THE PARADOX IN GOD’S GREATNESS
I Corinthians 1:26-2:5
(I Corinthians 1:18-25)
S: Salvation
Th: Live the Difference
Pr: GOD’S PLAN FOR SALVATION FOR HIS PEOPLE IS GREAT!
?: How? How does it happen?
KW: Options
TS: We will find in our study of I Corinthians 1:18 – 2:5 three options God does not take in order to show His great plan of salvation.
The _____ option God did not need to take is having (a) …
I. MIGHTY MESSIAH
II. MEMORABLE MEMBERS
III. MOVING MESSAGE
Version: ESV
RMBC 25 January 04 AM
INTRODUCTION:
ILL Notebook: Clever (you are under arrest)
A deputy police officer responded to a report of a barroom disturbance. The "disturbance" turned out to be well over six feet tall and weighed almost 300 pounds. What’s more, he boasted that he could whip the deputy and Muhammad Ali too.
Said the policeman, "I’ll bet that you’re also an escape artist-probably better than Houdini."
The giant nodded.
"If I had some chains," the deputy continued, "you could show us how strong you really are. But all I’ve got is a set of handcuffs. Why don’t you see just how quickly you can break out of them?"
Once in the cuffs, the man puffed, pulled and jerked for four minutes. "I can’t get out of these," the giant growled.
"Are you sure?" the deputy asked.
The fellow tried again. "Nope," he replied. "I can’t do it."
"In that case," said the deputy, "you’re under arrest."
Do you think you are a clever fellow?
I wonder how often we appear to God like this huge man.
We think we can do whatever we want without consequence.
But it turns out that we are not as clever as we think.
TRANSITION:
As we come to our study today, we are going to discover that God is not impressed with the ingenuity of the human race.
When we go it on our own, we ultimately face failure.
But, when we are dependent on the Lord, we can make a real difference.
You see, according to our theme this year…
1. We are being challenged to “live the difference” that God makes in our lives.
When we come to know the Lord…when we enter into relationship with Him…we change.
We are able to live differently than we were before.
But how do we get there?
How does this happen?
Well, this is where our texts take us today.
And we learn that…
2. God doesn’t always operate in the way we expect Him to.
He works differently than we anticipate.
In fact, the very way He functions, seems to us, to be contradictory.
From our way of thinking, it seems paradoxical.
But as we consider these paradoxes today, it is my hope that you will come to this conclusion…
3. GOD’S PLAN OF SALVATION FOR HIS PEOPLE IS GREAT!
Paul wants the Corinthians to remember how they were brought to faith.
He wants them to consider their calling and be cognizant of how they started out.
The Corinthians had clearly forgotten.
They had gotten all wrapped up in the human leaders that had a relationship with their church – Paul, Apollos and Peter.
But it was not these men that saved them.
It was God.
And, in fact, He did it in ways that were unexpected.
This is where we recognize that God thinks differently than we do.
For God’s way of saving people is contrary to every reasonable plan that we might come up with.
But this is what makes it so great and so amazing.
So…
4. We will find in our study of I Corinthians 1:18 – 2:5 three options God does not take in order to show His great plan of salvation.
OUR STUDY:
I. The first option God did not need to take is having a MIGHTY MESSIAH (18-25)
Yes, we did consider these verses last week.
So this first point should be familiar material to those of us that were here last Sunday.
(18) For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. (19) For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.” (20) Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? (21) For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. (22) For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, (23) but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, (24) but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. (25) For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
You see, I believe…
1. If we had been the planners of salvation, we might have included a powerful Messiah that would have physically proved His superiority.
The word Messiah conveys power, triumph, and splendor.
So if we planned for the Messiah, we would have Him come and prove Himself to the world.
He would demonstrate miraculous displays of power, like the exodus, validating His Messianic credentials.
The Messiah would raise an army, lead the Jews into battle, and defeat the Romans.
No one would be able to stand in His way.
Those that took advantage of the poor and disadvantaged would receive proper justice.
A glorious kingdom would finally be established and there would be peace that would last.
That’s how we would probably do it.
But that’s not how God did it…
2. Instead, God chose a crucified Christ.
While Messiah meant power and triumph, crucifixion meant the opposite.
It meant weakness, humiliation, and defeat.
For both the Jew and the Greek, the words crucified and Messiah did not go together.
It was scandalous to the Jew.
It was foolish to the Greek.
The cross seemed so unreasonable.
And as I said last week…
The whole story of Jesus seems unreasonable.
For reason tells you that babies aren’t born to virgins.
Reason tells you that God doesn’t come in the flesh.
Reason tells you that the Almighty God will not allow puny men to nail Him to a cross.
