Wisdom, Wonder, and Power

Mythology, foolishness, delusions, “kooky talk”. That’s what the world thinks about Christianity and the Bible. Sure, non-believers may be very thankful for the blessings and benefits Christians bring to the world like hospitals, orphanages and institutions of higher learning, as well as various sciences like chemistry and physics, but the truth claims of the Bible are more than a little hard to swallow for the unbelieving world.

To be honest, we do have some rather unusual stories in our faith:

Talking animals Aquariums with no walls, bread from heaven

…and we serve a “savior” who was crucified as a traitorous criminal, who then rose from the dead three days later, and by-the-way ascended into heaven and is planning to come back to earth riding a horse, and all his followers will be riding with him!

But God is not interested in convincing the world that His plan is academically feasible. In fact His plan is absurdly simple and subtle and His goal is profoundly, and Paul addresses this fact in today’s text.

READ 1 Cor 1:18-31.

Prayer

The Folly of the Cross

(v18-21)

The Wisdom of the World

Atheistic, naturalistic, materialistic

Atheism- the belief that there is no God. Therefore, all we see and interact with is a result functional complexity, from chaos, by random chance over vast periods of time.

Psalm 14:1 “The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is none who does good.”

Psalm 19:1–4 “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard. Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world...

“did not honor God” (Rom 1:18-23)

Evolutionary, revolutionary(dominance/subjugation)

Naturalism- the only thing that we can believe in is what we observe in the “natural order”.

Materialism- the only things that are “real” are those which we can measure quantitatively.

Mysticism- there is a mystical alternate reality, but it is certainly not the spiritual realm of the Bible

God has made foolish the wisdom of the world (v20)

Searching for answers

(v21-24)

signs (miracles)- Israel

wisdom- Greece

power- Rome

The Weakness of God

(v25)

When was God at His “weakest?” At the cross, intentionally

Romans 3:23–27 ESV

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith.