The Wisdom of God

There are many supposed “wise men” in this World—men who consider themselves to be advisors, counsellors, and leaders. Many of them have already assumed teaching positions in Christian churches, calling themselves pastors, bishops, missionaries, or any other number of titles. But do these men actually preach the true wisdom of God?

What exactly is the wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:22-30-31)?

The Bible says that:

1. It’s the opposite of the wisdom of the World.

2. It’s Christ.

Below we’ll share some passages of Scripture which prove these two points. First, let’s look at a passage which proves that the Wisdom of God is the opposite of the wisdom of this World.

Wisdom vs. Wisdom

Paul painted a stark contrast between the Wisdom of God and the wisdom of this World.

Let no one deceive himself. If anyone thinks himself to be wise among you in this age, let him become a fool, in order that he may become wise.

For the wisdom of this World is foolishness with God, for it is written, ‘The one who catches the wise in their craftiness,’ and again, ‘The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.’

So then, let no one boast in people. For all things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the World or life or death or things present or things to come, all things are yours, and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s (1 Corinthians 3:18-23; LEB).

This is a profound passage of Scripture which exposes the insufficiency of worldly wisdom in light of God’s Wisdom. And God’s Wisdom can be summed up in the Good News of the Kingdom.

Paul starts his exhortation by warning us not to allow ourselves to be carried away by the ‘wisdom of this World’ and he clarifies that such wisdom is based on a trust in people. The term people refers to those who profess to be experts (the so-called “pastors, teachers, professors, and priests.” It also refers to the leaders who work in government—the civil authorities.

Contrary to the word of these men—and Paul sarcastically calls them “the wise”—stands the Church. That’s us! The Church is that group of people whose aspiration, goal, direction, objective, and future Hope is the Kingdom. The Church consists exclusively of people who know what the Kingdom is.

A Literal Government on Earth

Do you understand what the Kingdom is? Most people in modern-day churches do not know what the Kingdom is, or what it means for our daily lives to believe in it. Although Christians are supposed to daily pray ‘may your Kingdom come,’ on average they show very little interest in it.

Most people in churches hear the term Kingdom and think that it’s metaphorical. They think it’s abstract. They have been taught that it’s “inside us”—but of course it’s not! There cannot be a government of Christ inside us if we’re looking up to Heaven and waiting for it to come. Think about it!

Contrary to what most people like to imagine, the Kingdom of God is not vague or abstract. In fact, what these unbelieving fake-Christians find most difficult to deal with is that the Kingdom is all too clear and concrete!

The Kingdom of God is in Heaven now, and when Christ returns in glory, it will be visibly manifested as the government of Christ on Earth. It’s a rulership which Jesus will share with you and me when he literally descends from Heaven in his body. He will share it with you and me when he begins his administration as King on Planet Earth—and when he physically sits on his Throne in the city of Jerusalem.

If you have any understanding of this Kingdom of Christ—a government in which the Lord Jesus will employ us as kings and priests alongside him—then, then what is it’s wisdom? That’s the question 1 Corinthians 3 leads us to ask ourselves.

Everything and Everybody

What does the message of the Kingdom (Jesus and the Apostles call it ‘the Good News of the Kingdom’) tell us? It tells us (according to 1 Corinthians 3):

1. That everything belongs to us.

2. That Christian pastors belong to us.

That sounds like Good News to me! But is it really true? Can we prove it? Can we prove that the pastors belong to us? Well, first ask yourself whether you know a true, good pastor. If you know one, then you will have noticed that they serve you. They serve you on your path to salvation, assisting you on the way to the Kingdom. If they serve you, then they belong to you.

Consider Paul and Peter. They were great pastors—and they belong to us. How do they belong to us, people who live 2000 years after their public ministries? Well, they have left us their writings. Can anyone take the writings of Paul or Peter away from us? Can anyone restrict our use of their writings? Are the texts of Paul and Peter copywritten or restricted use? Or can we freely quote their epistles? Yes, we can.

