Paragon Church

Sunday, March 29, 2015

Day 33 - Divine Paradox

1 Corinthians 1:27-31 (ESV) - But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”


Every year, Time magazine publishes an issue entitled, “The 100 Most Influential People in the World.” The magazine features people considered to be world shapers: entertainers, inventors, artists, leaders, politicians. In 2013, Time included an unlikely young, Pakistani girl, Malala Yousafzai, who survived an attack by a Taliban gunman in Pakistan in 2012 as she was on her way home from school. Fortunately, Malala recovered and has since become an advocate for human rights on behalf of young women and girls in one of the most violent regions of the world. Malala is an unlikely influencer to take on the power and violence of Taliban extremism, yet her story shows the paradox of the weak shaming the strong.

The apostle Paul appeals to this paradox as he addresses a struggling and immature church in ancient Corinth. A bustling place of commerce, Corinth was also a city filled with hard-drinking and hard-living people. The church Paul had started over a year earlier was beginning to fall apart. Division, blatant sexual immorality, power-grabbing, boasting, and in-fighting had put the fledgling fellowship in disarray.

Paul challenges these struggling believers to reimagine their lives and calling to Christ as part of a divine paradox: God chooses the foolish (literally, the moronic) to shame the wise (the educated and erudite); the weak (infirm and feeble) to shame the strong (the powerful and influential); and the lowly (base and low- born) to accomplish his saving acts.

The identity and self-worth of a follower of Jesus are not based on achievement, family background, or education, but rather on the work of God in a believer’s life. None of the Corinthian believers would have made Corinth’s list of the top 100 influential people—most of them were of ignoble birth, uneducated, and under-achievers. Yet God had done a work in them. They became living examples of the divine paradox, and that, Paul says, was something worth boasting about!

PONDER:
Where have you seen God powerfully use something or someone that seemed weak or foolish?

REFLECTION or DISCUSSION:
Being boastful has a clear negative connotation. It’s so easy to get fed up with people who are proud and constantly brag about their accomplishments and abilities. This verse flips the idea of boasting on its head. In 1 Corinthians 1:31, Paul instructs the Corinthians to boast in the Lord. When God shows up in our lives in amazing ways, we can talk about it in front of everyone.

Read 1 Corinthians 1:31. What does it mean to boast? What are some amazing things God has done in your life? Where have you seen God show up? Who can you share one of these amazing stories about God with? Find time to share your story this week. 

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