I Corinthians 1:21 For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. 22 For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: 23 But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; 24 But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. 25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men. 26 For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: 27 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; 28 And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: 29 That no flesh should glory in his presence.
Paul made some ego-deflating statements in this passage. He burst their bubbles. Not many wise. Not many mighty. Not many noble. Some of his words need to be defined. He is not saying God thinks those of us who believe in him are foolish. That is what the world thinks. We’re wise in being used for Christ. In Chapter 4, verse 10 he said We are fools for Christ’s sake, but ye are wise in Christ; we are weak, but ye are strong; ye are honorable, but we are despised. We who have accepted Christ as Savior are the wisest in the world. People are more educated than ever, more technologically advanced than ever. There is more excess than ever. You can be wise in all these ways but be foolish in the ways of God. Base (used in verse 28) doesn’t mean evil. It means not of noble birth. God will use the educated, but many are not available. He uses the insignificant. But there are no insignificant tasks with God. God simply uses those who make themselves available to him.
In the story of David and Goliath we find that David was the youngest of 8. He had no armor to wear. King Saul’s was too big. He had a shepherd’s staff, a sling, and 5 smooth stones. He also had God, and HE made the difference in this story. David fought in the name of the God of Israel. He had confidence in God’s ability to win the battle. He said the battle is not ours; it is the Lord’s. In looking at this from human eyes only, Goliath would have been favored 100:1. He was over 9 feet tall. David was a young lad. Even if he was 6 feet tall, Goliath was still much larger. Yet David won. Why? So all the earth would know there was a God in Israel. Look back at verse 27 above. That means there is no logical answer to David winning except what this verse says.
Look at who Jesus chose as disciples. A tax collector, fishermen. Was anyone more hated than a tax collector? Were any more uneducated than fishermen? No. He chose them on the basis of what they could become in him. I’m glad Jesus saw something in us he could use! Verse 29 tells us why he does it this way: That no flesh should glory in his presence. If we can accomplish things ourselves we tend to praise ourselves. When we realize we cannot do it, we give God the praise. In the feeding of the 5,000 (probably at least 15-20 thousand with women and children), Philip looked at their resources and didn’t see much. Yet Jesus multiplied it and there were 12 baskets full of leftovers. It could have only been done by Christ.
When the woman anointed Jesus with the expensive oil, some saw it as a waste. Jesus said she had done what she could. He used foolish, unlearned people but there were no insignificant tasks. Mark tells us that even a cup of water given in Jesus’ name is noticed. God calls us to be faithful. That’s what he notices. God uses the usable. We all know it’s hard to use someone who isn’t usable. There are people who would make good workers for the Lord if they would simply make themselves available. God always equips a person to do what he calls him or her to do. God can use you and me no matter what our abilities are IF we make ourselves available. If he can use a donkey, he can use you and me. Let God use you. Make yourself available.
Adwolfe Freewill Baptist Church 