July 23, 2016

1 Corinthians 1:27 NKJV - "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."

Commentary:

This passage has more to it than this one verse.  Take time to read 1 Corinthians 1:18-31.  It will reveal an important lesson for Christians.  We live in a world where intelligence and strength are admired and often what we seek to achieve and acquire.  To be smart and strong seems to be the focus of many a young person as they pursue their careers and seek to do something worthwhile with their lives.  And we Christians get caught up in the same pursuits and we find ourselves trying to compete with others to see which one would "get ahead" in life and prove their worth.

God sees things so differently than us.  In our Daily Verse and the context in which it is located, Paul makes clear that God isn't looking for the smart and strong to accomplish His work.  It's not that God doesn't use these traits in our lives, but they are not the primary reason why God may use us.  Actually, God is looking for people who aren't "much in their own eyes" but who are impressed with how smart and strong their God is! 

It's often been said that the reason why the Spirit of God doesn't seem to show His power through many believers is because they are so full of themselves that there's no room for the Spirit to work!  God is looking for people who are "small" in their own eyes and, therefore, give plenty of room for God to show how mighty He is.  The story of Gideon and his 300 men is a great study!  Read that in Judges 6 and 7.  The primary focus was that Israel was facing a great enemy and God was going to defeat that enemy with a small number of Israelites to show His power.

God wants to use us, but not because we're so great.  He wants to use us to show how great and powerful He is.  Is there room in your life for God to work through you?