SERIES: “OVERCOMING OBSTACLES THAT OBSTRUCT OBEDIENCE”
TEXT: 1 CORINTHIANS 1:18-31
TITLE: “GOD’S WISDOM AND MAN’S FOOLISHNESS”
INTRODUCTION: A. Two men were working with a contracting firm hired to dig a large hole. After
several hours of hard labor with picks and shovels, they sat down under a tree to take
a break.
One of the men says to the other: “Look at our foreman down there. He really
thinks he’s something. I’m a lot smarter than he is. In fact, I’m probably the most
intelligent man on this crew!” The second fellow asks, “What does ‘intelligent’
mean?”
The first man stands up, place his hand flat on the trunk of the tree and tell the
other fellow, “Take your fist and hit my hand.” The second man jumps up, cocks his
fist back, and swings as hard as he can. The first man pulls his hand away and the
second man hits the tree. He grabs his hand, jumps around shouting and yelling in
pain. When he stops, the first man says, “Now, that’s intelligence.”
The second man stood there for awhile, working this definition over in his mind.
He decides he’s going to show the first fellow just how smart he is. The second
fellow walks down to where the foreman is and says, “Let me show you how
intelligent I am.” He goes to put his hand flat on a tree trunk and realizes there is no
tree close by. He looked confused for a moment and then figured out the solution. He
held his hand up flat in front of his face and says to the foreman, “Take your fist and
hit my hand.”
1. Sometimes we think we’re so smart and so wise
2. In fact, sometime we think we’re smarter than God
a. We try to run ahead of Him
b. We try to run around Him
c. We try to run without Him
--all of those things are pur foolishness
3. The Bible warns us:
a. Prov. 3:7 – “Do not try to be wise in your own eyes…”
b. Prov. 14:12 – “There is a way that seems right to a man but in the end it leads to
death.”
c. Prov. 18:2 – “A fool has no delight in understanding, but in expressing his own
heart.”
B. Have you ever heard the phrase, “Out of the mouth of babes?”
--Sometimes, children have great insight into things (much more so than some adults)
For example:
1. Patrick, age 10, said, “Never trust a dog to watch your food.”
2. Michael, 14, said, “When your dad is mad and asks you, ‘Do I look stupid?’ don’t
answer him.”
3. Michael, wise man that he was also said, “Never tell your mom her diet’s not
working.”
4. Kyoyo, age 9, said, “Never hold a dust buster and a cat at the same time.”
5. Naomi, 15 said, “If you want a kitten, start out by asking for a horse.”
6. Lauren, age 9 said, “Felt markers are not good to use as lipstick.”
7. Joel, 10 years old, said, “Don’t pick on your sister when she’s holding a baseball
bat.”
8. Eileen, age 8 said, “Never try to baptize a cat.”
B. 1 Cor. 1:18-31 – “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; the intelligence of the intelligent I will
frustrate.’ Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of
this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the
wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased
through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.”
Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ
crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom
God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of
God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of
God is stronger than man’s strength. Brothers, think of what you were when you were
called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential;
not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame
the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the
lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to
nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. It is because of him
that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our
righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: ‘Let him who
boasts boast in the Lord.’”
I. THE PLAN GOD CHOSE TO ADOPT
A. God’s insistence on revealing His glory
1. In His unique character
a. “unique” – “only one of its kind; no other like it”
b. Dt. 4:35 – “You were shown these things so that you might know that the LORD is God; besides
him there is no other.”
2. In His unique creation
a. Gen. 1:26 – “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over
the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock. Over all the earth, and over all the
creatures that move along the ground.”
b. Rom. 1: 20 - ”For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and
divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are
without excuse.”
B. God’s resistance to sharing His glory
1. Satan tried to share God’s glory
--Is. 14:12-14 – “How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been
cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to
heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly,
on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make
myself like the Most High.’”
2. Humans have tried to share God’s glory
a. Gen. 3:5 – Satan’s temptation – “You will be like God…”
b. But God says that no one will share His glory
--Ex. 20:1-5a – “And God spoke all these words: ‘I am the LORD your God, who brought you out
of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make
for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the
waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a
jealous God…”
C. God’s persistence in demonstrating His glory
--culminates in Jesus
1. Incarnation – virgin birth
--Jn. 1:14 – “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the
glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
2. Crucifixion
--Col. 2:15 – “And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them,
triumphing over them by the cross.”
3. Resurrection
--1 Pet. 1:3 – “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has
given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”
4. Coronation
a. Phil 2:10-11 – “Every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord…”
b. World thinks it is foolish that Jesus said, “I am the way the truth and the life; no one comes to the
Father but by me.”
II. THE PROCEDURES GOD CHOSE TO EMPLOY
A. God’s call contradicted with human reason
1. It seemed foolish when Naaman the leper was told to go wash in the Jordan River and
dip 7 times, but when he obeyed, his leprosy departed!