That’s the case with Paul and Peter, but it’s also the case with all teachers—even non-Christians—of every generation. They belong to us. And so does all the wisdom, science, and literature of every age. That’s what Paul meant when he said that all things belong to us—including ‘the World or life or death or things present or things to come.’

For example, you can use Issac Newton’s scientific laws as illustrations in your evangelization or Biblical teachings. Why not? You could even use Karl Marx’s materials for illustrations.

Communism is an evil, oppressive, atheistic system, and it serves as proof that the Kingdom is the only true political system. Communist theories have failed entire nations in real time. They have left entire generations of Chinese, Russians, and Cubans in ruin.

But the failure of communism gives solid proof that Christ’s way is the right way. If you use communism to illustrate the failure of this World, the Hope of the Kingdom becomes even more glorious. Jesus is greater in the light of Marx's evil theories. God’s promise of a Resurrection shines brighter when we compare it to every other alternative!

All things are ours.

Belonging to Christ

We have been purchased with the blood of Christ. Now we belong to Christ. We have been redeemed, and that is good. It’s good to belong to Jesus. Why? Because we know what happens to those who belong to Jesus. Great things!

How do we know that great things happen to those who belong to Jesus? Well, since Jesus belongs to God—and we can clearly see what God has done in him (he resurrected Jesus and gave him all the rule in the Universe)—we are confident that Jesus will do the same things in us. That’s why the passage ends with the explanation that:

… you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s (1 Corinthians 3:23).

Christ: The Wisdom of God

Do we need to learn philosophy, political science, physics, engineering, or law? Must we obtain a university degree to attain the necessary level of learning? Will a college diploma prove that we have enough smarts to attain wisdom? Are those the things that make us wise?

No. We simply need Christ. Jesus Christ is the Wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:22-23) and he is the Wisdom from God (1 Corinthians 1:31-32).

… indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block, and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the Wisdom of God.

For the foolishness of God is wiser than man, and the weakness of God is stronger than man…

But it is due to him [God] that you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written: ‘Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord’ (1 Corinthians 1:22-24?, 30-31; NASB).

The wisdom of God is foolishness to men. Most people do not recognize God’s wisdom when they hear it because it sounds like religious gibberish to them. It sounds like “pie in the sky” thinking—too idealistic. It doesn’t sound concrete like the advice they would get from people who would teach them things like: how to make money, how to be successful, how to own property, or how to buy a car.

Examples: God’s Wisdom

Here are some examples of God’s wisdom few people are able to acknowledge and even fewer are able to apply to their lives:

1. Turn the other cheek. – If you have conversations with Muslims you’ll find that they strongly disagree with this Christian principle. In my own experiences with them, they have forcefully argued against it

2. Jesus is coming back! – Many times in my conversations with Evangelicals have I heard them make the excuse that with so many interpretations, nobody can know when Christ will return. They are wrong. God’s wisdom could enlighten them. If they sought God’s wisdom, they could be prepared for his return.

3. Those who suffer for righteousness are blessed. – Jesus taught this in the Beatitudes, you’ll recall. Having been condemned unjustly and crucified, our Lord Jesus’ example demonstrates that joy and true happiness are obtained through suffering for doing what it right. He calls it “bearing your cross.”

4. Pray for your enemies. – In a world governed by military and verbal warfare, to bless those who hate you is counterintuitive, but it works! How does it work? The victory we obtain over our enemies is to not conform to their belligerence, their aggression, or their hostility. We are not overcome by evil, but rather, we overcome evil with good.

5. God exalts the humble. – The World pushes selfishness, ego, and pride on us as if these things would make us complete. Worldly philosophies based on psychology try to justify the self-centered lifestyle by giving it sweet-sounding names like “self-actualization.” But it's still selfishness, a sin. God instructs us to follow the path of humility. We will inherit the Kingdom of God if we are ‘poor in spirit.’

