Epiphany 4

Text: “30 And because of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”” (1 Corinthians 1:30-31)

The readings today are deceptively challenging. Here in 1 Corinthians, Paul is writing to the believers of the church in Corinth. And He’s challenging their faith; he is daring to question what they believe. They’ve professed their faith; they are part of the church, but St. Paul has hard words for them. He’s daring to question what they believe. Now, before you fall back into 21st Century American Christianity and protest that, “What I believe is just between me and God...” please allow Paul to challenge you for a moment, as well.

Consider Your Calling

We heard, last Sunday, in the first part of 1 Corinthians, about all of the divisions within the church in Corinth. “12 What I mean is that each one of you says, “I follow Paul,” or “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Cephas,” or “I [just] follow Christ.”” (1 Corinthians 1:12). Those battles in the church in Corinth over competing teachers (1 Corinthians 1:10-17) also lead— as it often does— to political games. On a more individual level, it also led to boasting over whose teacher had superior wisdom.

They were in a very bad place, spiritually. That’s why it was necessary for an apostle to write to them and hold up a mirror, so to speak, to help them to see through their boasting and turn back to God in repentance and faith. So let’s take a moment this morning to follow Paul’s point and see what you and I might need to be called to repent of, as well.

Again, Paul is attacking the things that they’re boasting in. He’s trying to destroy the false gods that they have set up for themselves and bring them back to true, saving faith. And so he writes to them: “26 Consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth” (1 Corinthians 1:26). “Why do you think God chose you?” he asked them. And the answer put an end to their false boasting. So perhaps that is a question that you and I would do well to consider, too.

Does Paul have anything to say to you and I today? What do you boast in?

It’s certainly true that you and I don’t care much about “noble birth.” We’re good Americans. We might be intrigued by the British monarchy on some level, but that’s not really a big thing here.

Showing partiality to those of ‘noble birth’ really doesn’t seem to be a problem. You don’t show partiality to some people over others because of the family they’re born into. Or do you?

One of the eye opening experiences in my life within the church came back at the church where I grew up. We thought of ourselves as a very friendly congregation. We thought of ourselves that way until someone pointed out that what we really meant by that was that we all had a lot of friends within the congregation. Someone new who walked in off the street would barely get acknowledged. If you weren’t “from there,” then you probably didn’t even get a ‘Hello’.

You and I don’t fall into the trap of blatantly treating one person as better than another, but that doesn’t mean that you don’t send very subtle messages about who really belongs here and who doesn’t; about who is really important here and who isn’t, even just because of which family someone was born into.

There are congregations with very real and significant power dynamics. Thankfully this is not really one of them. At the same time, are you immune to showing partiality to those who can do you favors in return?

It comes quite naturally. You love those who love you; you care for those who care about you; you help those who can help you. But that isn’t actually love. That’s certainly not what God meant when He commanded, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” In fact, it’s the sort of love that has made this world something far less than the paradise that God created it to be.

These sort of things may not even cause you a second thought. They’re just how things are. That’s the wisdom of this world. Except, through St. Paul, God reveals it to be anything but true wisdom. As James puts it, in operating this way, you show yourself to be “judges with evil thoughts” (James 2:4).

You probably don’t think of yourselves as ‘boastful’ Christians, but are you willing to take a realistic look?

Is that really why God chose you as His own— because you were born here?

Is that really why He gave you a place in His Kingdom— because of what you have done (or will do) for Him?

Is that the wisdom that you operate by?

God’s Choosing

As St. Paul points out, God has a different sort of wisdom. “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” (1 Corinthians 1:27-29).

You and I don’t think much of noble birth, but let’s be fair: it’s easy to despise something you don’t— and won’t— ever have.

Jesus, however, is the eternal Son of God. He was not made, but He was begotten of the creator and ruler of the universe from all eternity. But that did not keep Him from being born in a stable in order to save you.

You want to talk about power? Jesus knew that all authority in heaven and on earth had been given to Him.

Jesus knew that He had come from God and that He was about to return to His place there, in heaven, with God the Father, on the throne. Knowing that, He handed Himself over to a humiliating death.

Jesus handed Himself over for a brutal, humiliating death for the sake of those who could offer Him nothing in return.

He paid the full price there, on the cross, with His holy, precious blood and His innocent suffering and death. He paid the full price for the evil thoughts that guide your judgments of people. He took the full punishment for your failure to truly love your neighbor as yourself— not just your friends; not just those who could do you favors in return— a true, Godly love even for those who have nothing to offer you, even for your enemies.

Jesus knew how this world operates. And, instead of the wisdom of this world, He insisted upon the foolishness of the cross.

It is in that love that He will return on the Last Day to judge the living and the dead.

Called In Christ Jesus

Consider your calling brothers. Not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 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; God chose you.

The eternal Son of God chose to be your brother. Not only were you not of noble birth, you were born under the curse of sin. But He has called you to be child of God.

You had nothing to offer Him— no favors to exchange— and yet God the Father “raised [you] up with [Jesus] and seated [you] with Him in the heavenly places...” (Eph. 2:6).

Like Joseph, who was exalted to second in command over all Egypt, but not until after he was deeply humbled and shown clearly that he had been called to that position so that God could use him to save countless lives, “it is by grace you have been saved, through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Eph. 2:8-9).

Paul didn’t attack the things that the Corinthians boasted in because he intended to humiliate them and teach them that they were nothing. He attacked those things because he wanted to point them to how much more God wanted to give them in Jesus Christ.

“You are in Christ Jesus, who became to [you] wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord”” (1 Corinthians 1:30-31).

The readings today are deceptively challenging. St. Paul invites you to take a hard look at where your confidence really lies. In the process, he shows that you don’t have less to boast about, you have more. You have something better than being born into the right family: you have been born again as a child of God. You have something better than powerful friends: you have all that your Heavenly Father has done for you in Jesus Christ. You have something better than the wisdom of this world: you have the foolishness of the cross.

Yes, the wisdom of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to you who are being saved it is the power of God (1 Cor. 1:18). It is the power to trade the wisdom of this world for generosity, kindness, mercy, and love.