Daily Lesson for Thursday 9th of July 2026
In 1 Corinthians 1:19-20,30, and 31, Paul talks about how God’s wisdom and human wisdom are incredibly different and, thus, mutually exclusive. Notice that Paul does not reject wisdom as such, but he rejects the kind of human wisdom that tries to compete with God. Human wisdom is incapable of freeing men from sin. Only Christ, the wisdom of God, can perform this work. See the table below.
| but to us who are being saved | [the message of the Cross] is the power of God | 1 Corinthians 1:18 |
| but to those who are called | Christ [is] the power of God | 1 Corinthians 1:24 |
Image © Phil McKay Goodsalt.com
Both 1 Corinthians 1:18 and 1 Corinthians 1:24 show that Christ is the power of God, in the sense that He has the power to save people from their sins. Indeed, “it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe” (1 Corinthians 1:21, NKJV). The phrases “us who are being saved” (1 Corinthians 1:18, NKJV), “those who believe” (1 Corinthians 1:21, NKJV), and “those who are called” (1 Corinthians 1:24, NKJV) refer to the same group, namely, people living the experience of salvation through faith. “The gospel of Christ . . . is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16, NKJV).
Christ is not only the power but also the wisdom of God. This means that through Him God faced and solved the problem of sin, a problem that human wisdom was powerless to solve. The wisdom of this world is unable to make people know God (1 Corinthians 1:21). Conversely, through Christ we become wise for salvation (2 Timothy 3:15).
Read 1 Corinthians 1:24-29. Notice the words there, such as “foolishness,” “weak,” “power,” and “wise.” What point is he making?
In reading 1 Corinthians 1:24-29, one should also notice the terms foolish (or foolishness) and weak (or weakness). The point is that human wisdom may consider the message of the Cross to be foolishness and weakness. However, “the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men” (1 Corinthians 1:25, ESV). This doesn’t mean that God is weak or foolish; it’s merely an expression showing how God’s power and wisdom far exceed anything human.
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Dwell on the words “that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called” (1 Corinthians 1:26, NKJV). What message is there for us? |
