Ruminations: 1 Corinthians 1

I have always wanted to, and many times attempted, journaling. But it never "got off the ground" for me, so to speak, until I started blogging. For some reason, this tool just seems to be a good fit for me. Even more than writing about the daily grind, I've always wanted to maintain a spiritual journal, and I've been successful at times, but I don't do it with the regularity I'd like. So, I'm thinking of posting some "spiritual journal" entries here, and seeing how it goes. I'm a good starter, and I struggle with follow-through, so this may be the 1st and last post of its kind for me! But, if I come back to it, I'll try to title these types of posts similarly so you can skip them if your time for, or interest in, these kinds of posts is lacking! ;0) Without further ado, here goes:

I have been guilty of sometimes passing on advice to someone that sounds something like this, "Well, I know Dr. Phil is cheesy, but he said this great thing that I heard once..." or "I never watch Oprah, really, but I just happened to flip past the channel when she was on the other day, and she said..." or "I heard this great thought somewhere, I can't remember where, but it goes like this..." You get the idea. Human wisdom. Not only ingesting it, but passing it on! I often feel sheepish even in the midst of doing it, but I don't spend too much time thinking about it, because I can't articulate what's wrong with it. Then I was reading through I Corinthians this morning... Chapter 1, verse 17, says Christ sends us "...to preach the gospel--not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power." Wow. Why should I feel sheepish about passing on Oprah's latest nice idea? Because when I spend my breath on that, I'm using valuable breath that could be, should be, sharing the gospel. Sharing scripture. How much more helpful if I share scripture as advice than human wisdom? Ooh--and here's where it hurts: How can I share scripture when I'm out shopping with a friend, or on a walk with my daughter, or sitting around the campfire with family unless I have it memorized? God tells us over and over to memorize His Word. But the simple fact is we don't. I know less than 20 scriptures that I can recite word for word, including the reference, but I know countless song lyrics, lines from movies, Dr. Phil-isms (like: How is that working for you?)... you get the idea. Is it just lame if I spend my efforts on human wisdom? No! It empties the cross of Christ of its power! Uh oh. BIG uh oh. How can the cross of Christ do its powerful work in people's lives when I'm not speaking it to them, when they're not hearing it?

So you know how people are always saying that faith in God is for the weak? For the simpletons who need something to lean on? Well, I say, "AMEN!" Verse 18 says, "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing..." Foolishness. Yes, non-Christians see me as foolish. See the message of the cross as foolish. I'd rather have a reputation for being foolish, weak-minded, a simpleton, than to be perishing. Not to mention I couldn't imagine getting comfortable with the idea that the outcome of my eternity rests on my intelligence! Yikes. Um, yeah... I'll gladly say I'm not smart enough, and let the Creator of the Universe handle that! Verses 19 and 20 talk about how God will do away with wisdom and intelligence, including the wisdom of philosophers of this age. (Dr. Phil? Oprah?)

Verse 22 says, "Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom." It makes me think of how there seems to be two extremes of Christianity practiced today: one extreme spends all of its time and energy in the arena of the miraculous, riding the emotional waves of supernatural-ness, always looking for that next "spiritual high", but all the while neglecting the deep truths of scripture. The other extreme is so serious, always studying, but rarely if ever embracing the joy of abundant life. Paul provides the answer to a proper balance in verse 23: "...we preach Christ crucified." In my words, he's saying, "Don't spend your energy looking for miraculous, emotional things to fill you up and satisfy you. Don't spend all your energy studying so seriously that you can't enjoy God's creation and the abundant life He offers. Don't look to miracles. Don't look to wisdom. Look to Christ, and the right balance will work itself out."

I love how Paul starts I Corinthians by saying, "To... all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ" so I know I can read this book as though it's written directly to me, which it is! And in chapter 1, I walk away with the admonition that it's all about Christ. And I need to step it up and do my part to be memorizing scripture so I can do a better job of looking toward Him myself, as well as pointing others toward Him.