February 15 -- "The Foolishness of the Cross"

 ►Click HERE to view today's "Word from the Word"

Read 1 Corinthians 1

God's wisdom transcends human understanding and often works in ways that seem paradoxical or illogical by human standards. Take, for example, The Battle of Jericho in Joshua 6: Conquering a fortified city like Jericho would typically require a well-planned military strategy and a strong army. Yet, God instructed Joshua and the Israelites to simply march around the city for seven days, blowing trumpets and shouting.  How foolish! But the walls of Jericho fell, showcasing God's power and unconventional wisdom.

To human reasoning, the larger your army the greater your advantage in battle, right? But, in Judges 7, God reduced Gideon's army from 32,000 to 300 men.  How foolish! And yet, Gideon's armies won the battle and were able to attribute their success to God’s power and not to human strength.

In 1 Samuel 17--Israel sends a young shepherd boy with nothing more than a sling and some stones to face a giant warrior.  How foolish! And yet, David's confidence in God led to his victory over Goliath that day.

In 1 Kings 17, during a famine, a widow and her son were nearing the end of their food supply. But God told her to use the last bit of her flour and oil to feed the prophet Elijah instead of herself and her son. How foolish! Yet, the Lord miraculously multiplied the widow's flour and oil so that it did not run out until the famine ended.

Or that time in John 9:6 when a blind man needed healing.  Inexplicably, Jesus used dirt and saliva to make mud which He applied to the man's eyes.  How Foolish!  And yet, the man came back seeing. 

All of these examples highlight God's wisdom. Though it may seem foolish to human reasoning and logic, it is far superior to any manmade wisdom.

The ultimate display of God’s superior wisdom is in the crucifixion of Jesus.  The Father gave His Son to the world so that His excruciatingly brutal death, shedding His blood on the cross, would bring salvation to lost humanity.   How foolish! From a human perspective the cross seems to be a defeat and a humiliating end. But, through Jesus' death and resurrection, He accomplished the ultimate victory over sin and death, offering salvation to all of us. What appeared to be weakness was, in fact, the greatest demonstration of God's power and wisdom.

The message of the cross, the cornerstone of our faith, might seem utterly irrational and foolish to some. After all, how can you be saved simply by believing in a Man who died a brutal death at the hands of the Romans?   How foolish! Yet, God revealed His supreme wisdom by declaring: “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)

As you face uncertainties in life with seemingly no way out, always look to God who can transform your situation in unexpected and perhaps even "foolish" ways.  And, as you share your faith with others, may you remain unashamed of the Gospel, even when others view it as foolishness. It may seem "foolish" to some, but your testimony of the cross's power can be a beacon of hope and a testimony to God's transformative wisdom and power in people's lives.