1 Corinthians 1:18-31 "The Power of God"

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written: "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent." Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence. But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God-and righteousness and sanctification and redemption-that, as it is written, "He who glories, let him glory in the Lord." (1 Corinthians 1:18-31)

In Japan right now there are many high-school students who are not enjoying their summer vacations. They are studying away their break, day and night, preparing for college entrance exams that will decide their future. Millions of students pass through a system each year that determines who is the best and the brightest. Those who are not as smart or not as well prepared fall through the cracks.

One Japanese high school girl had set her hopes on going to the same university that her boyfriend was attending. Her teachers and friends told her that she should strive for an even better school but she could see her future bright and clear in front of her. She would enjoy college life with her boyfriend and then either marry or get a career in a good company. What could go wrong? The day of the test brought heavy snow. The trains ran late. Nothing could go right. Unbelievably, when the test results came back she had failed. She had been so confident of success that she didn't even bother to take exams from other schools and so ended up with nothing. All of her plans came crashing down around her. Her life was ruined.

We love to plan out our lives and dream that nothing can touch us. We build our sandcastles on the beach and imagine that the tide will not come and wash them away. We do our best only to find that at some point our best is not good enough and everything that we have strived for has been lost. As I look around I find that there are three kinds of people. There are the people who are still striving and building and dreaming and have not yet noticed that the tide is coming in. There are also people whose castles have been swept away, who stand there hopeless looking down at the destruction. But there is still another kind of person in this world. They built and dreamed just like everyone else. They lost and suffered just like so many others. But instead of giving up they seem to have found the strength to build again. These are the ones who have found the power of God.

The Bible says that "the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men." God chooses the weak, the foolish, the despised and the nobodies of this world. The reason why He does this is so that we will know who is really strong and who is really wise. In fact God uses these people to show those who think that they are wise how foolish they really are. God uses the weak to show those who think that they are strong how truly weak they are. You see until the waves come in, the sand castles we build look so mighty and invincible. We build strong reputations and business references, networks of associates and clients, certifications and diplomas. We buy insurance on our homes and cars and invest in diversified portfolios so that an unforeseen accident or correction in the market won't be able to hurt us too badly. And yet none of it will save us from our own sin. No matter how strong we fortify our lives the enemy is already inside the gate. Our pride and ambition, our lust and greed, our lack of care for others than ourselves constantly threatens to bring the whole thing crumbling down on top of us.

Jesus said that the wise man builds his house upon a rock and the foolish man builds his house upon the sand. There is no weaker foundation for your life than to build it on yourself. We need a rock, we need something more stable than sand to build upon. That rock, the power of God, is Jesus Christ. Verse 18 says that "the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." What is the message of the cross? What is that power that can become a sure foundation for your life? God, the Father, sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross for you. Why? Because He loves you. That is the message of the cross. God loves you so much that even though you are weak and imperfect and rebellious and fail, He still sent His Son Jesus to die for your sins.

In one sense the cross is the biggest failure of all. Jesus, who came to teach us how to love, how to give, how to live like God wants us to. Jesus who came to set the prisoners free, to heal the sick and to give comfort to the broken hearted. Jesus who came to establish justice and mercy and peace, was never given the chance because after three brief years of ministry his life was cut short by execution. But this is where we see the real power of the cross. Because even though Jesus' life was cut off, His ministry was not. He did teach us how to love! By laying His life down for His friends. He did teach us how to give! By giving everything for us. He did everything that He was sent to do. And there is even more. Three days later, the biggest failure turned into the biggest victory of all when Jesus rose again from the dead.

The girl who failed her entrance exam didn't know what to do. She tried to do a number of things, but could not really decide. She did not want to wait a whole year to challenge the exams again. A brief attempt at stewardess school only resulted in another failure. Finally, she decided to attend a jr. college for women and study English at their sister college in the United States. The day after she arrived in Oregon she met me and about a year after that she received Jesus Christ as her Lord. Today my wife is very happy that she was a failure. Today, she no longer builds her house on the sand but on the solid rock of God's love. On Thursday I was privileged to preach the gospel at a Japanese church in Yokosuka and to lead a 17 year old girl named Marika to Jesus Christ. I told her that unlike college exams where you prepare and study and do your best and hope that you pass, salvation means that because of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross you have already passed! From now on you do not have to measure up, you don't have to worry whether or not you will make it. Instead you can go forward with confidence knowing that you are loved and accepted and nothing can separate you from the love of God.

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