God uses foolish things to shame the wise

1 corr 1:25

For what seems to be God's foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and what seems to be God's weakness is stronger than human strength.

Who are the wise men in this world? 

Wise men in this world are those who have understood how life operates in many angles, by experience, by reading and listening to the wise men before, by studying so many books laws principles of this world. They have answers to almost everything, when one approaches them they usually have solutions to the most difficult situation.

Most times when you meet them, some look confused because they have discovered something that you do not know, usually what they speak doesn't make sense but when you apply it you understand why they did so or told you to do so. 

Same applies to things of God. There are so many things God does or uses that look very foolish to man. This is because they do not make sense to a normal human being or a carnal man or a wise man in this case who is well educated.

I will start with an example of the pharisees who approach Jesus and begin to question His credentials. It never made sense to them how a man can have so much knowledge yet he never went through the school system they knew and governed. In today's time you would say Jesus had no academic qualifications when it comes to a university degree. A university degree is a proof that you have finished all the schooling requirements and your knowledge can be trusted.

But even if the knowledge of Jesus Christ had no academic stamp to it, no one would deny that Jesus had so much knowledge and wisdom and people even began to refer to Him as Rabbi, teacher, good Lord when approaching Him. 

 John 3

There was a Jewish leader named Nicodemus, who belonged to the party of the Pharisees. ² One night he went to Jesus and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher sent by God. No one could perform the miracles you are doing unless God were with him.”

Even the knowledgeable teachers, pharisees came to Jesus to seek more knowledge about more complicated topics like eternal life, the kingdom of heaven, being born-again. I am not discrediting any academics or schooling, as it is we learn allot from school. The person am talking about here is Jesus whose ways are different and far better than the systems established and cannot be easily understood even if one studies in many schools.

Some of these things one has to be humble enough to allow God to reveal to them as He did with Peter whom after Jesus acknowledged that it was God who gave the revelation to him.

Satan being the most knowledgeable in the things of this world came to meet Jesus who had acquired so much knowledge and began to challenge Him, but was defeated and backed off. 

Think about the situation of Moses, I am yet to see someone part waters of an ocean or sea using a staff that is a normal staff for raring animals. This looks foolish when you tell someone how waters parted when someone lifted a staff, it sounds foolish to be in a desert and you hit a rock so that you can get water out of the rock, these are things wise men cannot explain.

Faith cannot be explained by the wise, the science behind faith, it is why many choose to dismiss faith reports because they cannot explain what is happening, but this is the beauty about the things of God, matters of faith have no scientific formula, therefore they do not require your techniques of mastering routines. However much you try the most you can become is a sorcerer because that is what you will mostly become when you master the art of spiritual independence.

It would be a foolish thing if you just followed a voice telling you to get up leave everything you rely on and go to where you don't know so that you prosper. But to us we call it Faith. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.

What does this mean? Some people look at faith as their pride, if pride is your faith then you have faith in yourself. The faith I am talking about is the faith in God. Where you believe and trust in the word of God. When God speaks you carry that word as a title deed. That word doesn't have to make sense, you just have to obey and trust God to fulfill His word. When you reason it it ceases to b faith, it means you don't trust the instruction from God, therefore you try hard to interpret it in your own wisdom.

Blind trust in God's word, sounds blind and foolish doesn't it? But God is all powerful and His word cannot go unfulfilled. If one prophesied and it never came to pass then you cant blame it on God but blame it on the prophet you told you a word that wasn't from God. Many prophets today prophesy from their own wisdom. They assess the situation and from it they predict the possible outcome. Many times this outcome is close to being accurate just like political analysts predict things to come on the political scenes after careful study.

But here is the strange part. The word of God does not require you to study these things to be accurate. God is all knowing and is omnipresent. This means that God knows everything. So all you need is to put your trust in Him who is present everywhere and knows all things and you cannot go wrong in following His word. This is because God is able to do exceedingly and abundantly above all you can ask or think. And He has great plans concerning our well being. 

A man of faith is considered foolish because he does not set aside securities the way everyone knows, but his results are always shocking to the wise people who try hard to study how he made it. Many will approach him asking how He did it but in actual sense he too has no clue and all he can tell them is the truth. God did it.

Many people do not want to hear such a statement because they do not believe anyway, they are always thinking of formulas and philosophies and scientific mysteries behind ones success. But Faith is that foolish thing that shames the wise. 

Mattthew 6

7 "The world is full of so-called prayer warriors who are prayer-ignorant. They're full of formulas and programs and advice, peddling techniques for getting what you want from God.

8 Don't fall for that nonsense. This is your Father you are dealing with, and he knows better than you what you need.

 

Also the message of the cross the cross is foolishness to them who are headed for death, but to us it is the saving power of God. One will always wonder why someone would be foolish enough to carry the cross or even talk about it, only one who has seen what no one has seen will follow and treasure what others call foolish.

 1 Corinthians 1

¹⁸ The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God. ¹⁹ As the Scriptures say,

“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise
    and discard the intelligence of the intelligent.”^[e]

²⁰ So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world’s brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish. ²¹ Since God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe. ²² It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven. And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom. ²³ So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it’s all nonsense.

²⁴ But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles,^[f] Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. ²⁵ This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength.

²⁶ Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy^[g] when God called you. ²⁷ Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. ²⁸ God chose things despised by the world,^[h] things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important. ²⁹ As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God.

³⁰ God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin. ³¹ Therefore, as the Scriptures say, “If you want to boast, boast only about the Lord.”^[i]

^{Blindly trusting in God sounds like foolishnes but is it really foolishness? or it is rather wisdom. The wisest man King Solomon came to a conclusion that the fear of the Lord is the begining of wisdom wisdom.} 

^{Emmanuel Ranja}

^{Mamlakah Fellowship Website}