Reason tells you that when a man dies, he does not resurrect from the dead.
None of this makes sense.
Melvin Newland, “The Message of the Cross”
But it is by the cross that God proves that His weakness is stronger than men.
It is by the cross that God proves that His foolishness is wiser than men.
Which brings us to…
II. The second option God did not need to take is having MEMORABLE MEMBERS (26-31).
(26) For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. (27) But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; (28) God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, (29) so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. (30) He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, whom God made our wisdom and our righteousness and sanctification and redemption. (31) Therefore, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”
I believe…
1. If we had been the planners of salvation, we might have included prestigious and intellectual people to give the movement credibility.
We would have had the world’s beautiful people lead the way.
For if the celebrities of the world demonstrated a love for God, the rest of the world would certainly follow.
We would have chosen those with political clout, the statesmen of the world.
We would have selected people with money, the billion and millionaires.
We would have opted for the Phi Beta Kappas, the intellectuals to lead the way.
We would have picked the athletes and entertainers because of the fascination people have with them.
Since we think celebrity, that’s probably how we would do it.
But that’s not how God did it…
2. Instead, God chose the humble.
ILL Notebook: Humility (delivery guy)
Lane worked at an auto dealership, and was surrounded by customers who were waiting to leave cars for repairs. He finished writing a service order and called out, “Next, please.”
A woman stepped up, but a familiar-looking man pushed in front of her before she could speak. "Please wait your turn," Lane said.
"Don’t you know who I am?" the man rudely demanded. Then Lane recognized him as a local politician.
"Sure, I remember you," he said, smiling mischievously. "You’re the guy who delivered my new sofa last week."
No one likes to be humbled, but there seems to be a need for it!
But I wonder, if when I first came to this the church that I told you that you were a bunch of losers, how would you have reacted?
What if I said…
You are not as successful as you think you are.
You are not all that bright.
And your family heritage leaves a lot to be desired.
You wouldn’t appreciate it all that much, would you?
Yet, this is the very thing that Paul says to the Corinthians.
God chose them…people that had nothing to offer.
They were ordinary, unknown, a plain sort of people.
They were without power to affect life around them.
In fact, they were despised.
Some were so low that they were considered as nothing, which was the most contemptible of all Greek expressions.
For “being” was everything to the Greeks and to be called nothing was the very worst insult.
So what does God show by this?
He demonstrates that the world’s nobodies are His somebodies.
John MacArthur puts it well when he says…
“A simple uneducated, untalented, and clumsy believer who has trusted in Jesus Christ as Savior and who faithfully and humbly follows His Lord is immeasurably wiser than the brilliant Ph. D. who scoffs at the gospel.”
You see, it not ability that matters, it is availability.
It is not scholarship that matters, it’s relationship.
It is not fame, but faith.
It is not the money, but ministry.
And most important of all, it is not who you know, but whose you are that matters.
You see…
3. In this way, God alone gets the appropriate recognition.
When He chose the Corinthians (and when He chooses us), He obliterates all human grounds for boasting.
Now, it is not that God is jealous of us.
It is not that He is trying to put us down.
These are not the reasons that God is against human boasting.
He is against it because He is a realist.
If we boast, it is always based on an illusion.
We are lying to ourselves.
For simply, He is the source of our salvation.
God has done everything.
And Paul shows us how God demonstrates His wisdom to us.
It is by righteousness, sanctification and redemption.
Jesus is our righteousness.
Our unrighteousness is exchanged for Christ’s righteousness.
And now, we have right standing before God, even though we have broken the law.
Jesus is our sanctification.
He has made us holy, and so we begin the process of holiness.
The frequency of sin decreases and our Christlike character becomes more and more visible.
We become more loving, patient, understanding, insightful, and even courageous.
Jesus is our redemption.
In this slavery metaphor, God has purchased us from the power of sin.
We, who were rendered totally powerless to sin’s domination, are now restored to usefulness.
I enjoy how John Piper summarizes this section of Scripture…
“The death of Christ on the cross is such a radical indictment of the hideousness of our sinfulness that human wisdom has to mount all its biggest guns to destroy the cross lest it lose its ground for boasting.”
But let us not give in.
Let us keep the boasting where it belongs.
Let us boast in the Lord alone.
III. The third option God did not need to take is having a MOVING MESSAGE (1-5).
(1) And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. (2) For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. (3) And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, (4) and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, (5) that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
1. If we had been the planners of salvation, we might have included slick and impressive preaching.
We would have looked for communicators that were extremely persuasive.
We would have sought out the wise and intelligent that could put together arguments that would be uncontested.
We would find people known for their rhetorical flourishes.
