriptural!” The young man thought long and hard and then asked, “Sir, what about baptism?” The old preacher never missed a beat. “That’s the trouble with this younger generation,” he replied. “They don’t know the difference in a -tism and an - ism!”
C. God’s response to man’s inability to come up with a way to truly know God.
-1 Corinthians 1:21 – “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.” (powerpoint)
-God made a way for man to know Him personally.
-Not as an ethereal, mystic being.
-Not as a deity immortalized in stone or story.
-But as a living God who loves His greatest creation: Man
-But He did in in the message what many think is foolish.
-1 Corinthians 1:18 – “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.”
(powerpoint)
-Isaiah 44:24-25 – “Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, And He who formed you from the womb: "I am the Lord, who makes all things, Who stretches out the heavens all alone, Who spreads abroad the earth by Myself; Who frustrates the signs of the babblers, And drives diviners mad; Who turns wise men backward, And makes their knowledge foolishness;” (powerpoint)
-Even though God knew many would reject His message.
-The word of the cross.
-The message of salvation through Jesus Christ.
-He did it anyway.
-God’s plan is perfectly described in Romans 5:6-8
-Romans 5:6-8 – “For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (powerpoint)
-We were not righteous or good in God’s eyes.
-This is love.
D. Reason for man’s inability to accept the message of the cross
-1 Corinthians 1:22-23 – “For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness” (powerpoint)
-Unbelief is always the basic reason for not accepting God’s will and God’s way.
-Unbelief, however, is expressed in different ways.
-Jews – Wanted supernatural signs before they would believe the gospel.
-Gentiles (Greeks) – Wanted proof through human wisdom.
-Something they could explain or debate.
-In reality, these are just excuses, not reasons for a lack of belief
-[For the Jews require a sign]
-A miracle, an evidence of divine intervention.
-This was the characteristic of the Jewish people. (understandable)
-God had shown himself to them by miracles and wonders in a remarkable manner in past times.
-Always demanded it when any new messenger came to them, professing to be sent from God.
-Matthew 12:38-40 – “Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You." But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”
(powerpoint)
-Here Jesus is speaking of His own death, burial, and resurrection on the third day
-Consider also the miracles listed for us in the book of John?
-John details for us sign after sign, miracle after miracle, that Jesus does.
-Chapter 1 – Told Nathanael of his meeting with Phillip though Jesus was not there.
-Chapter 2 – Water to wine
-Chapter 4 – Heals the nobleman’s son
-Chapter 5 – Heals the paralyzed man.
-Chapter 6 – Feeding of the 5,000
-Walks on water
-Chapter 9 – Heals the blind man
-These are just a few of the many miracles performed by Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
-The Jews had more than enough signs to believe Christ as the promised Messiah.
-Apart from the miracles, He fulfilled every one of the prophesies concerning the promised Savior
-The Jews were looking for a particular sign.
- They expected a Messiah that should come with the exhibition of some stupendous signs and wonders from heaven
-They looked for the displays of amazing power in his coming.
-They anticipated that he would deliver them from their enemies by mere power;
-History of bondage
-Egyptians, Babylonians, Syrians, and Romans at the time of this letter.
-They despised the simple preaching of a crucified Messiah.
-The Jews could not fathom that an all-powerful God would give them a Messiah who came to die, rather than one who came to liberate an oppressed people.
-“stumbling block” (v.23) - skandalon (skan'-dal-on) ("scandal");
- a trap-stick (bent sapling), i.e. snare, an offense
- They were greatly offended by the simple doctrine of a crucified Messiah.
-Jesus came meek, lowly, and impoverished; not seeking worldly glory, nor affecting worldly pomp;
-They expected the Messiah to come as a mighty prince and conqueror; -Because Christ did not come so, they were offended at him.
-1 Corinthians 1:22-23 – “For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness” (powerpoint)
-[And the Greeks seek after wisdom]
-This means the gentiles in general, in opposition to the Jews
-It was, however, especially the characteristic of the Greek philosophers.
-They seek for philosophy and religion that shall depend on human wisdom.
-Therefore they despise the gospel.
-They consider it foolishness.
-The Greeks wanted demonstrative proof of Christianity.
- Christ, instead of demonstrative proof, demands faith on the basis of His word, and the reasonable evidence that the revelation is His word
-Christianity begins not with solving intellectual difficulties, but with satisfying the heart that longs for forgiveness.
-The heart that wants to know the meaning of life.
-The heart that answers God’s call to come to Him.
-This is the foundation of Christianity.
-It is not meant as a topic for debate.
-The Greeks could not believe that proclaiming supreme happiness through a man that was crucified at Judea as a criminal could ever combine with reason and common sense;
-The preaching was opposite to every notion they had formed of what was dignified and philosophic, or wise.
-Justin Martyr's dialogue with Trypho the Jew we have these remarkable words, which serve to throw light on the above.
-"Your Jesus," says Trypho, "having fallen under the extreme curse of God, we cannot sufficiently admire how you can expect any good from God, who place your hopes upon a man that was CRUCIFIED."
(powerpoint)
E. View of the believer
-1 Corinthians 1:24-25 – “but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”
(powerpoint)
-The message of the cross shows both the power of God and the wisdom of God.
-Notice the unbelievers are broken into two categories:
-Jews and Greeks
-Believers are one, whether Jew or Gentile
-A stumbling block to the Jew is the Savior to those who believe.
-Foolishness to the gentile is the Redeemer to those who are called.
IV. The Foolishness Of Man (v.25)
A. God compared to man
***** -1 Corinthians 1:25
-Paul goes on to state that even in what man considers God’s foolishness, He is still wiser than any man ever born.
-Cumulative intellect of all men ever created.
-That any perceived weakness of God is greater strength than man could ever attain for himself.
(title powerpoint)
B. God’s reasoning for those who are believers
***** -1 Corinthians 1:26-29
-It is clear from this passage and our own knowledge that not many “intellectuals” come to Christ.
-Not many “high and mighty” place their faith in Jesus
-To do so would be to admit you’re not smart enough or powerful enough.
-One would have to humble themselves to admit they are weak and incapable of answering life’s big questions on their own.
-“Surely if God has chosen me it is because of my brilliance.”
-“It is obvious that if people look to me for my popularity and power I surely deserve God’s love and acceptance.”
-God had a good reason to call the lowly and unlearned.
-Read from Wuest’s Expanded New Testament
-We would glory, or boast, in our salvation if we thought we earned it.
-Ephesians 2:8,9
C. Reason to boast
-1 Corinthians 1:30-31 – “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.” (powerpoint)
-People love to boast.
-Brag on their job, their kids, their team.
-People get sick of hearing people brag or boast.
- A sightseeing bus was making the rounds through Washington, D.C., and the driver was pointing out spots of interest. As they passed the Pentagon building, he mentioned that it cost taxpayers millions of dollars and that it took a year and a half to build. While everyone was looking at it, a little old woman piped up: "In Peoria we could have built the same building for less, and it would have been completed even sooner than that!" The next sight on the tour was the Justice Department building. Once again the bus driver said that it cost so many millions to build and took almost two years to complete. The woman repeated: "In Peoria we would have done it for less money, and it would have been finished much sooner." The tour finally came to the Washington Monument, and the driver just passed slowly by without saying a word. The old woman was curious. "Hey," she shouted to the driver, "what's that tall white building back there?" The driver looked out the window, waited a minute and then said, "Search me, lady. It wasn't there yesterday."
-Paul tells the believers at Corinth that they ought not to boast even in their own salvation.
-It comes completely from God.
-We are given the wisdom to understand the gospel.
-We are given the gift of faith to believe the gospel.
-We are made righteous, set apart, and redeemed all by the grace of God.
-You want to glory, boast, or brag?
-Brag on Jesus.
-Tell others about what He has done for you and can do for them if they will only believe.
V. Conclusion
A. Galatians 6:14 – “But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.”
(powerpoint)
- Some men become proud and insolent because they ride a fine horse, wear a feather in their hat or are dressed in a fine suit of clothes. Who does not see the folly of this? If there be any glory in such things, the glory belongs to the horse, the bird and the tailor. (powerpoint)
St. Francis de Sales.
(title powerpoint)
Bragging About Jesus
God is so good.
God is so wonderful.
If I tell of all the things he has done for me,
if I list them one-by-one,
if I do this,
people will call me a braggart,
because His blessings have made me rich.
But, I must brag,
I can’t help it!
My gratitude knows no boundaries.
I can’t help it!
My soul must rejoice.
I can’t help it!
I cannot keep quiet.
Because God’s
mercy and goodness and love and faithfulness,
because God’s
power and glory and magnificence and authority,
have overwhelmed me.
So, I brag,
let it bring Him glory!
So, I brag,
let it bring Him Honor!
So, I brag,
because I am nothing
and
Jesus is everything.
Anything I have or have accomplished,
is because of Him.
Let my bragging be praise to You, oh, my God.
Let it ever bring glory and honor to Your name.
PRAYER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