6. Wait for the Resurrection. – We live in a society of instant gratification. Most people today expect rewards immediately, but the wisdom of God says to wait. To worldly-minded people, it sounds foolish to hope in a Resurrection from the Dead, but that’s precisely the event God has scheduled for us. It’s on his calendar as the day we will experience his rewards.

Now here’s some troubling new: Most Christians don’t know anything about the Resurrection. Their pastors have taught them that they die and go to Heaven—a lie! What effect has this all-too-common “church lie” had on them?

Here are the effects: Any aspiration they might have to be freed from Death—any sincere and heartfelt interest in the Resurrection—has been quenched. The aspiration for freedom from death has been neutralized. It has been snatched from their hearts. And along with the aspiration for freedom from death, so also any interest to study what the Bible says about the Resurrection has been stolen.

Glory in the Hope

On the other hand, we glory in the Hope. We relish it. The Hope of the Resurrection is our pride and joy. We’re not ashamed to announce the Kingdom, to sing about it, or to teach it. The author of Hebrews calls this Kingdom Hope, the Hope in which we glory. He also calls it our confidence because we’re sure that it will come to pass.

But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s House. And we are his House, if indeed we hold firmly to our confidence and the Hope in which we glory (Hebrews 3:6).

This verse defines an essential element of God’s Church. What makes us his Church is that we hold to our confidence. We are the Church of God only if we hold firmly to the Hope.

Do you see people who hold tight to God’s promise of the Kingdom when the World treats them unfairly and persecutes them? That’s the Church. Do you see a group of people who love to sing about their future in the Kingdom? They glory in the Hope! That’s God’s Church.

But the great majority of people in churches today do not boast about the Kingdom. They know too little of the Kingdom to speak about it. The little they know about the Kingdom has so much of God’s “amazing grace” in it that it embarrasses them to talk about it.

They’re embarrassed to speak about how good God will be to his children, the heirs of the Earth. For example: they won’t dare tell people that we’ll rule over mortals, that we’ll inherit acres of land, govern cities on Earth, and that we’ll have dominion over magnificent tame animals like gorillas, lions, bears, wolves, dolphins, and eagles.

It’s embarrassing for them to talk about us having the divine nature and being “gods” on the Earth. Especially if they haven’t suffered much for the name of Jesus and for his Word, their sense of worthiness of these rewards is weak.

On the other hand, for someone who has suffered extensively for the name of Jesus, it becomes much clearer that we’ll obtain glorious immortal bodies. For those of us who have suffered for Christ, the service angels will render us, the delicious foods and drinks we’ll have at the Wedding Feast of the Lamb, and the crowns of Kingdom glory we’ll receive sound much more reasonable.

Resist the Apostasy, Glory in the Hope

But people who cannot glory in the Hope will eventually fail under testing. People who do not allow for the Hope to rule over their hearts cannot persevere under trial. In fact, anyone who is not firm in the Hope will eventually disavow church fellowship. They will break away from God’s people.

We know that they will separate from the Church because we have insight into the future. Once the World system tightens its grip on humanity and the Antichrist rises to power, Christians will become the outliers. We will become the pariahs of society.

We’ll resist the Antichrist’s new world order by the power of our hope in the Kingdom. We will be hated by all for not conforming to the World. At that time it will become dangerous to associate with us. That’s when many in the Church (those who do not glory in the Hope) will stop loving us. Their love will grow cold. The Apostasy will take place.

Many will fall into sin, the deception of the Antichrist, and will apostatize from the Faith. They will betray us and will hate us. The warnings of Jesus will be fulfilled:

Then they will hand you over to persecution and will kill you, and you will be hated by all the nations because of my name. And then many will be led into sin and will betray one another and will hate one another, and many false prophets will appear and will deceive many, and because lawlessness will increase, the love of many will grow cold (Matthew 24:9-12).

Do you want to make sure you never fall into apostasy? Do you want to make sure your love never grows cold? Glory in the Hope. Declare to the World (without any reservation or shame) that you are hoping in the Kingdom of God.