ILL Notebook: Communication (Chandelier)
A new young minister got his first charge - a tiny Lutheran church way out on the prairies. He traveled from the big city early to familiarize himself with the parish, and visited the church on Wednesday. It was dark and dreary inside, and remembering the suggestion that he find a cause to get the congregation working together, he got the bright idea that they should raise funds to buy a chandelier to hang in the middle of the sanctuary, and spent the next three days preparing his sermon.
On Sunday morning he spent twenty minutes telling the congregation how great it would be to have a chandelier, He chandeliered this - and he chandeliered that, and finished his sermon with a big pitch for funds with which to buy a glorious chandelier that would mean so much to the people of this parish. He felt after all the handshakes, and seeing the families off that he had made a successful presentation.
After three weeks, having heard no feedback he stopped one of the elders on the way out and asked him the direct question. What are you going to do about the chandelier? Oh, we talked about that and decided against it - you see nobody around here knows how to spell that word - so even if we got one of them things - there’s not a soul within a hundred miles who knows how to play one - and furthermore, what this church really needs is more lights.
Isn’t it amazing how complicated we can make things?
2. Instead, God chose a simpler method.
And Paul understood this.
When he was sharing the message of the gospel, he was not discussing men’s ideas or insights.
It was about Jesus.
The message was about the Messiah…crucified, risen, and redeeming.
This would be unexpected concerning who Paul was.
He grew up learning philosophy.
He was an educated man, both in Greek and Hebrew studies.
He would have been trained to speak properly and convincingly.
But Paul knew this was not just a matter of intelligence.
He knew it was more than a matter of excellence.
God had to use Paul’s weakness to display His strength.
For this was an awesome responsibility.
He was speaking on behalf of God.
Therefore, it had to be about the cross.
He had to get this right.
For conversions were made to the crucified Christ, and no one else.
So Paul directs our thoughts here to the realization that…
3. Our salvation is based in the work of the Spirit.
When the word of God is explained simply, the Holy Spirit demonstrates God’s power.
Salvation happens.
Redemption is applied.
Righteousness is attached to the believer.
And the ability to live the difference begins.
ILL Notebook: Preaching (DL Moody)
One of the greatest spiritual awakenings of the 19th century began in Cambridge University in England when D. L. Moody and his song leader, Ira B. Sankey, came to that center of learning.
The whole campus was outraged that this backwards American preacher would dare to appear and speak in the center of culture of the English world. They well knew that he “murdered” the King’s English. In fact, somebody once said that Moody was the only man that was able to pronounce Jerusalem in one syllable. Anyway, it was the determination of the students at Cambridge to hoot him off the platform.
At the start of the service, Sankey began to sing. He had a wonderful voice and audiences habitually quieted when he sang. As soon as he finished, Moody stepped to the platform and looking directly at the students and said these remarkable words, “Young gentlemen, don’t ever think God don’t love you, for he do!” That beginning dumbfounded the students. Moody went on and a few minutes later, he again said, “Don’t ever think God don’t love you, for he do!” Something about the very ungrammatical structure of these words captured them. And the intense earnestness of this man spoke to their hearts beyond all superficial and external things. On that day, a great awakening came to Cambridge University at the hands of that humble servant of God.
APPLICATION:
So let me encourage you today to…
1. Embrace the paradox of God’s greatness.
God has not worked in the way we would have, and let us be thankful.
For we have nothing to brag about, except God’s grace.
It is amazing…
As Paul would later write (II Corinthians 5:21)…
For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
When God fills us with His righteousness, He takes ordinary people, fills them with His Spirit, and then does extraordinary things.
So let us…
2. Trust in the power and wisdom of God.
For…
God’s plan of salvation for His people is great!
BENEDICTION: [Counselors are ]
Celebrate God’s salvation – for He has not provided a powerful Messiah, instead He has provided for our needs – a crucified Messiah so that our sin would not condemn us to eternity without Him.
Celebrate God’s salvation – for He has not chosen the celebrities of the world – He has chosen us, the plain, ordinary people so that His strength might be seen through our weakness.
Celebrate God’s salvation – for He has provided a simple message to be heard, understood and received for those that are willing to do so.
May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.
Amen.
RESOURCES:
Blomberg, Craig, The NIV Application Commentary
Fee, Gordon, The New International Commentary on the New Testament
MacArthur, John, I Corinthians
Sermoncentral.com
God’s Hall of Fame, Ed Wood
Boast in the Lord, Michael Otterstatter
The Mind of Christ, A. Todd Coget
God’s Tool, Ray C. Stedman
What You See Is What You Get, Mike Rickman
The Wisdom of Men and the Power of God, John Piper
