Daily Lesson for Monday 6th of July 2026
In contrasting human foolishness to divine wisdom, Paul states that the “message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing” (1 Corinthians 1:18, NKJV). This is the first of six references to foolishness or foolish in 1 Corinthians 1:18-31.
Read 1 Corinthians 1:20-21,23,25, and 27. How do these references to foolishness help us understand what Paul meant when saying that the message of the Cross is foolishness to those who are perishing?
Image © Jim Howard at Goodsalt.com
The Greek word for “foolishness” in 1 Corinthians 1:18 is mōria. This word occurs only five times in the New Testament, and all in 1 Corinthians (1 Corinthians 1:18,21,23; 1 Corinthians 2:14; 1 Corinthians 3:19). Apart from mōria, other words from the same family occur numerous times in the New Testament.
The reference to foolishness in 1 Corinthians 1:18,23 is not denigrating the Corinthians’ intellectual capacity but directing attention to their unwillingness to consider the truth of the gospel. As a result, Paul also had to confront immoral behavior and thought, lack of discernment, and even rebellion against God.
Think about Paul’s situation in this city. He comes to a place that prides itself on its own so-called knowledge and wisdom and cultural sophistication. And, in this context, he talks about a Galilean Jew, Jesus of Nazareth, who had been crucified by the Romans and then raised from the dead—all in order to pay for not only their sins but for the sins of the world. Can this guy be serious? Who was he kidding? This wasn’t some deep new philosophical concept, either, that could be parsed and analyzed by philosophical tools; it seemed to be lunacy, nonsense, nothing that any smart and educated Corinthian could take seriously.
And, as foolish as Paul’s message sounded to the pagans, for many of the Jews, the message of the Cross sounded worse. What Jew was expecting a Messiah to be executed by Rome? The Messiah was supposed to overthrow the Romans, not be crucified by them.
Thus, from the start, Paul had a lot going against him in Corinth. And yet, despite all this, souls—Jewish and Gentile—were won to the gospel.
The message here?
Whatever opposition we face, God has people who are open to hearing the truth. We must be ready to be used by Him to reach these people wherever they are, even in places today that are as bad as, or even worse than, Corinth was.
