1 Corinthians 1:26-31
Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him. 30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”
You Don’t Belong Here
Someone here doesn’t belong. They’re hiding something. Something from their past. They did something – they are something undesirable. They have no redeeming qualities, nothing that can make up for what they’ve done or what they’re lacking. And yet here they sit, acting normal, as if it’s no big deal, as if we wouldn’t notice or care. I mean, the gall!
What makes you think you belong here? So what if you know someone? You can’t name-drop on God and expect him to care. Who cares that people like you? That’s not going to count on Judgment Day. So what if you pitch in every once in a while? That doesn’t change the past or make you a new person.
Do you really think that God wants someone like you? There are far better people in this world. Smarter. Stronger. Special people. People who matter and make a difference. What do you have to offer? What can you give God that he can’t get better somewhere else? Why would God need you?
He doesn’t. But he chose you anyway. None of us belongs here. This isn’t our rightful inheritance or reward for good behavior. We haven’t earned a spot in these seats or measured up to some invisible yet obvious standard. The only reason we’re here is because God chose us. It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus.[1]
And it’s not because God saw something special in you. It’s not because you have these great qualities and endless potential. In fact, historically, in the Christian church it’s been the opposite.
Looking at Christian congregations, some people have speculated that only the weak-willed and stupid would buy into such nonsensical garbage as the Gospel. It happened as early as 100 years after Christ! This is what a Greek philosopher had to say about the Christians in his day:
Even the more intelligent Christians preach… “Let no one educated, no one wise, no one sensible draw near… But as for anyone ignorant, anyone stupid, anyone uneducated, anyone childish, let him come boldly.” By the fact that they themselves admit that these people are worthy of their god, they show that they want and are able to convince only the foolish, dishonorable and stupid, and only slaves, women and little children.[2]
It’s a horrible thing to say, but it’s true, isn’t it? Isn’t that what Paul says? “Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth.”[3]
Where are the royals? Where are the powerful people? Where are the movers and shakers and muckety-mucks of St. Albert? They’re not here. Who listens when the people of St. Peter’s speak?
Who do we have here? We have tradesmen and students, retirees and children. Not a single politician. No celebrity personalities. No one who would make the Forbes Top 10,000.
So, if all the smart people, all the influencers, all the people who by hard work and great skill are successful are somewhere else, what does that say about us?
It says that God chose the foolish things, the weak things, the lowly and despised things of this world. It puts the power of salvation in the hands of God where it belongs.
You don’t belong here. But God has chosen you.
On the one hand, that’s nothing worth boasting about. You are God’s charity case. You’re the stray dog with a cleft lip and three legs that bites anyone who gets close enough. You’re the broken-down recliner on the side of the road that nobody wants. When God looks at you, he doesn’t beam with pride, but melts with pity.
On the one hand, that’s nothing worth boasting about. But on the other, I want to boast and brag about our loving God all day long. It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus.[4] We’re nothing special; we didn’t do anything to deserve his loving attention; we’ve done everything to disqualify ourselves from it. And yet, he keeps pouring out his grace.
He sent his Son to become our wisdom, to be our righteousness, holiness and redemption, because we couldn’t do it without him. Pick your poison; pick your passage:
All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.[5]
All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags.[6]
Every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart is only evil all the time.[7]
All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.[8]
You could be the exception to every one of these rules. You could be smart and strong, influential and important – and attractive to boot – but with the sin that’s in your heart and with the foolish and shameful things that you’ve done with your hands, you’d be hideous in God’s sight, if it weren’t for Jesus.
God sent his Son to be our righteousness. God sent Jesus to be our brother in flesh and blood and to be tempted in every way, just as we are, yet to be without sin – to be holy. God sent Jesus to pay the penalty for all the wrongs that you have done; to make up for all the ways that you don’t measure up; to restore you to a right relationship to our God.
That’s not pride or self-confidence; it’s Christ-confidence. We can glory in the grace of our God that we did not deserve but have received. We can boast and brag about our Beautiful Savior because of all that he has done for us.
That’s why God chose the foolish things of the world. That’s why we are encouraged to boast in the Lord. So that God can shame the wise and the strong, the self-righteous and self-sufficient. So that God can open our eyes to know how grace works.
It is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast…[9] in themselves.
Paul was dealing with people who were stuck up and inflated, who so wanted to be important, who made the people around them feel small or “less than.” I showed you the quote from Celsus from almost 2,000 years ago. The sentiment hasn’t gone away, and it’s not limited to those looking at Christians from the outside. It’s easy for us to look down on each other, to cast judgment, to throw stones at someone we don’t think is living up to standards.
But brothers and sisters, that’s what unites us; we’re all in this together. None of us is better or more deserving than another. We each have our foibles and shortcomings, our pet sins and obvious weaknesses. But I think that’s why Christianity resonates with the poor and humbled, because only when we despair of ourselves can we understand how much we need God. Only when we admit that we don’t belong here can this precious gift be truly appreciated. It’s because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, so boast in the Lord!
Brag about your God! Revel in the redemption of Jesus. When your friends and neighbors turn up their noses at the prospect of rubbing shoulders with a bunch of goody-two-shoes, holier-than-thou, hypocritical Christians, give them a good whiff of your sin so that they can see that this is no country club for saints but a triage center for sinners. You’re not here to pat yourself on the back, but to be lifted up by the loving hand of your forgiving God.
Boast in the Lord when you find success in whatever you do. He’s the one who gave you the opportunities and abilities to succeed. Let people know where that comes from and why you’re so thankful. Boast in the Lord when you fail. He’s the one who forgives and who works through your weakness to accomplish his will anyway, to highlight his strength when every earthly prop gives way.
It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus.[10] It’s the love of God that caused him to choose you. You don’t belong here because of anything you are or anything you’ve done, but you do belong here because of the grace of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Let’s pray:
Lord God, heavenly Father, you who are sovereign and have authority,
I’m not here because of me; I’m here because of you.
Keep me weak, so that I may know your strength.
Keep me humble, so that I can boast in you.
Be my wisdom, when my wits and words fail.
Be my righteousness, when my actions do too.
Unite us all together as brothers and sisters in your love,
Unworthy and undaunted by your grace that comes from above.
Amen.
[1] 1 Corinthians 1:30
[2] https://chinksoflight.wordpress.com/2019/12/27/iv-christian-doctrine-compared-to-that-of-the-greeks/
[3] 1 Corinthians 1:26
[4] 1 Corinthians 1:30
[5] Romans 3:12
[6] Isaiah 64:6
[7] Genesis 6:5
[8] Romans 3:23
[9] Ephesians 2:8,9
[10] 1 Corinthians 1:30