The "Wisdom" of this World ... (1 Cor. 3:18-23)

Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God. For it is written, “He is THE ONE WHO CATCHES THE WISE IN THEIR CRAFTINESS”; and again, “THE LORD KNOWS THE REASONINGS of the wise, THAT THEY ARE USELESS.” So then let no one boast in men. For all things belong to you, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or things present or things to come; all things belong to you, and you belong to Christ; and Christ belongs to God.
(1 Corinthians 3:18-23, NASB)

My goodness … I’m not sure where to start with these verses. Paul was able to put so much truth in just a few words, and I’m not even close to being as articulate as he was!

But I’ll try. With the Holy Spirit’s inspiration, I’ll try.

First, Paul writes that the “wisdom of this world is foolishness.” I’d have to agree. We live in a world of instant information. If you want to know something about anything, you just have to Google it. You’ll have more information than you could ever possibly want … or need.

There’s just one problem: You can never be absolutely sure that the information you’re getting is accurate. This is something I tell my students all the time. Just because it’s on the internet doesn’t mean it’s right. And just because something is in print doesn’t mean it’s right either. We have to discern truth.

This is even more critical when we’re dealing with life and death matters such as faith. Religions and belief systems abound. So many in our world want to believe in something. So they pray to the universe or to plants or to a god of their own making. They believe they’re wise, but they’re really quite foolish.

Real wisdom comes from God, and He reveals Himself and His will through His word. That’s where we find truth. That’s where we find wisdom.

After all this talk about wisdom and foolishness, Paul throws in a wonderful assurance: “you belong to Christ …” When we believe in the God of the Bible, when we’ve accepted His gift of grace, we become part of His family. We are part of the body of Christ.

Reminders such as this make my day!