Father,

As we continue to study how Paul handles the Corinthian growth problems; grant us the willingness to be teachable, and keep us always united in the truth of your word. Make us wise unto salvation, and keep us from the evil one. Create in us a shining example of your wisdom. Amen.

Key Word : Wisdom

Wisdom is a great gift from the Father of lights. There is no variableness or anomalies whatsoever, because he never changes himself, and neither does His wisdom. Knowing this principle helps us to focus our energies on service to our mighty King, with a large degree of certainty that He will carry us through the dark times of our lives.

How pitiful is the life of the unsaved man or women! There is no confidence of what tomorrow will bring or even if there will be breath to breathe in the morning.

The Scriptures tells us that we have a "Rock of Truth" which will never falter. If we, as Christians, have sure hope, then we can give to others what the Lord Jesus has given to us. Since we cannot see God our heavenly Father we appear to be foolish to believe in an invisible God. Man’s wisdom sees life from a different focus so there is an opposite reaction to life. It is true foolishness to believe differently. Let us see how Paul brings these truths to light.

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18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.

Through this allusion to preaching Paul introduces a new subject. He takes the opportunity of correcting his converts for their undue exaltation of the human eloquence and wisdom of Apollos, and starts to plainly state the main principles of the Gospel message. It is the Logos (Word) of the stauro (cross) that seems to be foolishness to the world. Why would God die upon a cross for me?

19 For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.

The wisdom of the wise is often folly, the understanding of the wise is often rejected. There is such a thing as the ignorance of the learned, the wisdom of the simple-minded. God's wisdom rises in the cross far above human philosophizing which is still scoffing at the Cross of Christ, the stalwart reminder of God's power. A prudent man knows that God and His laws should never be mocked even if he doesn’t understand them.

20 Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?

The wise man sophos, whose office it was to teach others, and the scribe, grammateus signifies any man of learning, as distinguished from the common people, especially any master of the traditions.

The disputer, suzeeteetees, is the generator of questions; the seeker of allegorical, mystical, and cabalistical senses from the Holy Scriptures.

These are people well known among the Jews, and there is no doubt that the apostle has the Jews immediately in mind as he speaks. By the preaching of Christ crucified, God made foolish the wisdom of the Jewish wise men; and after that, the pure religion of Christ had been corrupted by a church that was of this world, God rendered the wisdom and of the disputing schoolmen foolishness, by the revival of pure Christianity at the Reformation.

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.

The unadorned meaning of this verse is, that the wise men of the world, especially the Greek philosophers, who possessed every advantage that human nature could have, independent of divine revelation, could never, by their learning, find out who God is. The most refined philosophers among them could have any correct views of the divine nature, nor of that in which human happiness consists. No wisdom except that which came from God could ever penetrate and illumine the human mind.

22 For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:

There have never been a people in the world more difficult to be persuaded of the Gospel than the Jews: and that is why God has unarguably proved by miracles that are so amazing that men, the world over believe. This slowness of heart to believe, added to their fear of being deceived, induced them to require miracles to attest to every thing that is professed to come from God. They were a wicked and adulterous generation, continually seeking signs, and never saying, it is enough.

[And the Greeks seek after wisdom.] Such wisdom or philosophy, as they found in the writings called philosophy, and which came recommended to them in all the beauty and grace of the Latin and Greek languages.

23 But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness;

The Apostles, a group which Paul includes himself in, differ widely from these Gentile philosophers, because they preach Christ crucified, and call on all men, both Jews and Gentiles, to believe in Christ. He has purchased their salvation by shedding his blood for them.

Unto the Jews a stumbling block, because Jesus came meek, lowly, and impoverished; not seeking worldly glory, nor affected by worldly prestige; they were offended at him. They expected the Messiah to come as a mighty prince and conqueror, but Christ did not come so,.

Unto the Greeks foolishness The Greeks could not believe that proclaiming eternal life through a crucified man in Judea as a criminal could ever align itself with reason and common sense; for both the matter and manner of the preaching were opposite to every notion they had formed of what was dignified and philosophic.