2. It seemed foolish when David faced the giant Goliath with only a sling and 5 smooth stones,
but when he went in God’s name and power, the giant fell, and he cut his head off!
3. It seemed foolish when Joshua told the people of Israel to march around Jericho 7 times on
the 7th day in obedience to God, but when they did, the walls of Jericho came falling down!
4. It seemed foolish when Moses made a serpent of brass and held it high above the snake-bitten
masses of Israel and told them to look upon it,but when they obeyed, and looked in faith, they
did not die from the snakebite!
5. It certainly seemed foolish for the Son of God to die on a cross for the sins of the world
--Jn. 3:14-16 – “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up,
that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world that he gave his
one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
B. God’s choice confounded human resources
1. The Greeks loved learning and wisdom and would gather around to hear any new philosophy and
entertain its ideas.
a. But all ideas were evaluated on how well they conformed to what they thought was reasonable.
b. They believed in a God of reason, but it must be a god who was reasonable on their terms.
1). That’s why the Roman historian Tacitus called Christianity a “pernicious superstition”.
2). To them the cross is not merely an intellectual defect, it was utter foolishness.
--A person who claims the cross needs a room with rubber walls and a sleeveless jacket.
c. Pretty much the sentiment today
--Freud believed that religious belief was a psychotic illness.
2. The Jews looked at the cross & stumbled over it because they didn’t see the kind of Messiah they
wanted.
a. They looked for a physical Messianic kingdom
--They would have been happy if Jesus had organized an army and fought the Romans
b. But sadly, the cross didn’t symbolize power and victory to the Jews.
--It symbolized defeat.
c. The gospel of preaching Christ crucified doesn’t stop at Jesus’ death
--The gospel includes the resurrection, the ascension, and Jesus’ promise of a glorious return
III. THE PEOPLE GOD CHOSE TO UTILIZE
A. God chooses those who are related to Him
1. Those who are “called”
2. Those who are “in Christ”
B. God uses people who are right with Him
1. Righteousness – “cleansed”
2. Holiness – “set apart”
3. Redemption – price has been paid
--Christ provides all three things for us
C. vs. 26 – Describes those used by God with human standards: not many were wise, influential or
important.
1. Think about the people God used in the Old Testament:
a. Moses: picked by God even though he was a ’poor speaker, slow and hesitant’
b. David, the younger brother out tending the sheep instead of fighting battles with his older
brothers, chosen to be king.
c. Jeremiah: chosen as a prophet even though he didn’t ’know how to speak’ and was ’too young.’
d. Gideon: called to lead his nation even though he was from the ’weakest’ clan of the tribe of
Manasseh and the ’least important member’ of his own family."
2. Consider the 12 men Jesus called to serve as His closest associates
a. Four were smelly fishermen
b. One was an IRS agent
c. The rest were people we know nothing about except that they were common everyday people
d. One was even a person that Jesus knew would betray Him
e. These were definitely not the men that worldly-wise people would have chosen to accomplish
such an important job.
3. Consider the person chosen to be the “apostle to the Gentiles”
--Saul was the greatest enemy of the church yet Christ called him to apostle-ship on the road to
Damascus
CONCLUSION: A. Jesus gave two parables about wisdom and foolishness
1. The first has to do with the importance of hearing God’s word and then obeying it
a. Mt. 7:24-27 – Jesus tells about two builders. A foolish builder who built his house
on a foundation of sand that would not stand up to the storms of life. The other was
a wise builder who built his home on a foundation of solid rock where the storms of
life could assail it without fear of the foundation giving way.
b. Jesus wanted us to understand the importance of obedience
2. The second has to do with being prepared for Christ’s return
a. Mt. 25:1-13 – Jesus tells about 10 virgins, five who were ready to greet the
bridegroom and five who were not ready
b. Jesus wanted us to know that His return could happen at any time
--vigilance and preparedness are also important
B. I want to conclude tonight with a story that’s quite old but quite to the point:
There was a king who had all his world could afford. The thing he loved most,
however, was to laugh.
Once while being entertained a jester came along wishing to join in the festival of
activities and also wishing to perform for him. His opportunity came and he put the best
comical show together he had ever done and the king never laughed so hard.
Once the activity was all over the king wanted to hire this jester to be his personal
jester. Once hired, the king handed him a small stick and said, “You are the most foolish
man alive. When you find someone more foolish than you, then you give them this stick,”
and the king laughed heartily.
After many years had passed by the king lay sick on his death bed ready to go at any
moment. He called for his jester, for he wanted to laugh one more time before he died.
When the jester was through he asked to speak to the king personally.
Once alone with the king the jester asked, “King where are you going?” The king
responded, “On a far journey.” The jester asked again, “And how do you plan to get
there? The king responded, “I don’t know.” Then the jester pulled the stick from his
back pocket and handed it to the king. The king was stunned and asked why he had given
him the stick. The jester replied, “King, today I have found a more foolish man than I.
For you see, I only trifled with the things of life, but you have trifled with things of
eternity!”
